09/08/2026
Why the Grass Is Always Greener on the Neighbor’s Side Of The Fence
🌾 New to Florida and lamenting the low maintenance lush green lawn you left behind? HOA breathing down your neck to fix your problem areas? You’re not alone. Growing grass in Florida is not like growing grass in many other parts of the country. Keeping grass healthy, green, and weed-free here requires quite a bit of strategy. To start with the basics, proper fertiliziation and irrigation timing and quantity are criticial to a healthy green lawn.
💦 Irrigation: One common lawn care mistake homeowners often make is overwatering. UF/IFAS recommends applying ½ to ¾ of an inch of water each time you irrigate. Less leads to shallow roots, and more keeps the root system saturated with water, which is harmful to the lawn because it can cause roots to suffocate or lead to fungal problems and disease… read more. 👇🏽
🍎 Fertilization: Lawns can benefit greatly from fertilization but can also be damaged or killed by applying too much fertilizer or applying fertilizer at the wrong time of year. Only fertilize during your lawn’s growing season. Dormancy for warm season turfgrasses such as St. Augustinegrass, zoysiagrass and bahiagrass begins in mid-October and lasts through early April in North Florida. If you fertilize while the grass isn’t growing, your grass won’t absorb the nutrients and they could potentially leach into nearby water bodies… read more. 👇🏽
🍂Dormancy: All of our warm season turfgrass species go into some degree of dormancy during the winter months, slowing their growth down. They may or may not stay green. This is a natural cycle, regardless of where you live in the state. In North Florida, lawns may stay green or may turn brown, either of which can be normal. This also varies by species… read more. 👇🏽
✂️ Mowing height: is another often overlooked piece of the puzzle. Each species of grass has its own researched and recommended mowing height for optimal health. If you mow grass too short, it can injure it, stress it out, and invite weeds to come in… reas more 👇🏽
Read more and about Dead patches, Dogs, and Recommended Grass Types in blog https://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/duvalco/2024/09/06/why-the-grass-is-always-greener-on-the-neighbors-side-of-the-fence/
Florida Native St. Augustine Grass with butterflies it hosts by Kim Heise commissioned by Bound by Beauty and used here with permission.
🦋 Carolina’s Native Butterflies notes 🦋
🦋 Fiery skipper larvae feed on various grasses, frequently preferring Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) and very often using St. Augustinegrass (Stenotaphryum secundatum) (Minno et al. 2005).
Resource https://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/BFLY/fiery_skipper.htm
🦋 Larvae of the Carolina satyr feed on grasses of the family Poaceae, including:
Common carpetgrass (Axonopus fissifolius)
St. Augustinegrass (Stenotaphrum secundatum)
Basketgrass (Oplismenus hirtellus)
Tropical signalgrass (Urochloa distachya)
Orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata)
Centipedegrass (Eremochloa ophiuroides)
Guineagrass (Megathyrsus maximus)
Caterpillars reared in captivity have also readily accepted Bermudagrass (Cynodon sp.) (Cong and Grishin 2014, Dole et al. 2004, Minno et al. 2005, Opler and Malikul 1998).
Source https://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/BFLY/Carolina_satyr.htm
