# WBrown999's St. Augustine journal



## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

Hey y'all,

This journal will serve as a chronicle for a few things:

*
The journey of a first-time homeowner learning how to maintain a lawn properly.

A real world account of rehabilitation of a patchy, compacted, weed-filled lawn.

Perspective from the owner of a St. Augustine lawn, as opposed to the far more common Bermuda lawns we see on this forum. (Aside: they are quite beautiful!)
*
*A little background*: I bought my first house in Houston, TX in November of 2017. The home was built in 2006 and was sodded with St. Augustine, the most prominent grass type in this region. The previous occupants, a single mother and three teenage daughters, all parked in the driveway and walked through the front door, cutting through the lawn on their way. This was done daily for over a decade, leading to some serious compacting of soil on their path. Along with this, it appears that the owner never trimmed the 3 trees in the front yard: 2 oaks and a river birch. The overgrowth made mowing the lawn impossible without ducking, and it kept the entirety of the front yard in complete shade 90% of the day. This shady condition, daily trampling, and lack of general care led to a seriously sad state of the grass in the front yard. The back yard was a different story. No trees or landscaping in back yard -- only overgrown St. Augustine, creeping Bermuda, and a ton of weeds.

*Steps taken as of this premier post:*
3/2/18: Lawn coming out of dormancy. Purchased a 22" rotary mower and string weedeater. First mow on this day. 
3/3/18: Discover several lawn car YouTube channels. Begin to learn about mow height, fert use, watering, etc. General interest in lawn care begins to arise. 
3/4/18: Application of Scott's Weed & Feed for Southern Lawns. Within a week 90% of the clover and dollarweed in my lawn are dead. Raked up their corpses and felt first taste of victory. 
3/9/18: Second mow. Actually measured the mow height of cut this time. Decide on 4" HOC for this lawn. 
3/22/18: Paid to have trees professionally trimmed and raised. Dramatic improvement not only in aesthetics of trees, but also in amount of sunlight on front lawn. 
4/2/18: Front and back yard core aerated. Looked like crap at first, but it did a good job of breaking up some of the compacted areas. Will have to perform again this fall. 
4/4/18: First application of Milorganite applied @ 3/4 lbs N per 1000 sq. ft. Nearly immediate green-up observed with marked improvement in growth rate.

Adding some pictures of the lawn to help with visualization. You can see some tiny little stolons near the tree starting to run into the dirt.







I didn't have any picture of overgrown back yard  However, I am finding that progress in the back yard has been WAY faster than the front. I suppose sunlight and loose soil help a lot 

*I am always open to suggestions and constructive criticism. Thanks for your help, everyone!*


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## gijoe4500 (Mar 17, 2017)

I wonder how much of that bare dirt by the tree is from foot traffic. People cutting that corner to walk into the house. Keeping people off of there will probably help tremendously.


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

gijoe4500 said:


> I wonder how much of that bare dirt by the tree is from foot traffic. People cutting that corner to walk into the house. Keeping people off of there will probably help tremendously.


Probably not all of it, considering the fact that the yard in general was patchy and it extended along the brick that lines the mulch bed around the bushes. I figure that shade was the main culprit for the lack of dense growth.


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

Mowed the back yard @ 3" HOC (front still @ 4") yesterday as an experiment.  According to Texas A&M University: St. Augustine lawns can be mowed between 2.5"-3" in direct sunlight, which my back yard certainly qualifies for. I mow weekly, so I think this should be sustainable. I pulled a plastic grocery bag full of weeds from the yard before mowing. It rained a lot over the weekend, so I was able to get the entire root on 90% of the pulls.

*First impressions:* I love the look of the grass and it feels like a higher quality turf. I wonder how well it will hold it up long term at this height.

I made a fun discovery. As I was mowing, I found a very strange group of fine-leaf weeds that I couldn't identify. As I pulled a few to take inside, I was met with a very pleasant aroma from the plant. After a quick Google, I was able to determine that I had *Dill weed* growing in my back yard! I picked as much of the stuff that I could and will use it later in some cooking. Not to mention, it makes the house smell great. Quite the fun find.


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## c0mical (Apr 8, 2018)

Wow, that backyard looks nice and thick from here. Do you have an in-ground sprinkler system?


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

c0mical said:


> Wow, that backyard looks nice and thick from here. Do you have an in-ground sprinkler system?


Thanks man. It has been recovering really nicely since I started taking the advice of this forum.

I don't have any kind of irrigation system, and I haven't needed anything supplemental yet. Houston has been getting at least an inch of rain a week since early March.


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## c0mical (Apr 8, 2018)

You may have mentioned this before, so sorry if I am asking again. Are you planning to sod that area in the front under the tree?


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

c0mical said:


> You may have mentioned this before, so sorry if I am asking again. Are you planning to sod that area in the front under the tree?


I have gotten mixed opinions. I think I will let it grow and see if stolons will take over. I am keeping the dirt moist to encourage lateral growth. If I am not seeing satisfactory growth by June, then I will sod it. Good memory!


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

After monday's cut, I noticed that my back yard appears to have two different kinds of SA. The majority of the yard seems to be your run of the mill Raleigh, but the center of the yard seems to have a much shorter, darker, almost blue patch. It's actually quite stunning. I will get some pics up today to determine if it is a different cultivar. Would love your opinion!


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

Update! I have been keeping the dirt patch very moist to encourage growth. Look at those runners! It's not a huge improvement, but I am so glad to see some progress.


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

View of the west side lawn. Lovely difference I color, height, and composition of grasses. Still need to work on filling in patchy areas on my side, but it's coming along nicely!


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## Topcat (Mar 21, 2017)

Very nice. I have St Aug in my backyard. Last year I kept it at about 4". It did very good at that HOC and needed very little water. I watered on average once per week. I am looking forward to see the growth progress in the front. My experience is that it will fill in very nicely, but might take the better part of the season.


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## Sam23 (May 2, 2018)

You have some nice runners there. Looking Good! I wish you all the Success!


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## WBrown999 (Apr 3, 2018)

Topcat said:


> Very nice. I have St Aug in my backyard. Last year I kept it at about 4". It did very good at that HOC and needed very little water. I watered on average once per week. I am looking forward to see the growth progress in the front. My experience is that it will fill in very nicely, but might take the better part of the season.


Thanks man. We are in strangely long period without rain here in Houston. I have been watering much more than usual. Hopefully the rain will pickup soon!



Sam23 said:


> You have some nice runners there. Looking Good! I wish you all the Success!


I think I am most excited about the runners growing quickly. Makes the early morning watering routine worth it. Maybe I will have a real irrigation system this time next year.


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## Stellar P (Apr 13, 2018)

WBrown999 said:


> I have gotten mixed opinions. I think I will let it grow and see if stolons will take over. I am keeping the dirt moist to encourage lateral growth. If I am not seeing satisfactory growth by June, then I will sod it. Good memory!


Any update on the stolons filling in that corner?


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