There are a million reasons I cannot have a nice St Augustine lawn even though my customers do. I am a landscaper, I have been doing lawns in FL for 35 years. For me the folly of trying to grow St Augustine is pitiful. So much money for a non-food crop. The biggest reason I cannot grow St Auggy at MY house in St Petersburg, Florida is nematodes. I have them in my soil and they ruin the roots. I spent 1000’s to resod in November 07. It is now 7/10 and the lawn is almost dead, it is in massive decline. It has the perfect mix of sun and shade. I feed it, I treat it for pests regularly and it still dies from nematodes. Today I took harsh measures I introduced a weed on purpose into my lawn. That weed is Cynodon dactylon. I call it false bermuda. It looks like bermuda but it is a “weed” not the cultivated Bermuda grass you see on golf courses here in Florida. I dug it out of a field and introduced it into my lawn. I have already removed 50% of my lawn for xeriscape. I have kids! I need grass. Dirt and mud will not do. So I am actively cultivating this weed to take over my St Augustine lawn. To my knowledge the only problem with Cynodon dactylon is it will die/burn from a frost. It can also be affected by mole crickets but it is not bothered by those hard to kill chinch bugs or fungus or nematodes. I will let you know about the progress. I have officially given up on St Augustine for my own lawn.

Posted on July 8, 2010 at 5:57 pm
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Categorised under : Insect Issues , Those Plants we call Weeds. , Turf, Grass, Lawns, Sod.
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