If your lawn looks more like a wild safari rather than the happiest place on earth, we\u2019ll explore four grass types that help Orlando homeowners create their very own magic kingdoms.
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Here are a couple reasons why these grass types are best for your Orlando lawn:
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Which grass is best for my Orlando lawn?<\/p>
Bahiagrass<\/a> is a popular solution for homeowners who have open acreage or large spaces where they need low-maintenance grass. It is extremely drought-tolerant, requires infrequent mowing, and is resistant to most insects and diseases. Sounds like a dream, right? Well, not for everyone. Bahiagrass is considered an aggressive weed in home lawns with other grass types. If you have close neighbors, seek professional advice<\/a> before planting bahia as it easily and aggressively spreads to other lawns through its underground stems (rhizomes). Other notes:<\/strong> Use a sharp mower blade and plan to sharpen it often. This grass doesn\u2019t like saltwater and will go dormant during extended droughts. It grows best in acidic soil and will tolerate sandy or infertile soil relatively well. Bahia is not prone to insect problems but can get mole crickets<\/a>. If you plan to fertilize, use 1-3 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet per year. Be sure to follow Orange County\u2019s fertilizer ordinances<\/a>.<\/p> Grass Seed Options <\/strong><\/p> Pensacola Bahiagrass: Bermudagrass is a full-sun, dense turfgrass that is popular in warm climates. It withstands high levels of traffic (flag football, anyone?) and is very drought-tolerant. With strengths come weaknesses. Bermudagrass has poor shade tolerance and will develop thatch quickly due to its aggressive rhizomes (underground stems). This means that if you have ornamental beds next to the grass, you\u2019ll need to put metal or concrete borders at least 2 inches into the ground to prevent the bermuda from tunneling and invading. Other notes:<\/strong> Bermuda has good salt tolerance but goes into dormancy if temperatures get too cold. Do your research and choose the cultivar<\/a> that is best for your lawn. Each cultivar has different levels of disease resistance, cold tolerance, maintenance, etc. Plan to fertilize<\/a> at 4-6 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet per year.<\/p> Grass Seed Options: St. Augustinegrass is the most popular grass for home lawns in Florida. It has a wide leaf blade that forms a dense turf and tolerates most soil types. Some homeowners seek out this grass because of its shade tolerance. Remember that all warm-season grasses love sun, but some cultivars<\/a> of St. Augustine tolerate some shade better than other warm-season grasses. If you love the look of St. Augustine, don\u2019t go down to the nearest home improvement store and expect to pick up a bag of seed: St. Augustine is only sold as sprigs, sod, or plugs. Other notes: <\/strong>St. Augustine will develop a thick thatch layer if watered and fertilized regularly. Its most common pest is the chinch bug, which can cause extensive damage. Several diseases, including take-all root rot, gray leaf spot, and large patch are common to this grass. Do your research and select the right cultivar<\/a> for your lawn before you buy. Fertilize with 2-5 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet per year.<\/p> Grass Plug Options: Zoysiagrass is popular with homeowners who want a dense turf that has a moderate level of maintenance. Some cultivars have good shade tolerance, and there are several cultivars<\/a> that are commercially available. Zoysiagrass doesn\u2019t tolerate saltwater irrigation but will tolerate some salt spray<\/a>. Zoysia is notoriously slow to establish (some cultivars more than others), and develops thatch, especially if it is heavily fertilized. Zoysia is most often established by sod, sprigs, or plugs. Few cultivars are available as seed, and the seed is labor-intensive and slow to establish. Other notes: <\/strong>Make sure your mower blade is sharp. Fertilize with 2-4 lbs. of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet per year. Plan to aerate or dethatch once per year or every other year. Will need mowing once per week during peak summer growth and needs weekly watering during a drought to avoid going dormant (brown). Scout for large patch and hunting billbugs, as these are common in a Zoysia lawn.<\/p> Grass Plug and Seed Options: If you plan to fertilize your lush, new lawn, follow Orlando\u2019s fertilizer ordinances. At the time of this writing, homeowners are restricted from using nitrogen or phosphorus fertilizers from June 1 to Sept. 30. There are a few exceptions: For example, if you take a training course, you can apply as needed, and you may add phosphorus if your soil test shows your lawn is deficient. You can read more on Orange County\u2019s website<\/a>. Here are a few pointers to help you select the best grass for your lawn. The Orange County Extension<\/a> office is available for expert, local advice as well. If you prefer to let a professional landscaper work their magic on your yard, contact one of our Orlando lawn care professionals<\/a> toda<\/em>y.<\/p> Main Photo Credit: Oliver Echeverr\u00eda | Flickr<\/a> | CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a><\/p> Lawn Love participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. Lawn Love may earn revenue from products promoted in this article.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If your lawn looks more like a wild safari rather than the happiest place on earth, we\u2019ll explore four grass […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":3474,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cdn.lawnlove.com\/images\/best+grass+types-Orlando+hero.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"Looking out across the bridge leading to the entrance of the Magic Kingdom with the various buildings in the background","footnotes":""},"categories":[216],"tags":[441],"class_list":["post-3463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-florida","tag-lawn-care-orlando-fl"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cdn.lawnlove.com\/images\/best+grass+types-Orlando+hero.jpg?w=1200&fit=1200,902&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"Sarah Bahr","author_link":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/author\/sarah-bahr\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3463"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3463\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lawnlove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\u2013 Scotts Turf Builder Pensacola Bahiagrass (5 lb. bag)
\u2013 SeedRanch Pensacola Bahiagrass Seed<\/a> (10 lb. bag)
\u2013 Hancock’s Pensacola Bahia Grass Seed – Coated – 5 lbs.<\/a>
Argentine Bahiagrass:
\u2013 Scotts Turf Builder Argentine Bahiagrass<\/a> (10 lb. bag)
\u2013 Hancock Seed Co. Argentine Bahiagrass Seed Mix<\/a> (25 lb. bag)<\/p> 2. Bermudagrass<\/h2>
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<\/strong>\u2013 <\/strong>Pennington Bermudagrass Bare Spot (5 lb. bag)
\u2013 Pennington Smart Seed Bermudagrass Mix (8.75-lb. bag)
\u2013 Scotts Turf Builder Bermudagrass<\/a> (10-lb. bag)
\u2013 Hancock Seed Co. Bermudagrass<\/a> (50-lb. bag)<\/p> 3. St. Augustinegrass<\/h2>
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<\/strong>\u2013 Seed Ranch St Augustine Seville Grass Plugs<\/a> (2 Trays)
\u2013 Seed Ranch St Augustine Floratam Grass Plugs<\/a> (2 Trays)<\/p> 4. Zoysiagrass<\/h2>
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<\/strong>\u2013 Zoysia Plugs (50 Large Grass Plugs)
<\/a>\u2013 Zoysia Plugs (50 Full & Lush Grass Plugs)<\/a>
\u2013 Zoysia Plugs (100 Plugs)<\/a>
\u2013 Zoysia Emerald Grass Seeds (1\/8 lb. of seeds)
\u2013 Zenith Zenith Grass Seeds<\/a> (1\/8 lb. of seeds)<\/p> Follow Orlando\u2019s fertilizer restrictions<\/h2>
<\/p> How to select the best grass type for your lawn<\/h2>
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