Lawns can be difficult to understand, especially during a change in season when temperatures start to drop. First, I’ll be explaining what will naturally happen to the three most common types of grass here in central Florida. Then, I’ll go over how to proactively avoid damage to your lawn during the fall and winter.
St. Augustine
To start off, I’m going with St. Augustine grass. This grass begins to go dormant when it hits a temperature around 55 degrees Fahrenheit. During this time St. Augustine will stop growing all together and the current growth will begin to brown. To avoid drowning your lawn during its dormancy cut back watering to once or, at most twice a week if needed during the fall, and unless it’s needed cutting back to nothing during the winter.
Bahia
Next, we have the road side grass Bahia. Starting with the temperature change, Bahia goes semi dormant in the winter and late Fall. Often times in the winter it also won’t get enough water which can cause the same dormancy. When this grass goes dormant it browns and thins out making room for more weeds. Bahia is also very resilient, so to best maintain it during the semi dormant stages keep it around 2-4 inches.
Bermuda
Finally, there’s Bermuda grass. Commonly seen on golf course greens, this bermuda is kept short and has a very low tolerance for cold weather. It goes dormant at the same temperature as St. Augustine however it begins to show sever signs of dormancy earlier on. It will turn brown and thin out in certain spots. To help ease the grass out of dormancy have a fertilizer put down with proper Nitrogen, Phosphorus and potassium levels to get the grass through to the spring.
In conclusion, I’ve outlined some natural signs of temperature change and ways to proactively keep your lawn as healthy as possible during the fall and winter seasons. Fortunately, if things do get out of hand RH Miller Pest Services has been in Central Florida for over a quarter of a century. Our process starts with a free estimate. Call our offices today at 407-339-7119 to schedule your free, no obligation inspection and or treatment today!
