Bermuda Grass Calendar

Spring:  Every area, zone of the country, has a “target date” that you can get from your local ext office. (My date is around March 5th – 15th) It is generally when soil temps hit 51 degrees on average.  This is when crabgrass and other weed seeds start to germinate. However, instead of putting down ONE treatment then, do a SPLIT treatment.  Two weeks BEFORE that date, apply the granular and water in right away.  3-4 weeks after that apply the SPRAY pre-emergent in our list. (Dimension)  Doing this split treatment has shown AMAZING results.  The lawns that have this done correctly, should see almost ZERO weeds all year. NOTE: Later in the spring, after scalping, if you see Poa Annua start to pop up you might have to do a light treatment for it with a spray. This is often caused by disturbing the THATCH layer which can hold the seeds.

Fall: Hold off on fall PE treatments as long as you can. If you don’t see weeds…hold off. I like to apply when my Bermuda starts to go dormant or when I see weeds popping up. Again, we don’t like to put NEGATIVES on our lawns during the best growing seasons. Apply you fall PE when SOIL temps hit 70 degrees.

Winter: Watch for poa annua or other winter weeds. They can be sprayed and killed, but often a winter PE treatment is needed. Personally I suffer from a LOT of poa annua so I have to do a Dec or Jan treatment as well.

NEW SOD: Pre-Emergent stops NEW cell growth. This includes NEW roots. That is why people say do not use PE on new lawns for the first year.

PRODUCT LINKS HERE

This is a NEW step as of 2019’s testing.  It REALLY works well on Bermuda Lawns.  If you get a soil test done, then adjust this PRE-LOAD accordingly. If you don’t, just do the following.  This pre-load is about treating the SOIL, not the plant. About 30 days before your first PE treatment, that would be Feb for me, apply a cheap 10-10-10 granular to your lawn at a rate of 5 lbs per 1000 sq ft, and put down the NEW SOIL HEALTH PRODUCT  (coming 2020) .  This will prepare your soil for the upcoming BLOOM of grass without PUSHING early growth.  Your lawn will WAKE UP into a healthy environment.  Buy the cheap 10-10-10 at any lowes or home depot.

Spring: You scalp your lawn in the spring once you see a green HAZE all over the lawn.  After that scalp apply PGF Complete at the bag rate. One 18 pound bag treats 5000 sq ft.  Re-apply every 3-4 weeks for the next 2 months.  This is called STACKING.  Applying lighter coats, more often.

Early Summer: You can apply PGF Complete every 3 -4 weeks as long as there is not a drought condition of extreme heat.

Peak Summer: If you have an irrigation system, you can continue to apply PGF complete, but be gentle. Maybe lower the dosage and let one 18 pound bag treat 6000 – 7000 sq ft. We don’t want to PUSH our Bermuda lawn in the extreme heat.

Late Summer / Early Fall: WATCH THE FALL FERTILIZER VIDEO  It explains in depth what to do.

Winter: Do not use Any winterizers on Bermuda grass. They are not needed.

ORDER PGF COMPLETE HERE

Super Juice is a mild supplement spray that contains Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium. It also contains Humic Acid, Sea Kelp, and micro nutrients.  Its JOB… is not to fix soil issues like a granular. It is designed to be a SUPPLEMENT to your granular program. That in-between feeding and care. It can be sprayed all during the growing season, every 2-4 weeks.  Start spraying with Super Juice once your lawn is fully green in the spring. You can spray every 2-4 weeks.

Army worms in OUR ZONE… start to pop up end of August through Sept.  It’s usually when temps drop into the 80s.  Watch for fall army worms and watch the videos on how to detect them.  Once you KNOW you have them, apply the double kill granular and a spray such as permethrin mixed with Super Juice.  This DOUBLE STRIKE of liquid and granular will WIPE THEM OUT… usually in 24 – 72 hours.

Lawn grubs eat the ROOTS of the grass and do not come to the surface to feed. They then turn into a “hard shell critter” and wait to transform into a beetle of some sort. Then… they return to lay eggs and starting the cycle over again.  It’s critical that you target them when they are smaller and in the GRUB (worm) stage.  This is usually early spring… then late summer and early fall.  Use the double kill product we list.

Most people start to see fungus issues as the weather starts to warm and the soil is moist.  Dollar spot and brown patch are often the most common.  If you see them, treat for them with the products we list.  Personally, in June, I put out a fungicide regardless since our area gets hit pretty hard.

In 2020 there will be a NEW soil health treatment coming.  Wait for it.

Don’t rush the scalp… in the spring our lawns are brown.  As temps rise we start to see green shoots of Bermuda pop up.  Hold off… and wait for the entire lawn to have a green HAZE. At that point take your lawn down LOW.  Usually 1/2″ below your growing height. I scalp mine down to roughly 1/2″ – 3/4″.  Watch the SCALP VIDEOS.