HELP - New St. Augustine grass in Florida

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TrombleyE Tallahassee, FL Jun 25, 2009

I just placed some new St. Augustine grass in my backyard. For the first week I watered it every morning for an hour. Now I have switched to an hour every Wed. and Sunday (in the morning).
I have noticed that in some areas, the base of the grass is turning yellow (even though the grass blades are green).
This is the second time I have planted this grass b/c the first time I think a fungus killed it.
Should I place something on it? The person who sold it to me told me not to fertilize it but I want to make sure that it survives.
Help!!!!
E

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ecrane3 Dublin, CA(Zone 9a) Jun 25, 2009

I suspect you may not be watering it enough--now is most likely not the best time of year to try and get sod established and it does need really frequent watering for a bit until it gets going. Sometimes it even needs to be watered multiple times a day for the first few weeks, so twice a week is probably not nearly enough for it. Once it's established a bit better you can definitely back off on the watering, but for now I suspect it's still in the phase where you really can't let it dry out. Especially if you have sandy soil as I know many people in FL do it's really critical to get it enough water.

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JasperDale Long Beach, CA(Zone 10a) Jun 26, 2009

If anything, you're probably OVERwatering it. One full hour is a lot of water for new sod.

Unless your soil is extremely sandy and drains exceptionally fast, I suspect you're giving it way too much water.

St. Augustine grass will root pretty quickly, so the yellow you're seeing is most likely from too much water...which can eventually lead to fungus again.

It isn't a deep rooted grass, so hold off on the watering for a while.

Post #6739935
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TrombleyE Tallahassee, FL Jun 26, 2009

Thank ya'll so much for the replies. I do think I may have grown a fungus b/c some of my grass blades have some brown/gray spots on them. I am going to go to the garden shop and get something to help it. From what I have read, it shouldn't be a problem since I caught it right away.
It has been so hot here in Florida (103+) I am worrried that the grass will die and I won't be able to revive.

Post #6740702
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