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Ask The Yard Doctor

Does St. Augustine eventually have to be replace?

20 years ago

We put in a St. Augustine yard 21 years ago and it seems like less and less of it comes back every year. Now we have about 1/2 St. Augustine and 1/2 Bermuda. My husband heard that St. Augustine only last about 20 years and then you need to till your yard and have it re-sodded. Is that true?

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Comments (2)

zcarenow
20 years ago
When parts of my St. Augustine died because of lack of water and chinch bug, i bought some Bermuda grass seeds and watered like crazy. The grass grew again though the blade was different. However, over a month the existing St. Augustine overcrowded the Bermuda, thus St. Augustine was growing again. No need to buy expensive sod, just get the seeds. Make sure you rake out the dead spots first before sprinkling the seeds.
yarddoctor
20 years ago
Dear Msrose,

Thank you very much for the inquiry. Make sure you are fertilizing, watering and mowing to favor St. Augustine grass, not the bermudagrass. An overabundance or improper amount of any of these practices will lead to favoritism of the bermudagrass. It is very aggressive. If the bermudagrass has taken over the yard, it is very likely you may have to resort to reestablishment, but you must take care to eradicate the bermudagrass with multiple glyphosate (Round-up) applications or it will return.

It is not unusual to see St. Augustine grass lawns over 20 years old, but if they are infested with bermudagrass, the ability to keep a uniform turf becomes very challenging.

Again thanks for the inquiry.

Respectfully,

Trey Rogers
The Yard Doctor
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