Lawn Care Tips For Warm-Season Grasses
Posted on: 26 October 2022
Warm-season grasses can make for a very nice lawn, whether you plant them alone or in conjunction with cool-season grasses. St. Augustine grass, bermudagrass, carpetgrass, and zoysia grass all fall into this category. Warm-season grasses have complex root systems and grow to look like a carpet, resulting in a really lush lawn. However, you do need to care for these grasses properly to keep them looking nice. Here are some ways to take better care of your warm-season grasses.
Aerate the grass in the spring.
Aerating involves punching tiny holes into the soil. This allows more air and water to work their way into the soil, which makes for healthier grass. Since warm-season grasses have such dense, mat-like roots, aerating them during a slow growth period can cause more short-term damage than long-term good. So, you really want to aerate in the late spring to early summer. This is when warm-season grasses are growing rapidly and will easily grow in to compensate for any damage done during aeration.
Leave the lawn a little longer in the summer.
If the roots of warm-season grass are exposed to too much sun, they can dry out and become compromised. The easiest way to protect the roofs is to leave your grass a little longer during the hottest months of the year. When temperatures start ticking up, just raise your mower blade one notch.
Keep watering throughout the fall.
When temperatures start cooling off in the fall, warm-season grasses will slow down their growth dramatically. This may lead you to cut back on your watering. But even though the grass is not growing, you should keep on watering. This will ensure the grass has plenty of moisture to store for the winter. Warm-season grasses really need this moisture to make it through the chilly months.
Use pre-emergent herbicides.
Removing weeds from warm-season lawns is hard because their roots become intermixed with the grass roots. So, it is easier to prevent weeds from growing in the first place. Scatter a pre-emergent herbicide in the fall and again in the spring. These herbicides contain chemicals that prevent weeds from germinating in the first place.
Warm-season grasses like Bermudagrass and zoysia grass can make for an incredible lawn. Just make sure you're providing your grass with the care it needs to stay healthy and strong. Talk to a landscaping contractor or lawn care service such as J. L. P. Services for more tips and advice.
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