sarmst100, I am from the Dothan area...... Follow these steps to renovate your lawn. 1. Kill existing grass and weeds using a non-selective herbicide. The most effective products contain glyphosate. 2. Glyphosate is only effective on actively growing grass and weeds, so the area should be well-irrigated to encourage plant growth before applying the herbicide. 3. Allow the spray to dry for one day following application. Resume watering for 10 days. Spot spray areas or weeds that are still green. 4. When the existing vegetation is dead, mow the site to 1/2 inch and remove the debris by hand raking or using the bagging unit on your lawn mower. 5. If there is an existing thatch layer (a matted layer of organic matter on the soil surface) thicker than 1 inch, remove it from the lawn (a sod cutter makes thatch removal easier). 6. A thatch layer less than 1 inch is okay, but the soil must be exposed. Core cultivating(aerating)provides an excellent seed germination environment. Holes should be 1 to 3 inches deep and 2 inches apart in all directions. Â A power rake, set deep enough to expose the soil, can also be run over the lawn in two different directions. Remove loose debris by raking or using a bagging unit attached to your lawn mower. 7. Spread seed on exposed soil to allow for good seed to soil contact. 8. Seed at the labelÂs recommended rate with a drop spreader in two different directions. Follow with a light raking to work the seed into the soil. Adding topsoil or sand after seeding is NOT recommended. Newly seeded areas require different care than established lawns. Follow the recommendations below. Apply starter fertilizer at the rate recommended on the label 15-0-15. Irrigate the area should to maintain a consistently moist (but not saturated) soil. Check moisture levels in the underlying soil to prevent excessive irrigation,check to see if you have hard or soft ground, dont want to over water. Water about 1" to 1 1/2". Example: Set a empty tuna can out in the lawn(with is 1") Grass will germinate and grow more vigorously in aerification holes or slits made by the power rake. Begin mowing the lawn when it has grown to about 2 1/2 to 3 inches. Keep traffic, including children and pets, off of the lawn as much as possible, until the lawn has been mowed a few times and the new grass begins to mature. ----------------------------------------------------------- Zoysiagrass is extremely drought tolerant. Although it does turn straw colored under severe drought conditions.Zoysiagrasses are among the most wear tolerant turfgrasses. However, their slow rate of growth gives them very poor recuperative potential. Therefore, they perform satisfactorily on lawns, golf course fairways and baseball fields. It is not recommended where traffic is concentrated in certain areas. If the grass is completely worn in those areas, zoysiagrass is very slow to fill in the damaged areas. ---------------------------------------------------------- St. Augustine grass responds extremely well to being fertilized properly. Fertilize your grass right, and your St. Augustine will "knit" itself into a tight turf that naturally resists weeds. In addition, a fertilizer that contains iron will insure a maximum green color , i recommend using 15-0-15. Also be sure to cut back on your tree limbs to let the sun come in. If not the limbs are blocking the sun from coming in and the grass will die in that area. Thanks, -J & M Lawn Care / Landscaping- www.dothanlawncare.com Hope this helps... *Check out our website and drop us a line sometime*

Hey y'all! I spent a lovely memorial weekend sodding. I had 2 pallets of Raleigh St. Augustine delivered on Thurs late evening and started laying on Friday. It took me the better part of the weekend to get it all down, and by the time I got to pallet #2, between the fact that it was probably damp when cut, and the humidity that we have, it was in pretty rough shape. Had I realized what was going on in the middle of the pallet I would have unstacked it, but of course the edges and tops looked fine. I went ahead and laid the sod since it was paid for and the ground was prepared and I figure I will just hope for the best. I do have mildew in it quite a bit of it (the kind that looks like spiders webs) and last night a quick trip to the hardware store scored me Bayer Advanced Fungus Control for Lawns (propiconazole). I thought maybe y'all might be able to answer a few questions for me about all this as I really don't want to have to relay sod. First, would you spray just the pallet that had problems or would you spray the whole thing since it is laid next to each other? Do you think there is a chance I am going to convince this stuff to live? And probably my most worrisome question, how would you water knowing that you have mildew in it? Would you change your watering plan? Thanks for any ideas or suggestions that you might have. That was a lot of hard work and I want to give this grass every chance to live!

We fertilized in April with a regular slow release lawn food and again in June. These are spreading patches of lemon yellow leaves in an area that recieves sun from 11 am -5 pm. I am starting to read about yellow patch so we may need to be thing virus. We do have a sprinkler system but with the rain Tyler has gotten we mostly turn it on to find and replace sprinkler heads!! Old house, old yard, very old sprinkler system. It has brass risers with what we used for rose heads on them in the beds. What is really bad is the zoning. Don't know how we will ever get that to a reasonable situation. Do you know anything abt yellow patch? I am not big on chemicals unless it is a 'have to' situation but I don't mind fungicide if it will let the lawn repair itself. We had 7 acres of mowed area in Jasper, this is a little city lot. I would like it to look good. Yellow is not part of it. Thank you for responding, Gail

Hi Woodlands We've been in Houston since '74, and I have gotten more bad advice than good concerning St Augustine grass. I think mine is good, but I DO know that the A&M advice is a little dated regarding organic methods. So here's my two cents worth We're in the middle of a multi year drought, which caused a lot of lawn soils to go sterile. Get some good quality compost and topdress the lawn, about 1/3 inch is enough. Add some minerals, I use greensand every 2 or 3 years. Don't sweat the weeds, they will get crowded out, but BOAP the big ones if they bother you. Cut 3.5 to 4 inches high, only water weekly at most but water deeply. Daily watering WILL kill your lawn, causing shallow roots that won't take summer stress. Apply Actinovate after the compost and greensand with a soaking spray to get to the roots under the compost. Good Luck