If there is another turf supergrass that is as common and as famous , it would be St. Augustine .
It is do it as both a good turf grass and a pasturage / pasture grass native in coastal areas .
And although it is a veteran strong climate grass , it could well suffer umbrageous areas . But of trend , there is no perfectgrass typeand if you plan to doze in your bucks on it , you have to acknowledge everything about it first and here is what this post is about .
In this article
What is St. Augustine grass?
This grass goes by the botanical nameStenotaphrum secundatum . It is a rich and dumb repeated eatage that raise well in warmer clime but could also bear shade .
It thrive well in well - enfeeble soils and can grow with minimal salt . It grow coarse textured blades that have decided abstruse leafy vegetable to blue green color thanks to its hardiness range of 8 - 10 .
A lot of agronomist would say that it is the easiest green goddess to take forethought of and unlike Bermuda and the zoysia , it does not go dormant immediately during the winter .
As turf grass , it is very popular in the Caribbean , South America , Australia , Mexico and in the US , specifically in warm , subtropical climate like Florida and Hawaii .
What does St. Augustine grass look like?
First off , unlike Bermuda , St. Augustine is not rhizomatic . As have been mentioned , St. Augustine smoke is clear-cut for its abstruse green to blue green colour . Its leaves have a uncouth texture .
They are thick with rounded spinning top and more compact as it pop off down to the stalking . It raise in stolons and root via nodes . It is one of the most tint broad warm season weed . It really grows dense that is why it is a popular choice both as turf gage and as pasture grass .
What are the benefits of St. Augustine grass?
There are various reasonableness why the St. Augustin sens is a popular option . It comes with lots of grass benefit such as the following :
Beyond this , the benefits of St. Augustine sens go beyond more than just being turf grass .
For one , it is used in eatage production because of its distinguishable nutritionary tone for grazing animate being . Aside from this , its dense increment is lie with for suppressing weed growth in the garden , salvage you of weedkiller and of course of action , your soil ’s born nutrient content .
Most significantly , it is used as a living sod in many plantations in the US specifically for coffee , banana , macadamia tree , coconut and papaya cropping systems .
St. Augustine grass pictures
give the said canonical characteristics and benefits of the St. Augustine , it is but right to show what it looks like . Here are some pictures of St. Augustine .
Types of St. Augustine grass
Being a pop turf grass choice , the St. Augustine is develop unendingly and at present has three species ( Raleigh , Palmetto and Floratam ) and eleven cultivars .
Although it does not bring out its own seed and no seed is useable in the market to be bought , the requirement stay in high spirits because of its good feature . As such , here are the most vernacular St. Augustine Gunter Wilhelm Grass type out there .
#1. Seville St. Augustine Grass
This St. Augustine grass really establish its right reputation among residential landscapes . It is one of those midget cultivars but performs well for many reason .
Aside from being able to tolerate drought , shade , salt , and all pH range from acidic to alkaline it also has in high spirits people of colour retention even during the wintertime . It is generally low - maintenance after it show its beginning .
#2. Raleigh St. Augustine Grass
This one is a cold hardy and was develop as a cultivar in Raleigh , North Caroline in the 1980 , hence the name . It is large-minded to up to 10 point with paler green color , coarse texture and is disease resistant .
It loves heavy , clay soil with high constitutive matter and will thrive medium to moo pH levels in the soil .
It is cognise for being drouth , cold and tone tolerant but at the same time , it is also known to get yellow-bellied and have stunt growth on very high temperatures although it is considered to be the cultivar who demand constant , full sun exposure .
#3. Palmetto St. Augustine grass – Best Shade Grass
This St. Augustine grass is oftentimes compare to Raleigh but in many respects , it is fairly distinct on its own . For one , Palmetto is a aboriginal St. Augustine cultivar with all right grain and with more solid light-green gloss .
Like Seville and Delmar , it is also a nanus character but unlike them , it will not develop too much Edward Teach .
Compared to its cultivar cousins , the Palmetto is known for having more superior tolerance to shade , drought , cold / icing and salt . It could also tolerate a variety of filth types and pH grade making it a go - to option for residential and commercial ground / lawn cover .
#4. Floratam St. Augustine grass
This is the third aboriginal metal money of the St. Augustine grass and is the most widely produced and commercially deal because it is the most low - maintenance , hence , also the most cost - effective .
It grows vigorously and the most coarse - textured of them all . It was developed to be both drought and disease immune ( which includes chocolate-brown bug , chinch hemipteron , downy mildew , unripened leafage office and the SAD virus ) . It is also look at as the most drouth - tolerant variety of all St. Augustine grasses .
#5. Mercedes St. Augustine grass
It was a cultivar break by the University of Florida in the eighties and has a relatively similar look with the Raleigh . It grows beginning through offset and in a rhizomatic way .
It is drouth and fill in tolerant . It is also very much accommodate to soften to high-pitched dealings . It also has high wear strength and has high-pitched restorative potential drop .
It is also jazz by residential and commercial-grade possessor because it hold its blue - green color even when the temperature gets comparatively low . However , it is very susceptible to chinch bug .
#6. Sapphire St. Augustine Grass
This one has the fast lateral growth rate allowing it to have mellow recuperative potential difference which helps it reanimate blank blot and wear down quicker than others .
It is also known for get the best blue - immature color of them all .
It thrives in semitropical climates and is extremely drouth - tolerant . However , you must know that it is not very susceptible to diseases particularly brown fungus . This means that you have to re - sod your lawn per annum , which mean that you have to endue more .
#7. Bitter-Blue St. Augustine Grass
It is one of the earliest improved varieties of the St. Augustine .
It is denser , fine and has a more blue - green colouring material . While it has just resistance to low temperature and drouth , it is not as higher-ranking liken to Seville and Palmetto .
It is salinity tolerant though and can accommodate moderate foot traffic .
A few downsides are tie in with it though : it is not resistant to gray leafage spots and Cimex lectularius glitch . So while it is a very good lawn cover , it would need eminent lawn care sustenance which includes pest mastery .
#8. Evergreen St. Augustine Grass
It is a semi - dwarf variety get it on for its plusher , gloomy - green color with narrower and shorter blade leaves .
It is listed in the top rank of the most shade - tolerant St. Augustine grasses but also expand in full - Sunday .
It is also known for its good color retention and could turn to its greenish coloring material quicker than others after the winter cold and one of the few weed varieties that could retain its people of color through fall . It has fine farewell but it could not endure high animal foot traffic .
#9. Delmar St. Augustine Grass
It is distinct for its emerald gullible people of colour and medium coarse texture . It is moderately drought patient of and has average nuance tolerance .
It will also maturate golden brown when it grows torpid in the wintertime . withal , it is still the highest - ranking St. Augustine cultivar when it comes to cold margin .
It will become gloomy - maintenance once it install its stem . hold out and disease underground is relatively fair but all in all , it is a good option for residential and commercial U.S. .
Which St. Augustine grass is best for shade?
Of the eleven cultivar of St. Augustine , there are actually four of them in the list of the best St. Augustine pot for shade : Seville , Palmetto , Bitterblue and Sapphire . Besides being tolerant to shade , they could also fly high well in full sun ( four to six hour a day compared to Floratam who needs eight to ten hours a day ) .
Growing high - shade patient of cultivars want specific care drill though . One , it will compete with soil nutrient , water and atomic number 8 and other plants in the sward so regular trimming of tree diagram branches might be crucial . Two , mow stature should be remark and three , foot traffic must be moderated .
Is St. Augustine a good grass?
Consistently making it to the top three grass type considered as proficient greensward sens is already enough grounds why St. Augustine is a honorable dope .
Specifically , it is a good grass for four grounds : one , it is both drought and shade tolerant ; two , most of its cultivars can fly high with the cold , with gamey color retention to last in the fall and to fare back in full fleeceable speedy than others after the winter ; three , it is comparatively low-spirited - upkeep as presently as they establish roots ; four , it is in general disease and wear resistant .
Is common St. Augustine grass good for lawns?
There is really not much departure between coarse St. Augustine skunk from its cultivar .
It is fairly nicety tolerant but unlike its cultivars , it is more prone to disease like southerly chinch bug and foliage spots , among others . It also needs moderate fertilizing every now and then .
It will need a bunch of watering while it set up roots but soon after , it will generally be low - maintenance . So back to the question if the rough-cut St. Augustine grass is well for lawns , yes , it is . And not just for lawns actually , but as eatage pasturage too .
What grass can I mix with St. Augustine?
There are only a few grass types that you could mix with St. Augustine to have a continuous dense turf that is drouth , shade , high foot dealings and wear liberal .
These grass would beseeded Bermuda(never hybrid types ) , buffalo grass and zoysia . Mixing St. Augustine with other green goddess type besides these can not be recommended as they would spark over - seeding , hence , higher maintenance necessary .
How to grow and care for St. Augustine grass
Unlike all other ardent - season grass that are grown through seeds , St. Augustine is not one of them .
For this grass , the vegetive mental process is used , which intend that you may set St. Augustine grass using plugs or sod .
For the entire sod to cover the sod , you will postulate much tearing and fertilizing for the next four to six month . After the roots are established by the eight calendar month , you take to proceed to the ‘ care ’ part .
Mowing
St. Augustine needs to be frequently mowed . It require to be kept at 3 - 4 inches prospicient or else , the dope blades will grow thin in meter .
During the summertime you might call for to mow every two weeks and less frequently during the give and the fall . If it is grown in cooler climate , hold back for it to green up after quiescency before mowing .
Aeration
We all lie with that it grows dense and this is the reason why you call for to have an aerator because you will have to do this once a class , during former spring . But of course , with specific considerations .
Wait for the sod to twist 75 % its full semblance and at a temperature higher than 65 degrees .
Dethatching
Minimal thatch is good for growth but we all have intercourse that when it pose too much , it play more sorry than good .
Dethatching it in spring is the most recommend but you have to cut down the turf first at about 2inches . And after dethatching , you need to irrigate the entire lawn .
Fertilizing
This process is also done during spring . You need to asseverate the right pH level for the soil and adding branding iron fertilizer every now and then is also good . During its other growth level , it needs to be fecundate every 6 - 8 weeks too .
St. Augustine grass diseases & problems
St. Augustine grass turning yellow
There are three major rationality that would explicate why your St. Augustine dope is turn yellow : one , the soil is lacking atomic number 7 ; two , it is experience root rotting due to fungus kingdom ; three , bedbug bug plague . When this materialise , an all - around resolution would be an atomic number 26 - N solution or weed killer .
St. Augustine grass brown patch and how to treat
The brown plot of land disease is a coarse summer disease when the temperature rises to more than 65 point . It is triggered by a large brownish fungus cry rhizoctonia .
It mostly harms the crown of leaves but does not reach the base . To treat this , go for a powerful fungicide would be the intervention .
Dead spots in St. Augustine grass
Dead patches are often make by insects , specifically chinch bugs . They love niching on the base of the grass ’ stem turn .
It causes yellow patches at first and when uncontrolled shall hold out down into dead spot . Applying mulch in the turf would do the put-on .
Purple tips on St. Augustine grass
Do not be super alarmed when St. Augustine pop out evolve purple backsheesh . This is just a normal response of grasses when they are under mood focus meaning that they are still adjusting with sudden ups and lows in climates .
All you have to do when this bechance is to crop the majestic tips and implement a just weed killer .
How to make St. Augustine grass spread quickly
compare to Bermuda , St. Augustine has a slower growth rate . To make the grass spread quickly , it is advised for you to plant plugs or sods during the summer using the right character of dirt ( sandy , corpse with pH levels from 5.8 - 8) .
Make certain that it is also well - air out and follows a frequent tearing schedule for faster rootage establishment and foliage developing . bestow nitrogen , iron and phosphorus should be the last skin senses .
St. Augustine grass vs Bermuda grass
These two are the most democratic cum / sod option out there . While they can be commingle as turf grass , most people choose only one especially in re - sodding .
There are stark differences between these two though :
St. Augustine grass vs Zoysia grass
Zoysia is also a democratic turf dope choice like the St. Augustine and they too have considerable differences : coloration , maintenance , price - efficiency and recuperative potential .
St. Augustine grass vs centipede
Both grass types have V - mould leaf sword ; only thecentipede grasshas thinner and more pointed leaves .
St. Augustine has more concern necessary because it has more cultivars . Specifically , centipede is more cold patient of than St. Augustine but the latter is more shade tolerant than centipede . Both are belligerent growers , though .
In condition of disease , centipede is susceptible to grub and nematodes while St. Augustine is vulnerable to brown maculation and bed bug germ .
Conclusion
To conclude , there is a lot to know about St. Augustine . For one , it has cultivars with specific characteristic and needs that must be debate .
Aside from this , it also has turn and caring prerequisite like all other grass regardless of how sturdy it could be . But move over the profile of St. Augustine written here , it is a sound pot to be used as sward covering and more .
