Top-Dressing St. Augustine in Coastal Texas

dstrahm – posted 17 March 2005 18:23

I live near Houston, Texas and have about an acre of Raliegh St. Augustine that is about 4 years old from sodding. Unfortunately the builder did little to properly prepare the yard for turf. The underlying soil is Gulf Coast clay (you can make incredible pottery objects with it!) with a very thin layer of “bank sand” on top which was not smoothed/leveled properly.

To smooth out the bumps (it can toss you off the John Deere if you are not careful!) and improve the soil quality I was considering a top-dressing application.

Here’s what I need to know:1. What are the typical and recommended top-dressing materials for St. Augustine in my underlying soil type?2. What are some methods for spreading the top-dressing so that it helps fill in the lumps? Remember that it’s an acre! Hand spreading might take a year!3. What, if any, problems might I encounter such as incoming weeds, etc.

Of course, any other recommendations are appreciated. Thanks!

Turfmiester – posted 20 March 2005 17:12

You need to use a washed sand. This gets all the impurities out of it. You might check with one of your local equipment rental dealers. He might have a top dresser for rent. Other than thatk, hand spreading is the only way

Henry