Warm Weather Signals Seeding of Warm-Season Lawns

Danger of last frost is past in all temperate zones, from 5 to 8, and it's now safe to seed a new lawn or overseed an existing warm-season lawn. That means fixing bare patches with seed, too.

What is a warm-season lawn? It's a lawn that is green and growing during warm and hot months then goes dormant for winter. The primary times it will need attention are with fertilization and aeration in spring and regular mowing throughout summer. Pre-emergent herbicides can be applied for winter and summer weeds, if necessary. Same for fungicides in the spring through fall: only apply if necessary.

Examples of warm-season lawns are Zenith Zoysia, TifBlair Centipede, and Bermuda. These grasses are warm weather growers as opposed to the cool-season grasses, such as Fescue, that flourish in cool weather and require most of their care at the opposite time of year to warm-season lawns.

Once you've decided which warm-season lawn is best for you, purchase your seed, and then prepare for seeding. If you are seeding a new lawn, preparation includes: 1) a soil test 2) killing out the old grass 3) correcting grade and slope 4) spreading Soil3 organic humus compost as the best seed bed for the seedlings to grow in.

Super-Sod has two pages of step-by-step instructions, including a video, on their website. It features growing a lawn with Zenith Zoysia seed, but the steps apply to all warm-season turfgrasses.

Warm-season grass seed can be purchased at Super-Sod Outlets, while Zenith and TifBlair can be ordered via toll free phone (800-634-1672) or via their web store.

Super-Sod, a Division of Patten Seed Company, is a family- and employee-owned business that has been growing sod and grass seed for nearly 60 years. Serving all of GA, SC, NC, east TN, and north FL, their headquarters are at 23 Valdosta Rd./P.O. Box 217, Lakeland, GA 31635