Handling the St Augustine grass

St Augustine grass is the least cold-tolerant of the warm season grasses. However, I have seen beautiful stands of this grass on home lawns and in a park here.

It will survive in Alamance County. St. Augustine grass is used more extensively in the lower Southern states.

This grass is coarser than Bermuda, centipede, and zoysia. To the untrained eye, it closely resembles fescue. However, when frost occurs, it will turn brown and remain that color until springtime. St Augustine sprigs are used to establish lawns in late May and June.

The St Augustine grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum), in its different varieties used in the northeast region, such as standard, floratam, raleigh, and Seville, is the grass most widely used for its resistance to climatic conditions and soil types.

St Augustine grass Management During The Year.

Below I make a few brief recommendations for its management during the year.

January

The work of tummy is only justified to level and rehabilitate damaged areas, avoid covering the green tips in St Augustine grass, and use soil free of pests and seeds. That is, look for it to be smoked. Irrigation should be light and never upright to protect from the cold.

February

The cutting of the St Augustine grass should be light, never exceeding more than a third of the size of the foliage. This, in addition to avoiding cutting the storage area of sugars and carbohydrates, will protect the exposure of the guides to low temperatures.

The irrigation should be early in the morning, and remember that winter arrope is not necessary to protect pastures from low temperatures.

March

By increasing temperatures, they must take care of the frequency and amount of irrigation so that it does not lack moisture for spring development. It is time to start monthly fertilization, which should continue until October.

Use nitrogen products such as urea or ammonium sulfate, using one kilo of the first per 100 square meters of St Augustine grass. Using the second product must be 2 kilos per surface unit; the application should be after a cut and before irrigation.

April

They should increase the frequency and amount of irrigation, this will cause more significant development of the pastures, and therefore pruning should be more frequent. Maintain monthly fertilization.

Inspect your pastures, especially if there are yellow shades and unanchored grass, that is, loose, as it can manifest the damage of blind hen.

May

Increase the cutting height to prepare the canicle so that the guides are protected from solar radiation and high temperatures. Perform the necessary weedings.
Plant new guides where required and monitor the presence of chicharrita to control it.

June

Frequent weeding and pruning activity is necessary to prevent weeds from reproducing.
Cutting or pruning should be higher to prepare the St Augustine grass for the canicle.

The adult of the blind hen is a small straw-colored beetle, who will walk around his gardens to put eggs, so it is advisable to make generalized sprays to plants, fences, and walls.

July

During this month, you can observe stains caused by blind hen and fungi; they should carry out control treatments as soon as possible, relying on professional pest controllers specializing in green areas.

The cut should be higher to protect soil moisture so that the guides are not exposed to solar radiation.

Please continue with the wedding preventing weeds from reaching their flowering.
Irrigation has to be done early in the morning.

August

In the face of the summer season, it is convenient that the cuts stay higher and weed more often.

Control the infestation of blind hen and chicharritas.
Increase the frequency and amount of irrigation.
It’s time to plant zither using pruning or guiding.
Fungal stains may occur and must be controlled with professional pest controllers specializing in green areas.

September

In this month, they can plant the guides of St Augustine grass to replenish faults or establish new areas.

The cuts should be higher and the weeding continuous. Fertilization should be monthly based on urea or ammonium sulfate.

If there are fungal ingots, treatments with the support of professional pest controllers with expertise in green areas should be applied.

October

Excellent month to plant guides and rehabilitate damaged areas or establish new zones.
Fertilize with urea or ammonium sulfate.

If they have shallows in their gardens, they can fill them with sandy soil without completely covering the plant, always leaving the green tips outside the saddle.

November

Increase the cutting height and remember never to prune more than a third the size of the foliage of your zeda; this will protect the exposure guides at low temperatures.

The growth of the St Augustine grass will be slower and thus decrease the frequency of pruning. They can still fertilize this month using urea or ammonium sulfate. Avoid winter, yude.

December

It is the best time to do the slams, leveling to correct the Lomas and shallows in your garden. It would be best if you did this in stages, as the ends of the grass have to be always uncovered to prevent them from drowning.

Remember to select the material to use well for leveling because if the soil is contaminated, it will cause herbal problems and blind hen.

You can use river sand or sterilized land like the one you get in supermarkets or specialized nurseries.