Zoysia: Too many options – HELP!

StinklePink – posted 08 June 2005 15:32

Alright. I’ve been reading this forum for a week now and I still don’t feel like I’m any closer to figuring out which ‘flavor’ of Zoysia to plant. Here are my variables:

<> I live in Cary, NC.<> I have about 1,200 sqft of Bermuda that was (poorly) planted by the homes previous owner. I would like to replace it with Zoysia and choke-out the Bermuda and various weeds.<> I have about 150 sqft of lawn that has partial shade.<> There is no sprinker system.<> Money is an issue and I want to go with plugs.<> I want a dense, low maintenance lawn with good heat, shade and drought tolerance.<> I want to use a conventional mower.<> $$ is a factor..sod is probably not an option

So..I’m hoping one or more of you kind people can help me with a grass choice. I know I want to go with Zoysia (some has creeeped over from a neighbors lawn and I like it). Here are my questions:

<> Given what you now know, hich Zoysia?!?!?! Do I go Amazoy, Emerald, El Toro or Empress?<> Has anyone had luck with plugs in this part of NC?<> How late can I plant?<> Which will give me the longest green season?<> 3″ or 1″ plugs<> Do I have to kill the Bermuda first?<> Which company do you reccomend?

A huge thank you in advance to everyone who took the time to respond.

[This message has been edited by StinklePink (edited 08 June 2005).]

kyleinmarietta – posted 08 June 2005 19:25

I prefer Emerald, but Meyer (AKA Amazoy) may be easier to mow and a little more cold hardy.

Instead of buying plugs, try and find a local nursery which carries squares of the sod you select. Then, you get their relatively fresh sod and cut it into 3×3 pieces or whatever and install it.

Smaller pieces dry out easier and suffer increased mortality.

In your area, you probably need to plant by early August to be assured of surviving the winter.

You will need to get rid of the Bermuda unless you have a decade or more to wait on the Zoysia to out-compete it.

If I was in your situation, I’d consider killing off the entire yard with round-up, then dethatching the yard to expose soil, then overseeding with Zenith zoysia.

Why? Plugging tends to give you a lot of bumps where you installed the plugs. Leveling a bumpy yard takes a lot of work. Probably less work than it would take to dethatch the yard, sew seed, and water properly.

With the seed, you could have a full lawn at the end of *this* growing season if you start now. With plugs, it’ll be next year, or maybe two years from now *if* you kill the bermuda first. That means a year or more of muddy feet, erosion, etc.

My $0.02…

StinklePink – posted 09 June 2005 07:59

quote:Originally posted by kyleinmarietta:I prefer Emerald, but Meyer (AKA Amazoy) may be easier to mow and a little more cold hardy.

Instead of buying plugs, try and find a local nursery which carries squares of the sod you select. Then, you get their relatively fresh sod and cut it into 3×3 pieces or whatever and install it.

Smaller pieces dry out easier and suffer increased mortality.

In your area, you probably need to plant by early August to be assured of surviving the winter.

You will need to get rid of the Bermuda unless you have a decade or more to wait on the Zoysia to out-compete it.

If I was in your situation, I’d consider killing off the entire yard with round-up, then dethatching the yard to expose soil, then overseeding with Zenith zoysia.

Why? Plugging tends to give you a lot of bumps where you installed the plugs. Leveling a bumpy yard takes a lot of work. Probably less work than it would take to dethatch the yard, sew seed, and water properly.

With the seed, you could have a full lawn at the end of *this* growing season if you start now. With plugs, it’ll be next year, or maybe two years from now *if* you kill the bermuda first. That means a year or more of muddy feet, erosion, etc.

My $0.02…

Kyle:

Thanks for the info. This is actually a great idea. I’ve heard great things about a local sod guy called Super Sod which I’ll try and call. In terms of cost…if I can pick up the seed locally this may be cheaper than buying plugs out of state and shipping. Killing the Bermuda with chemicals appears to be expensive. Gotta look into that.

I’m alos lookig at Empire as this seems like a good grass for my needs as well.

TexanOne – posted 15 June 2005 00:43

Any $$ you spend now to prevent Bermuda invasion in Zoysia is worth 10x what it will cost you to keep Bermuda/St Augustine out of it in the future. Take it from someone that made that mistake!!

StinklePink – posted 15 June 2005 07:35

Sound advice, my friend. Sound advice. Question now is what do I use to kill it with? I’ve seen a lot of posts about a lot of stuff including RoundUp. Any suggestions? Thank you.

RLines – posted 15 June 2005 10:33

I went with Palisades Zoysia. It is basically a varient of the Z-52 strain, otherwise known as Meyer.

It is great grass. Zoysia is weird because there are so many varities and they are truly different looking. Thin blade, medium blade, and thick. Only one I know is thick and that is Empress. Palisades is a medium blade.

As far as preventing invasion of other grasses, it is definately advisable!Zoysia is slower growing, so weeds and other grasses have a chance to establish themselves before your nice grass. If you are sodding, then run a 4 inch metal border around the entire border of your yard. It is WORTH the cost. And make sure you bang it into the ground at least three inches. This will prevent rhizomes from competing grasses getting under. the final inch above ground will enable you to see stolons creeping across the border and whack them.

IT WORKS!

L.A. (LowerApex) – posted 16 June 2005 07:26

I live in Apex, NC and I just put down 8 pallets of Empire Zoysia in May. I purchase this from Carolina Turf Farm in SoutherPines. 32 cents sq. ft. (450 sq. feet per pallet). I am happy with the Empire. I watered it every day for about two weeks and now I have been able to back off the H20. These hot days my neighbors fescue is suffering(even with irrigation). As you know H2O is quite expense in Wake County and Zoysia is a perfect choice for lower cost and maintenance than the popular fescue. I put down 14 pallets at my previous house in ChapelHill NC, of El Toro sod (looks like the Empire)and really liked it! The El Toro variety sod is available at John Deere Landscapes on hwy 64 on the left before Lake Jordan. I purchased from them in the past and was happy with the price and quality. I hope this helps with your decision.

StinklePink – posted 16 June 2005 07:56

Awesome advice! Thank you.

catfish – posted 17 June 2005 17:42

I also recently chose Empire. I put down 2500 sp ft in October and another 1500 in mid-March. All are doing very well. I have some experience with emerald and meyers, and I buy into the propaganda that the broader leafed varieties are more shade tollerant, which is an issue for me. I think that removing the old grass and keeping it damp was the key.