I want to encourage the spread of a St. Augustine lawn to fill in bare areas. Is there anything in particular that can be done to the soil and/or dropped that would encourage this type of growth?
Encouraging the spread of St. Augustine
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Caledwen
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Cut on the highest mower setting.
Put starter fertilizer down along with some compost or rich garden soil. Sprinkle it along the areas the stolens are spreading out.
Hopefully get some good thunderstorms. Works better than regular hose water.
Maybe skip a mowing....and let it grow
Put starter fertilizer down along with some compost or rich garden soil. Sprinkle it along the areas the stolens are spreading out.
Hopefully get some good thunderstorms. Works better than regular hose water.
Maybe skip a mowing....and let it grow
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i've been experimenting with this in my own yard. i thought the height of cut made a difference but it doesn't affect it too much. it seems to spread just as much mowing it at 2.5-3" as it does if you mow it at 3.5-4".
you just don't want to mow it so short that you cut off the runners. fertilizer, water, and time.....more time than you think it would take. it's weird. in some areas it will send out runners 3-4ft (maybe more) in one year but in others it may only spread 6-12" in a year. it doesn't spread in a straight line it's really random in the way it spreads.
i guess it also depends on the variety (type) of st. augustine you have. i have raleigh. it seems to spread more in the spring and fall than it does in the summer time. i guess because of the heat.
also it will spread where you don't really want it to and won't spread where you want it to. :laugh:
it easily grows across the driveway and sidewalk and into flower beds but seems to not want to go out through the yard.
you just don't want to mow it so short that you cut off the runners. fertilizer, water, and time.....more time than you think it would take. it's weird. in some areas it will send out runners 3-4ft (maybe more) in one year but in others it may only spread 6-12" in a year. it doesn't spread in a straight line it's really random in the way it spreads.
i guess it also depends on the variety (type) of st. augustine you have. i have raleigh. it seems to spread more in the spring and fall than it does in the summer time. i guess because of the heat.
also it will spread where you don't really want it to and won't spread where you want it to. :laugh:
it easily grows across the driveway and sidewalk and into flower beds but seems to not want to go out through the yard.
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Your right, it is super frustrating. Some of my customers will fill in a bare spot in a their yard in just a couple weeks it seems. My yard, is killing me. My back yard was killed by some rough dog play. Now that I want it to come back, it's going super slow. I guess I'll have to help those spots out with some sod. :-(
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you can get a plug from a good area of your lawn and put in the bare spots. water it every day for 2 weeks. it's a lot of work but it speeds things up.
in my yard the st. augustine is great in 75% of the yard. people had parked in the yard before i moved in and so i put some plugs in that area by the driveway. where i put the plugs is doing great but in the other areas it's battling it out with crabgrass so i think that's really slowing it down.
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Thanks Weeze! I'll try adding plugs to those areas. I"m not a chemical guy (yet). Does Nitrogen encourage runner growth or does it mostly effect individual grass blade growth? This spring I dropped scott's on the yard, my growth isn't as much as my customers. I wonder if I should hit it with some commercial grade fertilizer.
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You REALLY need to check the soil before you proceed, improper pH will kill any efforts you make.
I'm sorry, but that is just wrong. Proper mowing height is important in the health of the grass, cutting at 3" or less in NOT healthy for the grass.
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yeah i thought the same but i guess it depends on the variety of st augustine and where you are located. i regularly cut a few customer's yards with st. augustine at 2.5" bi weekly and their yards look great. the st. augustine is completely full coverage in their yards with little to no weeds. i cut my own at 3.5" weekly and it doesn't look any better than theirs.
the only thing i've noticed is during the summer time mowing it taller the grass goes to seed where as if you mow it a little lower it does not go to seed. mine has had seed heads showing for 2 months now. the customer's yards haven't shown seed heads. they never do if you mow it at 2.5-3" tall. if you mow it 3.5-4" it will do the seed head thing though which doesn't look as good. it's either the mowing height or the fact that i fertilize my lawn. none of my customer's yards get fertilized.
honestly i fertilize and mow taller and my yard doesn't look as good as theirs do. go figure. :laugh:
the only thing that kills st. augustine is lack of water. it doesn't do very well in a drought situation.
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yes nitrogen helps but don't just use any old fertilizer. you can easily burn the lawn using regular fertilizer. it's best to use natural fertilizers like milorganite or ringer lawn restore and other organic fertilizers like that.
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yeah it works good but it's also good to throw another brand in there from time to time.
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Milorganite does not include any potassium.
Myself I would use a high-efficiency fertilizer with at least 50 percent coated nitrogen--plus some potassium. Koch XCU for instance. Coated nitrogen fertilizer is non-burning, and it supplies nitrogen to the grass on a slow steady basis.
True, its a lot of work--but planting plugs or just sprigs obtained from another part of the lawn would probably be quicker. Punch holes with a trowel or an aerator--put a sprig in each hole. 6 inches apart would be plenty in my mind.
Myself I would use a high-efficiency fertilizer with at least 50 percent coated nitrogen--plus some potassium. Koch XCU for instance. Coated nitrogen fertilizer is non-burning, and it supplies nitrogen to the grass on a slow steady basis.
True, its a lot of work--but planting plugs or just sprigs obtained from another part of the lawn would probably be quicker. Punch holes with a trowel or an aerator--put a sprig in each hole. 6 inches apart would be plenty in my mind.
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Thanks much for the info ya'll. When I get some down time I may be able to do some sprigs and learn how to do that :-D
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