I have been watering at night three times a week. There is your problem, you are over-watering at the wrong time and now have a fungus called BROWN PATCH. Also sounds like you are not mowing enough. Zoysia is very drought resistant, and should only be wayered when it is needed in the morning hours, not at night. You need to learn how to water properly and when to do it. Basic rule of thumb is once a week at a rate of 1-inch per application. If Mother Nature provides water, you don't. The best method is to lok at the grass, it will tell you when it needs water. Emerald Zoysia needs to be maintained at 1-inch, therefore mowed every 4 to 7 days.

It is not too late to lay sod as it can be laid anytime of the year providing the ground is not mud, snow covered, or frozen. Spring is the preferred time, but you can lay it now if you wish. As for which type is entirely up to you and what you want to put into it. Both Zoysia and Bermuda has some common characteristics of similar like texture mowing heights, drought resistance, Spring green , Fall dormancy, and wear resistance. Bermuda requires full sun, multiple fertilizer applications per growing season, . high mowing frequency of twice a week, repairs it self fast from damage, aggressive and invasive. Zoysia only require two fertilizer applications per year, grows slow so less mowing, can tolerate some light shade, slow to recover from damage, and has some insect and fungal issues. It really boils down to how much work, money, and time you want to commit to. Bermuda is high input, Zoysia is medium input.

Hi Quirky, and thanks for the response. I once considered Fescue but decided a warm season grass would be more suited to my needs. The acre or so that the intended "lawn area" is part of is elevated and has been cleared of trees and almost completely of weeds. By definition the vast majority of it is full sun (at least 6 hours or more). Still, I haven't completely made up my mind yet. 2 or 3 years ago when I contacted our local sod grower to get pricing the zoysia sod was about twice that of the Bermuda. They told me they only produce the zoysia at their farm in the gulf coast and it would have to be trucked in but they sell it all over the southeast. By contrast they grow the Bermuda at their local farm less than 10 miles from here. I figured local would be better but if you say you can get them for about the same price then I need to do some more shopping around. Thanks again for the input. Sincerely, Danielle

Two years later..... I ended up putting a 25' x 25' section of Zenith Zoysia instead of the Bermuda. Since we are in a transition zone and Bermuda is not very common here in residential yards, I couldn't make the leap. I grew it from seed and now in it's second year, it is very thick and looks great. It is very slow to spread however, so I plan on plugging out of the section next year to some bare areas in the yard and also do an overseeing in another large area to get another large pocket going. Part of me wishes I would of gone with the bermuda, mostly because it would take over much faster than the zoysia, but I am sure I would have upset my neighbors in the process.