How to Plant and Care for St. Augustine Grass

What Is St. Augustine Grass?

St. Augustine grass is a warm-season turfgrass known for its broad, coarse-textured leaf blades and rich green color. It thrives in warm, humid climates and is widely found in Florida and other southern regions. One of its key advantages is its shade tolerance, making it an excellent option for homeowners with large trees or partially shaded yards.

Unlike some warm-season grasses, St. Augustine prefers well-draining, sandy soils and benefits from consistent moisture. It spreads through stolons, also known as runners, which allows it to grow quickly and provide thick coverage. This fast-growing habit also helps suppress weed growth, making it a desirable option for homeowners seeking a low-maintenance lawn.

Choosing the Right St. Augustine SodPods® Variety

There are quite a few varieties of St. Augustine grass, and while they share certain qualities—such as thick coverage and adaptability—each has unique characteristics that make it better suited for specific environments. Selecting the right variety ensures your lawn thrives under its given conditions.

• Palmetto St. Augustine: This variety offers excellent shade tolerance and moderate drought resistance, making it a versatile choice for various conditions.

• Floratam St. Augustine: The most common variety, Floratam thrives in full sun, featuring broad leaf blades and rapid growth—ideal for large, open landscapes.

• Seville St. Augustine: A semi-dwarf variety, Seville is known for its fine texture and compact growth, making it well-suited for shady yards and high-traffic areas.

• CitraBlue St. Augustine: With its deeper blue-green color and high disease resistance, CitraBlue provides a visually striking lawn while requiring less maintenance.

• ProVista St. Augustine: A premium variety, ProVista is bred for superior weed resistance and reduced mowing needs, making it an excellent option for homeowners seeking a low-maintenance lawn.

Preparing the Lawn for Planting Grass Plugs

St. Augustine can be successfully established using grass plugs, like SodPods, offering several advantages over traditional seeding or full sod installation. With fully developed roots, grass plugs can take hold more quickly and adapt to their environment. This method is particularly useful for filling bare patches, repairing damaged areas, or gradually expanding a lawn without the need for a complete sod replacement.

Because the plugs are already growing when planted, they experience less transplant shock and are more resilient to challenging conditions such as heat, drought, and compacted soil. Additionally, planting grass plugs is cost-effective and requires less labor compared to laying sod, making it a practical choice for homeowners looking to improve their lawns with minimal disruption.

Proper preparation is key to helping SodPods St. Augustine grass plugs take root and establish a healthy lawn. Before planting, follow these steps:

1. Mow and Clear Debris

Start by mowing your lawn to a lower height, but avoid scalping it down to the soil. Keeping it slightly shorter allows sunlight to reach the new plugs while reducing competition from existing grass. Remove any thatch buildup, weeds, or excess yard debris that could block new root growth. Thatch—a layer of dead grass and organic material—can prevent water and nutrients from reaching the soil, making it harder for new plugs to establish.

2. Perform a Soil Test

Although optional, testing your soil before planting gives valuable insight into its pH level and nutrient content. St. Augustine grass prefers soil pH that ranges from 5.0 to 8.5. A soil test will reveal if you need to add amendments like lime to raise pH or sulfur to lower it. Following soil test recommendations will improve the success rate of your grass plugs.

3. Water the Soil Before Planting

Moist soil provides a welcoming environment for new plugs. Watering before planting makes the soil soft enough to dig and facilitates sod-to-soil contact for immediate root establishment. However, avoid overwatering, as overly saturated soil can lead to poor root development.

4. Dig Evenly Spaced Holes for Plugs

Using the SodPods Power Planter, a grass-plugging tool, create evenly spaced holes 9-18 inches apart in a staggered pattern. This spacing allows the grass plugs to spread naturally, covering the area efficiently. Proper spacing is crucial—placing plugs too far apart can delay lawn establishment while placing them too close together can cause overcrowding and slow root development.

Fertilizing for Success

Fertilization is key in how quickly your St. Augustine SodPods establish and spread. Providing essential nutrients, including nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, will help the grass pods grow strong and healthy during planting.

NutriPod grass fertilizer, formulated with a 17-1-10 NPK ratio, accelerates establishment up to two times faster than unfertilized plugs. The high nitrogen content encourages leaf and shoot growth, phosphorus supports strong root development, and potassium boosts stress resistance. Place one fertilizer pod in each planting hole before inserting the grass plug. This keeps nutrients readily available from the start, helping your lawn fill in faster.

Planting SodPods® St. Augustine Plugs

Once your site is prepared, follow these steps for proper planting:

1. Position the Grass Plug Correctly

Place each SodPods grass plug into its hole, ensuring the base of the plant sits flush with the surrounding ground. The stolons (runners) should make direct contact with the soil, which encourages lateral spread and new growth.

2. Remove Air Pockets

Press the surrounding soil gently but firmly around each plug to eliminate air pockets. Air pockets can dry out roots and cause transplant shock, leading to slow or uneven establishment.

3. Water Immediately After Planting

After all plugs are in place, water thoroughly to help the roots settle and remove any remaining air pockets. This first watering is crucial to encourage rapid root attachment to the soil.

Watering Schedule for New Plugs

Watering is essential to keep your St. Augustine grass plugs from drying out and to support deep root establishment. New plugs can be vulnerable to drought stress, so maintaining adequate moisture levels is key.

First 10-14 Days: Frequent Watering

Water 1-2 times daily, depending on temperature and soil dryness. The goal is to keep the soil consistently moist without waterlogging.

Weeks 2-4: Reduce Frequency

As roots grow deeper, you can reduce watering to every other day. This helps encourage root expansion while still maintaining adequate moisture.

After 4 Weeks: Transition to Regular Lawn Care

By this stage, your plugs should be well-rooted. As with your entire lawn, switch to a deep watering schedule of 1-1.5 inches per week, divided into 1-2 sessions. Deep watering encourages the grass to develop a stronger, more extensive root system, making it more drought-resistant and better equipped to withstand heat and dry conditions.

Maintaining St. Augustine Grass for a Healthy Lawn

Once your St. Augustine grass plugs are established, ongoing care ensures your lawn remains thick, green, and resistant to weeds, pests, and diseases.

Mowing and Thatch Control

Mow St. Augustine grass at a 3-4 inches height to maintain density and block out weeds. If the thatch layer exceeds half an inch, consider dethatching in early spring or fall to prevent disease and pest problems.

Watering Best Practices

Adjust watering based on rainfall and soil moisture. Aim to keep the soil moisture level at 6-8 inches deep to encourage deep roots. Avoid overwatering, as excessive moisture can lead to fungal diseases like brown patch and gray leaf spot.

Preventative Maintenance

• Weed Control: Apply a pre-emergent herbicide in early spring and fall to prevent weed seeds from germinating.

• Disease Control: If fungal diseases appear, apply a fungicide within 24-48 hours after watering to reduce spread.

• Pest Control: Watch for chinch bugs, armyworms, and sod webworms. If pest damage appears, use targeted insecticides.

Final Thoughts

With proper preparation, planting, and maintenance, St. Augustine SodPods grass plugs will transform your lawn into a lush, uniform landscape. By following the best fertilizing, watering, mowing, and pest control practices, your yard will remain healthy and resilient year-round.

Lawn care is a rewarding process, and the effort you put into establishing St. Augustine grass will pay off with a beautiful, durable lawn that elevates your outdoor space. Happy growing!