Top Notch Turf and Pest

Absolutely. Warm-season grasses require significantly less water during the fall, winter, and dormancy periods. Adjusting irrigation seasonally helps conserve water and maintain healthier turf.

Absolutely. Overwatering is one of the most common lawn care mistakes and can lead to: • Shallow root development • Increased disease pressure • Thatch accumulation • Nutrient leaching • Higher water bills • Greater weed pressure More water does not always create a healthier lawn. How can I tell if I'm overwatering my turf? Signs of overwatering include: • Consistently wet or soggy soil • Mushy turf conditions • Yellowing grass • Increased fungal activity • Standing water after irrigation • Excessive weed growth If these symptoms are present, you may need to reduce irrigation frequency or sprinkler run times.

Yes. Bermuda grass is one of the most drought-tolerant warm-season turfgrasses and generally requires less supplemental irrigation than St. Augustine grass. St. Augustine performs best when soil moisture remains more consistent.

The ideal time to irrigate is between 4:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. Early morning watering reduces evaporation, improves water absorption, and allows grass blades to dry throughout the day, helping reduce disease pressure. How do I know if my lawn needs water? Common signs of drought stress include: • Footprints remaining visible after walking across the lawn • Folded or curled leaf blades • A bluish-gray or dull gray-green appearance • Reduced turf resiliency These are signals that your lawn may benefit from supplemental irrigation.

It is generally better to water deeply and infrequently rather than every day. Deep watering encourages roots to grow deeper into the soil, resulting in a stronger, healthier lawn with improved drought tolerance.

Most warm-season grasses, including Bermuda, Zoysia, and St. Augustine, require approximately 1 to 1.5 inches of water per week, including rainfall. During periods of extreme heat or drought, additional irrigation may be needed depending on soil type, sun exposure, and weather conditions.

Yes, for bermudagrass and zoysiagrass. Before bermudagrass and zoysiagrass begin to grow in the spring, mow the turf slightly shorter than normal to remove dead leaf blades and other debris. This practice will reduce shading of the emerging plants and also serves to warm soil temperatures more quickly in the spring. The result is a lawn that greens-up more quickly in the spring. The risk in this practice is that you could scalp some of the emerging grass if this practice is delayed until after the lawn has begun to green-up. Carefully inspect the turf before removing dead leaf tissue and debris to ensure there are no green shoots emerging. Zoysiagrass lawns often do not go fully dormant like bermudagrass during winter. Therefore, this practice is likely to be more damaging on a zoysia-grass lawn than a bermudagrass lawn. No, for St. Augustinegrass. Low mowing in early spring is damaging to St. Augustinegrass lawns since they spread by above-ground stems (stolons) and are more prone to injury from this practice.

In most cases, we recommend to mulch clippings back into the lawn because they break down quickly and return nutrients to the soil. Bagging may be needed or recommended when the lawn is overgrown. A study conducted in Fort Worth, Texas, found that 147 homeowners who quit bagging their clippings mowed 5.4 times per month versus 4.1 times when they bagged clippings but saved an average of 35 minutes per mowing by not bagging clippings. After six months of returning clippings, these homeowners saved an average of seven hours of yard work, even though they mowed more often. There are special mulching mowers on the market, but they are not necessary for recycling clippings. When grass clippings are allowed to decay naturally on the lawn, they release valuable nutrients which improve the soil. If clippings are returned, fertilizer applications can be reduced by 30 percent. Returning the clippings to your lawn will supply approximately 1 pound of N/1,000 ft2/year. Clippings contribute to the formation of organic matter, which makes the soil softer and plants more drought tolerant. Organic matter also encourages the presence of earthworms which are very effective in preventing thatch accumulation.

You should mow at a healthy height for your grass type and the season. As a general rule, we would recommend avoid removing more than one-third of the grass blade at one time because cutting too short can stress the lawn and lead to thinning or brown spots. Suggested mowing heights vary between warm season turf types. Frequency of mowing also plays part in how short the turf can be maintained. Shorter turf heights will require more frequent mowing. On a seven-day mowing interval we recommend; Bermuda - 1.5 to 3 inches Zoysia – 2 to 3 inches St. Augustine – 3 to 4 inches

Most lawns need at least weekly mowing during the active growing season and less frequent mowing during cooler or dormant months. The right schedule depends on grass type, rainfall, temperature, irrigation, and how fast your lawn is growing. The short you maintain your turf, the more frequent you will need to mow.