I need to redo the grass in my backyard, and I'm looking into alternative to St. Augustine. I hate St. Augustine, I find the grass too hard and it makes me itch. I would prefer seed to sod and low maintenance. Any suggestions would be helpful, or anybody that can point me in the right direction on where to get expert advice on grass in Houston (I feel like I just set up a joke) will be appreciated/repped. Thanks.
I had my entire yard re-sodded with Zoysia Palisades this past April and had my yard completely dug up to get rid of St Augustine and the weeds that came with it. With the Zoysia, it grows quickly, very thick so barely any weeds get through and it doesn't need to be watered near as much as it is drought resistant. Very happy with it and it rooted very quickly. I HATE St Augustine. HATE HATE. I used THIS company and their website has a lot of info on the different types of grass they use for this area.
From what I have seen there are differing opinions on St. Augustine alternatives. There is always Bermuda grass but you could also use Zoysia. St. Augustine is popular here for a reason, it grows well here. I have seen some pretty incredible looking Bermuda and Zoysia lawns. You could try Cornelius for personal tips, big box stores occasionally will have a guy who knows his stuff but it isn't too common. Randy Lemmon has a good website with some well written articles. http://www.randylemmon.com/lawns.html
I'm really into lawn care and maintenance, however I'm also a HUGE St. Augustine fan. So I don't think I can offer much help. If properly maintained, St. Augustine grows so thick and carpet like that it chokes out weeds with the best of them. It thrives here due to the climate, so maintenance isn't a lot to do if done consistently. Just fertilize, water (or not), and cut. Simple as that. Not sure why anyone in this area would want anything else. Makes sense though if it makes you itch, I'd probably be looking for something else as well.
Zoysia tolerates close mowing. St. Aug doesn't. Every aspect of St. Aug (drought tolerance, weeds) will suffer if you mow it closer than 3 inches. If the OP wants a golf course close lawn Zoysia is a much better choice than St. Aug. St. Aug is the better choice for lower maintenance if you can handle the look of the blades and a taller (3-4") lawn. If the OP gets Zoysia and mows his own lawn, you better get a very very good mower.
They cut it close like a golf course and because it has rhizomes and stolons it fails miserably in every way. At a proper mow height it is more drought tolerant than any warm climate turf. I actually like the OP criticism. That is an excellent reason to change from St. Augustine.
I hear that this type grass grows well in Houston's climate ... http://www.kindgreenbuds.com/images/mar1juana-field.jpg
I threw Zoisia seeds down last year into an area where the existing St. Augustine was already thin due to thick tree foliage. I trimmed the tree to allow more sun and now the Zoisia has now overtaken about half the yard and is encroaching the St. Augustine areas. I figure this spring, I can start mowing lower to weaken the St. Augustine. So if you have some patience to wait a few years, seeding is much less expensive and less traumatic. Starting from sod requires heavy maintenance at the beginning but you get instance gratification.
Even though I am no longer in the industry, yes...yes they have. If you or anyone else has questions on products, email me through the board and I'd be happy to help.
