Zoysia grass can be a great option for your lawn, but be sure to take certain care measures to keep brown patches from forming.
Zoysia grass is a warm-season turf from Asia made of several species. This coarse grass— which thrives in central and southern states — is not shade-loving and prefers the sun.
Still, even with the best care, drought and pest damage can cause grass blades to turn brown or go dormant. If extensive damage occurs, and bare spots form, overseeding zoysia grass in the fall can help restore the turf.
To that end, here’s what makes zoysia grow patchy, how to overseed your zoysia lawn, and how to ensure the best results.
Zoysia grass can become brown and patchy if certain pests or fungi are present. (Getty Images Signature)
What Makes Zoysia Grass Patchy?
Before overseeding zoysia grass, you’ll need to identify the root cause of the damage. Drought is the often leading factor, but pests such as Chinch bugs, Hunting billbugs, and fungal pathogens like Rhizoctonia solani could also be culprits.
Here’s a breakdown of how pests and pathogens affect zoysia lawns:
Chinch bugs begin damaging grass from one side and expand as populations increase. (Getty Images)
Chinch Bugs
Chinch bugs — the most common pests of zoysia grass — spread rapidly to destroy major lawn areas. These insects inflict damage during the hot and dry summer months, and it’s tough to distinguish their visits from drought effects. Still, their patterns are predictable. Chinch bugs begin damaging grass from one side and expand as populations increase. As a result, damage is the most severe along lawn boundaries, like sidewalks and driveways.
Hunting billbugs feed on plant stems and grass blades. (Getty Images)
Hunting Billbugs
Hunting billbugs are most active during the night and early morning. Their damage is more common in mid- to late spring and early summer, when billbug larvae bore into the zoysia’s lower leaf stem and flourish. The turning point comes when growing larvae feed on stolons in the early summer, and grass shows symptoms of yellow areas that eventually brown and die out.
Rhizoctonia solani, a soil-borne fungal pathogen, causes large brown patches in zoysia grass. (Getty Images)
Rhizoctonia Solani – Fungal Pathogen
The third most common zoysia grass nuisance is Rhizoctonia solani, a soil-borne fungal pathogen. The large-patch symptoms appear in the fall and are most severe as zoysia grass growth slows due to cool temperature. This fungal pathogen can affect patches ranging from 6 inches to many feet in diameter.
Aerate your lawn so your seeds can penetrate deeper into the soil.
How to Overseed Zoysia Grass — Easy Steps
Overseeding zoysia grass is necessary to cover bald lawn patches and create a healthy lawn. You should overseed lawns in the late spring or early fall as temperatures are favorable for seed germination. If you overseed in the fall, spread seeds at least 60 days before the first frost.
To prepare a zoysia lawn for overseeding, follow these steps:
Collect debris. The first step of seedbed preparation is removing debris, stones, rocks, pinecones, straws or any other ground cover. Use a rake to collect and remove smaller pieces of debris. If you’re seeding a bare spot, remove any dead grass to expose the soil.
Mow. Cut the grass to about 1-inch tall, ensuring appropriate seed-to-soil contact. When grass is high, seeds get stuck in the blades and may not reach the soil. Maintaining low blade height is mandatory for the successful overseeding of zoysia grass.
Aerate. This involves punching holes into the ground to loosen compacted soil. Adequate air circulation allows water to penetrate deeper to reach roots, and aerated soils can allow for greater seed-to-soil contact.
Dethatch. Whereas aeration prepares the soil, dethatching prepares existing turf. Thatch— consisting of dead grass under actively growing turf — accumulates over time. It limits water, fertilizer and grass seed from reaching the soil. Even if the lawns are mowed and aerated, don’t overlook dethatching before overseeding zoysia.
Fertilize. Before distributing seeds, check the soil for nutrient deficiencies and apply a fertilizer based on recommendations from a soil test.
Zoysia needs more nitrogen, little to no phosphorous and less potassium. Always keep in mind that the best Zoysia grass fertilizers will have high nitrogen content.
Distribute seeds. Zoysia needs 2 pounds of seed per 1,000 square feet for optimal overseeding. Calculate the amount of seed needed by dividing your lawn area by the recommended seeding rate.
Typically, a hand spreader or push spreader is the best tool to spread seed. Either one will help ensure that seeds are dispersed uniformly, so that revived lawn is equally covered.
Fertilizing your lawn will make grass blades thicker and give denser growth. (Getty Images)
So, you’ve overseeded your zoysia grass—now what? Here are some pointers.
Overseeded zoysia lawns need good moisture to sprout seed. Initially, water daily until germination. The recommended rate is 1 inch of water per week, including rainfall.
Remember: Overwatering attracts pests to the lawn. Take regular measurements of water for optimal results.
Fertilization helps lawns thrive and indirectly helps to reduce the risk of insect damage. Proper fertilization makes grass blades thick and gives denser growth. When there is a thick layer of grass above the soil surface, insects have less access to the nutrients found in the roots of the turf, and the lawn is more likely to grow insect-free.
Mow the overseeded lawn when grass gets to a height of 2 inches or more. Under ideal conditions, you will start to see growth in 14 to 21 days.
Gardening tools are essential not only for your safety and comfort but also for productivity. With the right tools in hand, you’ll be able to work more efficiently and effectively, yielding bigger and healthier harvests.
Sharp garden tools work more efficiently, effectively, and save you energy. (DepositPhotos)
As you move through this checklist of essential gardening tools, keep in mind that different products offer a wide selection of features, as well as varying degrees of quality.
How tall are you? Can you kneel to work? How large is your garden?
These are just a few questions to ask yourself as you move through all your options.
A good pair of gardening gloves will protect your hands from a number of hazards, including thorns, chemicals, and adverse weather conditions. They’ll also keep your hands and nails clean.
Choose gloves based on the task you’ll be performing — for instance, pruning roses and planting seeds make for two very different gardening experiences.
So, if you’re an avid gardener, you’ll want to have different pairs of gloves to tackle various jobs.
This handy gardening tool will prove invaluable for cutting smaller vines and branches. Even vegetable gardeners like to use pruning shears to harvest tomatoes, peppers, melons and other yields that don’t easily pop off the vine.
When choosing your pruning shears, make sure the grips are comfortable and the blades are sharp.
It takes just a few minutes to sharpen shears with grinders, files or sharpening stones. You just need to disassemble the tool, clean it, sharpen it, reassemble it, and clean the assembled tool for optimal performance.
And once you start using pruning shears, you might be surprised at how many miles you put on these handy little devices!
Everyone knows you need a garden hose, but did you also know some plants require a soaker hose?
3. Garden Hose
Your plants will need water — and unless you plan on hauling it in buckets, you’ll need a hose that reaches the farthest end of your garden.
Some plants, particularly perennials, don’t thrive with wet foliage, so you’ll also want a soaker hose, which slowly releases water so it soaks deeply into the soil.
Best of all? You can hide a soaker hose beneath your mulch and set it with a timer to turn on and off as needed.
A wheelbarrow is essential for moving around soil, plants and tools while gardening.
4. Wheelbarrow
Chances are you’ll need to move dirt, clippings, compost, rocks — and the tools listed in this article. A wheelbarrow (or a garden cart or sled) will come in handy. Choose one that feels sturdy and balanced.
Pro Tips:
• Replace the wheelbarrow’s tire with a solid, universal tire that’s not inflated with air and can never go flat.
• Before you load up a wheelbarrow, point it toward the direction of travel. This will prevent you from pivoting with a heavy load
If you’re removing vines and branches, you’ll need garden shears.
5. Garden Shears
Lawn/shrub/garden shears, which are larger than pruning shears, are designed to trim shrubs and cut larger vines and branches. Choose a model that’s sturdy, yet light enough to be ergonomic.
Whether you’re digging trenches or transplanting seedlings, one thing is certain: You’re going to need a shovel.
6. Shovel
Whether you’re digging out old shrubs, root balls or rocks, transplanting seedlings or filling a bed with soil or mulch, you’ll need a shovel or spade.
Choose one with a sharp edge, comfortable handle and a shaft that’s the right height for you.
Carving out holes for plants in a raised garden bed? You don’t need a big tool — do it with a hand trowel!
7. Hand Trowel
This is much like a shovel, but it’s small enough to fit in one hand. Select a hand trowel that feels good in your grip, with a steady blade that won’t bend. Then use it to carve out holes for small plants, dig up weeds and extract plants for overwintering.
Whether you need to smooth out soil after it’s been tilled, comb rocks from the dirt or level out mulch, a garden rake with metal tines is a necessity.
You may need multiple rakes, depending on your lawn and garden’s needs. The three most common options are bow, leaf and shrub rakes.
Bow rakes help with smoothing out soil in a garden; leaf rakes are perfect for gathering leaves or pine straw; and small shrub rakes come in handy for placing mulch in tight spaces.
Pro Tip: Rake leaves fast with a tarp and two wooden dowels that make it easy to transport piles of leaves to a garbage can.
When it’s time to create furrows, plant seeds, mound up soil and dig weeds or root vegetables, a garden hoe is the tool you’ll need.
Choosing the right garden hoe will require a bit of research. If eliminating weeds is at the top of your list, a scuffle hoe, swoe or serpentine hoe might be the best choice.
For planting seeds, go with a warren hoe; and for tougher jobs that require more earth-moving, the draw hoe will be your multi-purpose friend.
Need to aerate your lawn? If you don’t have a machine to do it, a simple garden fork works, too!(DepositPhotos)
10. Garden Fork
This tool is great for breaking up compacted soil. Choose a garden fork with sturdy tines that won’t bend if you hit a rock. If you plan to move mulch or compost, pick one with curved tines so you can use it as a shovel.
Having the right gardening tools helps you to take better care of your lawn and garden.
When you have just the right gardening tool for every job, you will move quickly through tasks, your garden will look beautiful, and you’ll be better equipped to care for plants.
Choose tools that will work best for you and your garden, but also those you can expect to last for years to come.
And remember: Inexpensive tools might seem attractive at first, but nothing beats reliability and longevity.
Barb Abrahms is the CEO and co-founder of PalmFlex. Abrahms has over 20 years of experience consulting her team and customers on their ideal personal protective equipment needs for a variety of industries and applications.
People spend 90 percent of their time indoors during the winter season, so tackling the chores on this checklist ensures healthy air and water quality throughout this period.
The 4 Seasons of Home Ownership is a curated collection of how-to videos, articles and tips to keep your home running smoothly throughout the year.
This winter checklist (which is applicable for seasonal chores from late December through late March) also focuses on making sure you and your home are prepared in case of severe winter weather.
Clean and oil your snowblower to keep it running efficiently this winter.
Winter Checklist
Here are 10 things you must do during the winter season. That’s why we pushed them to the top of our checklist.
Add a winter survival kit to your vehicle for driving in severe weather.
If time and budget allow, add these things to your checklist for the winter season. Think of these as nice-to-have items that, if accomplished, will keep everyone in your home happy.
Organizing holiday decorations before storing them will make next year’s decorating go much more smoothly.
Finally, if you’re feeling ambitious, here are a few more things you can add to your winter season to-do list. They will keep your home in great shape and ready for the holidays next year.
