How To Revive St. Augustine Grass? Bring It Back Guide

What if it is losing its charm and is fading away?

This is definitely an alarm of warning for you don't lose heart. You can revive your St. Augustine like it has sprouted just now. It is going to be lush and lucrative like a newly grown one. You can have the juicy, succulent and resplendent St. Augustine by following the given lawn care tips.

Before going into the tips we should debate on what are the explanations that are available to give us lead to a pale faded St. Augustine in your lawn?

Not only this, we are going to consider all the things that can be considered to fade away the reasons for a faded lawn.

Why you are St. Augustine Grass is fading:

Improper care:

If the gardener has not taken the proper care of the lawn, the lawn may wilt. You need to have a proper look on how much of the lawn or grass has got damaged. If the damage is more than 80% then the chance of its revitalization is none. By this time you have to ponder over beginning from zero.

St. Augustine requires warmth and sunshine. Its growth boosts with proper sunbeams and watering. If not taken care of the grass wilts and brown spots appear in the yard. This is your time to spring into effective action. The yellow or brown patches are a threat to the extinction of St. Augustine. You need to maintain the lawn properly by fulfilling all its needs. Only the proper maintenance can save it.

Pest influx:

Your St. Augustine can get a threat of destruction if it has an influx of the pests residing in it. It is the same as growing pests on your own. The pests are the parasites that extinguish the host grass from the tip to the root. They cause the baldness of the area in the lawn. Being sensitive to the pests, St. Augustine gets more damaged than other types of grasses that it gets to the verge of destruction. It is the target of White Grub. It eats up the roots of the grass destroying the whole plant by depriving it of the food source. Chinch bugs are also the suckers that deprive the grass of its vital fluids.

Typically, St. Augustine gets victim of different maladies. So the diseases can be counted in the list of factors that cause drying of the lawn. Generally, Brown Patch and Take All Patch are the scourges that suck away the beauty and youth of your lawn. They cause the grass to get fungus by creating humid conditions. The root rot fungus destroys the roots' network making the St. Augustine unable to get the required food to grow. Root rot fungus is the consequence of Take All Patch disease. These deadly diseases suck away all your hard work and labor within a short period of time.
Fertilizing your lawn is one of the most important aspects of lawn care. However, there should be some limit to its application. Few landowners consider fertilizing will give extra nourishment to their grasses but the result is the contrary. The grasses get dry and begin to have brown spots which ultimately die. Similarly choosing the wrong fertilizers also cause the discoloration and drying of the grass. So the dream of quick growth shatters into pieces.so the fertilizers are to be chosen after consulting with the veteran horticulturists.
St. Augustine grass needs proper watering. You should water it four to eight to ten times per fortnight. This number can be increased or decreased according to the weather. If the weather is scorching hot you can increase the number of watering. If there are heavy rains, the number decreases. If the St. Augustine does not get the required amount of water it will start developing brown spots and will decline to bereavement.

St. Augustine's health depends upon the type of the soil it is surviving in. More fertile is the soil healthier than St. Augustine be. The thatch produced by St. Augustine can be home to fungus and many pests. The compacted soil on the other hand is also not that feasible as it creates solid patches that are good for nothing. The pH of the soil should be suitable to grow St. Augustine. St. Augustine grass grows pleasingly at a pH range from 5.0 to 8.5. It is a befitting pH but highly alkaline soils (above pH 7.5) are not that much feasible for St. Augustine. It does not have the capacity to stand compacted or sodden and drenched soils.

Frost damage:

Over the winter months, St Augustine grass is susceptible to frost damage. Just like most other plants and flowers in your yard, it can't handle cold temperatures for extended periods of time which will kill off these patches entirely so you won't be able to get regrowth at all here. If you have problems with frosts regularly during this time, then choose a different type of grass that doesn't die back over Winter.

Gray Leaf Spot happens in the transition seasons between early spring and summer with moderate temperatures of 60 degrees Fahrenheit or higher for long periods of time. It does not need free moisture for spores to germinate.

How to Repair/Resuscitate St. Augustine Grass:

Once you are aware of the causes of a particular issue you are halfway to its solution. As you have figured out the reasons behind the bad condition of St. Augustine, you need to fix them now. Fixing them means removing the causes or resolving the issues.

Sward Wetting

Water is a vital component for many of the biological ingredients of this universe, so is the case with St. Augustine. All you need to do is to water the dehydrated and thirsty lawn amply. It can help greatly in the revival of the dead grass. Quench its thirst especially in scorching days of summer. Periodic irrigation can send back the lawn to its lush green life. Use a hose, sprinkler or a spigot to water.

But before watering mind these tips.

• Doing the right thing at the wrong time is labor in vain. You have to choose the right time for watering. Dawn is the best time to do it instead of early in the morning.
• Do not let the water get logged in the lawn. so for this purpose watering at the evening time is also not recommended.
• Your garden must have proper effluvium. The extra water should be drained out to discourage retention of moisture.

As we have already discussed that St Augustine can suffer due to arid and infertile soil. So you want your St. Augustine to bloom and improve the quality of your soil. Conduct a soil pH test. If it is not in the range of 5.0 to 8.5, you need to alter the soil's components. You can modify it with lime or adding sulfur.

• Add nutrients to soil if the test shows its inadequacy.
• Aerate the soil to let it avoid compaction.

Take care of your lawn by aerating it and not walking too much on it. The greater foot traffic is a great way to compact soil. There should be no walking on the bald or threatened areas. Do not let any heavy activity be carried out in your lawn. Also keep it safe from your pets dropping and peeing.

There should be some organic or inorganic ways to control diseases and pests that are a great alarm to the beauty and well-being of your lawn. Diagnose your St. Augustine's ailment or the pesky pests pestering it. Take a recommended medicine and spray it on the grass directly.

St. Augustine gets victim of excessive use of nitrogen rich fertilizers. If you think that St. Augustine will survive the latency time, do not opt for fertilization. In the same way early or late application of the fertilizers also affects the grasses.

Grass Seed Mixture:

A mixture of one part fescue seed, four parts Kentucky bluegrass, and five parts perennial ryegrass is good in stabilizing overseeded St Augustine lawns. Some homeowners prefer using zoysia grass because it grows faster but when the weather turns cold the st Augustine will die out while zoysia can survive by going dormant during wintertime conditions.

St Augustine Grass Ideal Growing Conditions:

Augustine lawn thrives in the following conditions:

• The soil pH of St Augustine grass must be between a range of six to seven. The soil should also have moderate fertility with an ideal level of organic matter
• Sunlight is the primary requirement for st Augustine growing grasses. They do not grow well in shady areas or under the shade of trees due to the lack of sunlight required by their growth process
• Watering frequency will depend on where you live but generally once every five days during hot weather conditions are enough watering for them to survive. However, if it's cooler outside they can go up to ten days without water
• Temperature is required for st Augustine grass to grow. They are warm-season grasses that thrive in temperatures of 65 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. St Augustine lawns will go dormant if the temperature drops below 50 F.

Conclusion

It can be concluded that timely maintenance and taking care of St Augustine against diseases and improper practices can save it from becoming dead. If it is watered, fertilized, mulched, and treated against the vile diseases it can thrive and make your lawn a haven to sit in.