Warm Season Turf Maintenance

King Green's lawn service programs aid in weed control and improve the color of your lawn, but there are additional maintenance practices that are the responsibility of the homeowner.  These practices will greatly enhance the health, color, and density of the lawn.

Bermuda Lawn Care

•  Scalping your Bermuda lawn helps eliminate grass and thatch that have accumulated from the previous years, thus enabling the lawn to 'green-up' more quickly.  It is not necessary to mow on the lowest level of your mower, but the mower should be lowered at least one notch to remove dead/dormant grass.  The ideal time to scalp a Bermuda lawn is mid-March to early April.  Be sure to bag or catch the clippings on this initial mowing, as this will open the lawn to sunlight and enhance the lawn's ability to access water and nutrients more efficiently.
• Aeration of Bermuda lawns should follow the scalping of the lawn, usually from April to late spring.  This process also helps relieve soil compaction and breaks up thatch.
• Topdressing the Bermuda lawn is recommended from the beginning of the growing season to mid-summer.  There are a variety of reasons to topdress including leveling, repair to winter damage or drought injury, and other aesthetic reasons.
• Regular Mowing is recommended at 1 to 2 inches.  Keep the mower blade sharp, mow consistently, following the 1/3 rule, as in never removing more than one-third of the grass blade on each mowing.  In addition, changing the mowing pattern will improve growth and aesthetics.

Even with adequate rainfall and irrigation, southern summers are generally hot and humid. Our lawns will show the effects.  Under these conditions, consider raising the mower blade.  Taller grass will aid in moisture retention, and somewhat shade the roots from the hot sun, thus reducing disease/fungus issues. 

Zoysia Lawn Care

The above maintenance practices apply to Zoysia lawns with one notable exception:

• Never scalp a Zoysia lawn.  This grass type has a shallow root system, and grows slower than Bermuda.  When injured, recovery will be much slower.  Mow Zoysia regularly at one and a half to two inches.

FINAL NOTE: Regardless of grass type, it is not necessary to bag or catch the clippings at each mowing as grass clippings are not a significant source of thatch accumulation.  Thatch occurs primarily from disease or injury to the grass.  Following the maintenance practices listed above in conjunction with the King GREEN lawn service program will keep your lawn healthy, thick, and green. -Tris Moore, King GREEN