Maintaining a fescue lawn in North Carolina ranks right up there as one of the most frustrating things I’ve done in life. When it is going well, our lawn is a lush carpet of emerald green and the blades stand beautifully straight and crisp. When the hot days arrive and the rain stops, our sprinkler-free yard wilts. Not long after the wilting begins, the parts of the yard that receive the most intense sun start to turn brown. And once the yard is brown, we are just waiting for fall so we can aerate, reseed, water, coddle, and fertilize all over again to bring back the green.

To beat the cycle of fescue frustration, consider switching to a summer grass such as Zoysia grass or Bermuda grass. Summer grasses are drought-resistant and require much less water than Fescue. They are also self-repairing because they spread through rhizomes. The dense growth of summer grasses helps keep out weeds. You will have a beautiful, healthy, green lawn through the spring, summer, and fall months. During the winter months, the grass will be dormant but neatly mown. The best time to lay summer grass sod is from March to July.

Though you will have to invest in the sod initially, you will save on water, maintenance (no more reseeding every year!), and frustration. You will gain a healthy, more durable lawn better suited to the North Carolina climate. Several homeowners in Riggsbee Farm have embraced the summer grasses and recently put down sod. The back section of Hickorywood is looking especially lush.

Applying sufficient water, fertilizer, and weed killer at the appropriate times for your lawn will improve your chance of success with Fescue or the summer grasses. The following resources provide maintenance calendars and reminders to keep you on track.

Resources

·         The NC State University TurfFiles are full of useful information about summer grasses and other grasses that grow in North Carolina, including Fescue. For each type of grass, there is a maintenance calendar to guide you through the appropriate care of your lawn. Visit http://www.turffiles.ncsu.edu/Default.aspx.  Under the TurfFiles heading, select the Maint. Calendars tab, then select the calendar for your turf type.

·         The Scott’s Lawncare website provides an email service to remind you when it is time to fertilize your grass and / or apply weed killer. Go to www.scotts.com and scroll to the bottom of the webpage. In the Useful Tools list, select My Lawncare Program. You will be asked to enter your zip code and the type of grass you have. Scott’s will send you monthly emails and coupons.