Fescue is a cool season grass whereas St. Augustine belongs in the warm season. As such, fescue can’t stand the heat, while St Augustine doesn’t do so hot in the cool weather. Fescue is a dull green or gray color with a soft texture, whereas St. Augustine is coarser, with lush dark green tones and sponge-like texture.
What are the best ways to overseed St. Augustine grass?
- The easiest way to encourage the growth of St. Augustine is to mow set at a high level — as much as 4” — and cut twice per week.
- Mow with a sharp blade. ...
- The tall blades of grass will shade the Bermuda and help promote St. ...
- Don’t catch your grass clippings but let them fall back onto the grass and eventually into the soil. ...
- Don’t use St. ...
Is Bermuda grass the same as St Augustine?
St. Augustine vs. Bermuda. Both St. Augustine and Bermuda are warm-season turfgrasses that will grow vigorously and fill in quickly under the right circumstances. However, they are unique grasses that need very different maintenance schedules in order to form a healthy lawn. St. Augustine Grass
When to fertilize Saint Augustine grass?
When to Fertilize for a Greener Lawn
- Build Your Personal Lawn Program. One of the most important things you can do for your lawn is to fertilize it. ...
- Early Spring. Your lawn wakes up hungry in the spring! ...
- Late Spring. By this point your grass is busy and using up stored energy, so you need to keep it well-nourished.
- Summer. ...
Can you mix Bermuda grass with St Augustine grass?
It can be possible for some Bermuda grass to take root among St. Augustine. This depends on the yard though. For best results seeding Bermuda among existing St. Augustine, do the following: Mow your St. Augustine down to a height of 0.5 inches. By scalping your lawn, you increase the chance of adequate sunlight reaching Bermuda seedlings.
Is Saint Augustine a fescue grass?
Augustine is coarser than fescue – but I am not one to lie on my lawn. My dog does and she seems just as happy to scratch her back on their swath as on mine. She likes to do “other” things on their lawn, too – which brings up a point: St.
What grass seed is similar to St. Augustine?
If you are looking for an alternative to St. Augustine grass, we recommend that you consider: Zenith Zoysia. Zenith Zoysia is a lush, medium texture turf with wide blades and a dark green color. It can even be installed when dormant, making it a good option all year long.
What is another name for St. Augustine grass?
Augustine grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum), also known as buffalo turf in Australia and buffalo grass in South Africa, is a warm-season lawn grass that is popular for cultivation in tropical and subtropical regions.
Will St. Augustine choke out tall fescue?
Over the course of time, the St Augustinegrass has pretty much choked out the fescue. Once your St Augustinegrass has covered most of the lawn but still has a few clumps of fescue in it, use atrazine herbicide to kill the fescue.
Can you overseed St. Augustine with fescue?
Garden Tip: Do not overseed St. Augustine or bermuda turf with fescue seed. Ever! Fescue is a perennial cool-season grass.
Can you mix St. Augustine grass with other grasses?
Yes! You can mix the two kinds of grass to help make your lawn successful. Of course, you will want to know exactly how to take care of the grass and keep it happy and flourishing, since the grasses have their specific strengths and weaknesses. St.
What type of grass is St. Augustine?
St. Augustine grass, Stenotaphrum secundatum (Walt.) Kuntze, is a perennial robust grass widely used for pastures and lawns. In the warmer climates of the tropics and subtropics it rivals bermudagrass in importance.
Which is the best Saint Augustine grass?
Sapphire – Sapphire is the only St. Augustine variety that offer high performance in a finer blade. It has a unique deep, blue-green color and a soft texture. It's suitable for warmer climates, tolerates shade, drought, salt, and is ideal for coastal regions.
How do you identify St. Augustine grass?
Identification. St. Augustinegrass is a dense, coarse-textured turfgrass with folded, medium-to-dark green leaves. Leaves are oppositely arranged on the stolon and have a wide, rounded tip.
How do I get rid of fescue in St. Augustine?
How to Kill Fescue Grass in a St. Augustine LawnWear gloves and safety glasses for protection. ... Spray fescue grass in the St. ... Monitor the treated fescue for 10 to 14 days to make sure it has been killed. ... Apply a balanced starter fertilizer, such as 10-10-10, to the soil where the fescue was removed. ... Cut a section of St.
Which grass is better Bermuda or fescue?
Both Bermuda and Fescue grasses are popular due to their ability to withstand wear and tear. So, you don't have to worry about the kids ruining your lawn! Bermuda grass is known to be slightly more durable than Fescue, though and can repair itself when damaged by pets or kids.
Is Bermuda or St. Augustine grass better?
St. Augustine grass is tough stuff when it's growing in a climate that's suitable for it and is highly tolerant of the shaded areas around your home. Bermuda grass, on the other hand, is really only suitable for full sun applications. While it absolutely thrives in full sun, it will not grow vigorously in shady areas.
Can fescue grass overtake Bermuda?
If you’ve had St. Augustine or Bermuda in the past, these vigorous grasses can overtake it. Fescues are more active in the cold season. That’s the time to weed and feed and water them to a certain thickness so they can survive their summer dormancy with some shred of dignity.
Does clover weed or fescue?
Clover is immune to dog spotting and will stay green in areas where your fescue has died out. Clover needs little or no watering, it chokes out weeds, and you can cover 2000 square feet for $20. You will get white blooms in your lawn from the clover of choice: Trifolium repens or ‘Dutch White’.
Appearance and Texture
Establishment & Growth Rate
- If you want a St Augustine lawn, your choices are plugs or sod. Seed germinates so poorly that it’s not offered commercially. This makes starting a St Augustine lawn more expensive. Once in place, it’ll take some time to establish itself fully. The best time to start St Augustine is in the late spring and summer when temperatures are above 80F. Fescue grass comes in seed mixes that germin…
Soil
- St Augustine does best in sandy-silt soils that are on the acidic side, although it can tolerate some alkaline. It doesn’t do well in heavier, clay-based soils or soils that are prone to compaction. When growing outside of sand mixtures, you may need to core aerate regularly. Tall Fescue does well in all soil types and can handle some compaction, b...
Climate & Sun
- St Augustine is a warm-season grass (turning green during the heat and going dormant in cooler temperatures) that grows best in subtropical regions like Zone 9 and 10. While it does well in sweltering summers, it cannot handle cold at all. As it can handle part-shade, it’s a popular choice in these zones for that reason. Fescues are cool-season grasses (turning green when it’s cooler …
Pests & Disease
- Pests and disease plague St Augustine as it has little tolerance to either. Many of these don’t have effective controls – meaning you could spend a lot of time and money doctoring your lawn and still lose it. These problems include: St Augustine Decline (SAD), Take-All Root Rot, Brown Patch, Gray Leaf Spot, chinch bugs, and Lethal Viral Necrosis. Fescues have high resistance to insects …
Weeds
- Whichever grass you choose, keeping your lawn healthy is your best defense against weeds. A healthy lawn grows thicker to outcompete weeds. A healthy St Augustine lawn with its stolon growth habit will by itself grow thick enough. Fescues with their clump-growth habit will need more help by overseeding or using rhizomatous varieties to grow thickly enough. During the esta…
Fertilizing
- St Augustine needs a lot of fertilizer – 4 to 5 lbs of nitrogen per 1,000 sq ft per year, which is on the high end for grasses. This means you’ll spend a lot more money on fertilizer (either synthetic or compost) and a lot of time applying it. It’ll need synthetic applications every 8 to 10 weeks during the growing season. Spikes in synthetic nitrogen will exacerbate thatch problems and ma…
Additional Care
- Fast-growing stolons caused by nitrogen spikes are the primary cause of thatch problems, and St Augustine, with its stolon growth habit and high nitrogen needs is prone to them. You may end up having to dethatch every year. Fescues will rarely have thatch problems because they don’t spread by stolons.