Lawns can get stressed

Is your lawn looking a little tired and stressed?  Are you, pests and the  environment not playing nice with your turf?  One of the factors that can get turf down is stress.  Just like us, stress can weaken their nature and result in poor quality growth.  Lawns get stressed, you can help!

First, if you are at pre-planting stage, or could go back in time, select a turf that best fits the site conditions in your yard. For instance,  Bahia grass does not like growing in highly alkaline soil and will tend to yellow a bit during the summer often requiring supplemental iron applications.  A soil test would help you get a better idea of the what the soil conditions are before you install a lawn.

Many grasses don’t do well in heavy shade.    Some turf, such as the St. Augustine dwarf cultivars, ‘Delmar’, ‘Seville’ and ‘Captiva’, can tolerate shade better than other selections.   Reduced irrigation and fertilization will help turf in shade better tolerate low light conditions.   Too much shade can cause thin, unattractive turf to the point where perhaps some alternative groundcover might be preferable.  Heavy shade may even require the use of just mulch.

Both St. Augustine and Bahia grass do not tolerate traffic well.  Constant walking over the turf, driving or parking on it is stressful to these grasses resulting in thin or declining lawns.

Proper fertilization will keep lawns healthy and vigorous.  Nutrients such as nitrogen are necessary for good growth, but too much can force excess growth to the detriment of the lawn as it may exhaust energy reserves.  Excess nitrogen may even enhance and trigger conditions in which insect and disease pests take advantage of succulent tender tissue.  A less dense turf is an invitation to weed invasion as well.  Potassium is another required nutrient in turf fertilizer formulas.   Potassium is a nutrient that actually helps turf tolerate stress – cold, drought, etc. 

One big stress-maker for turf is improper mowing height.  Scalping turf at two inches or less when it should be cut at three and one-half to four inches hurts grass by reducing its ability to make and store food.  Scalping can actually trigger opportunistic turf disease infections.  Mowing at the proper height is so important – higher mowing heights also produce deeper roots and better drought tolerance.  A sharp mower blade also makes a good clean cut – no more shattered and ripped grass blades.

Proper watering is another variable that supports a healthy, stress-free lawn.  As a general rule-of-thumb, (if needed) apply one-half inch to three-quarters of an inch of water per irrigation.  This amount of water gets down to the roots, but not beyond.  Always check your local watering restrictions for how many times a week this is allowed.  Lawns will actually show visible signs that they need water.  Grass blades will fold in half when water is needed.  Grass blades will also take on a blue-green appearance.  When you walk across a lawn needing irrigation your foot prints will remain and not spring back to normal. 

So are you or other factors disrespecting your turf?  Give it a break and treat it right with proper mowing, fertilization, irrigation and other cultural actions!  For more information on all types of turf questions, please call our Master Gardener volunteers on the Plant Lifeline on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 1 to 4 pm at 764-4340 for gardening help and insight into their role as an Extension volunteer.  Don't forget to visit our other County Plant Clinics in the area.  Please check this link for a complete list of site locations, dates and times - http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/horticulture/Plant%20Clinics%20Schedule.pdf .

Resources:

Trenholm, L. E. Environmental Stresses and Your Florida Lawn (2016) The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Trenholm,  L. E., Unruh, J. B. & Cisar,  J. L. (2015)  Bahiagrass for Florida Lawns.  The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Trenholm,  L. E., Unruh, J. B. & Cisar,  J. L. (2014) St. Augustinegrass for Florida Lawns. The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.

Trenholm,  L. E., (2014) Homeowner Best Management Practices for the Home Lawn. The University of Florida Extension Service, IFAS.