Unhappy with the way your St. Augustine lawn is looking? You’re not alone. St. Augustine sod is the single most popular grass choice for residential and commercial lawns in Palm Beach County, Florida and is even a requirement for some HOAs and cities. Its natural resistance to saltwater and high tolerance against heat and humidity make this warm weather turf grass a perfect choice for South Florida. St. Augustine grass is unsuitable for areas where temperatures are regularly below 55 degrees. Below this temperature your St. Augustine sod grass goes dormant and stops growing. It may even appear to look dead. But as long as the temperature is the only factor in play, it should return once the weather warms up.
There are several primary types of St. Augustine sod grass that include: Floratam, Palmetto, Bitterblue, CitraBlue, ProVista and Seville. If sugarcane mosaic virus is a concern to you, then you should avoid Floratam and put the Bitterblue and Palmetto types at the top of your list for new St. Augustine sod. The State of Florida suggests using Palmetto type St. Augustine sod.
Unfortunately over fertilization, fungi, drought, weeds, chinch bugs and other pests can turn your Palm Beach County St. Augustine sod grass lawn into an unsightly mess. But there is hope.
Rejuvenating Your St. Augustine Grass Lawn
- Have Your Soil Tested First – The only way to properly understand what nutrients are lacking in your soil is to perform a soil test. In South Florida, it is generally recommended to have soil with a neutral pH between 5.5 and 7.0. Soil tests can also detect diseases that can’t be determined by the naked eye
- Have a Soil Amendment Done if Needed – A soil amendment is anything added to your soil to improve its condition, whether it be nutritional content, pH levels or draining ability.
- Dethatch St. Augustine Sod Grass – Dethatching can aid in proper drainage that preventing water from pooling which leads to fungal growth and disease that can be devastating to you St. Augustine lawn. Dethatching can also allow pesticides to get down to where they are most effective at the soil level
- Make Sure Lawn Pests are Not the Problem – Palm Beach County is home to many lawn pests that can damage your St. Augustine grass including chinch bugs. Understanding which pest or pests is making a meal out of your St. Augustine lawn is the first step in determining what action to take.
- Proper Weed Control – Use the correct pre-emergent and post-emergent herbicides to control unsightly weeds from overtaking your South Florida St. Augustine lawn.
- Proper Irrigation – Make sure your St. Augustine lawn is receiving the proper amount of irrigation. St. Augustine sod grass is not drought tolerant
The best way to maintain a healthy St. Augustine lawn in Palm Beach County is with regularly scheduled lawn treatment service that includes fertilization, weed control and pest control. Ensure your St. Augustine sod grass is receiving the proper irrigation and lawn maintenance along with these essentials and you should be enjoying a beautiful, lush, green St. Augustine lawn year-round.
Why not leave your lawn treatment problems to the professionals. Our locally owned and operated company can keep your St. Augustine lawn looking great with complete professional lawn fertilization and pest control service. We have been treating West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington and Jupiter, Florida residential and commercial lawns for decades and have the experience to get the job done right.
Eco-Friendly and Pet Safe Lawn Fertilization & Pesticide Products Available
We offer natural, environmentally friendly and pet friendly lawn weed control products as an option to our clients. Our experienced technicians can discuss your concerns and the options available to you.
How to Get Rid of Chinch Bugs in St. Augustine Grass
What chinch bugs lack in size, they make up for in their voracious appetite for sod grasses. In Palm Beach County the most common type of chinch bug is the Southern chinch bug, which seems to have a fondness for St. Augustine grass and have been known to cause millions of dollars in damage each year. Chinch bugs are one of the most notorious lawn pests in South Florida and can destroy your beautiful St. Augustine lawn in no time at all, so early detection and treatment are paramount.
Catching Infestations of Chinch Bugs Early is Key to Limiting Damage to Your Lawn
Chinch bugs are a sucking insect that damage your Palm Beach County lawn by injecting individual blades of grass with their poisonous saliva. The damage causes loss of nutrients and water to the grass blades which leads to a yellowing and dying off of large patches of your lawn that may be mistaken for a disease or drought damage. Chinch bugs reproduce quickly and have been around long enough to have developed a strong resistance to many natural and chemical pesticides. But again, when detected early chinch bugs are fairly easy to remove and control.
Controlling Chinch Bugs in Palm Beach County St. Augustine Lawns
- Some DIY yard enthusiasts swear by Dawn or other dish washing liquids as an effective chinch bug control measure. A simple mixture of water and detergent will suffocate the pests without harming your lawn or other ornamental landscaping. But this method can be unrealistic for large infestations.
- Chinch bugs can be difficult to treat through heavy thatch where they like to hide, so a proper de-thatching may be necessary for effective treatment. De-thatching your St. Augustine lawn also reduces the likelihood of a return infestation.
- Not all insects are bad. In fact some are a great natural enemy to other insects that can cause more damage. Our logo is a lady bug beetle, which is a natural predator of chinch bugs and other lawn pests.
- Unfortunately, once the infestation has reached the point where you really notice it an insecticide treatment will probably be needed to cure you chinch bug problems.
Why not leave your chinch bug problems to a professional. Our locally owned and operated state certified pest control company can keep your St. Augustine lawn looking great with complete professional lawn pest control service. We have been treating West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington and Jupiter, Florida residential and commercial lawns for chinch bugs and other pests for decades and have the experience to get the job done right.
We offer natural, environmentally friendly and pet friendly lawn weed control products as an option to our clients. Our experienced technicians can discuss your concerns and the options available to you.
Are All Lawn Treatment Companies the Same?
No, not all lawn treatment companies in South Florida are the same. Just because someone can cut your lawn and trim your hedges, does not make them an expert in fertilization and pesticide applications. First and foremost, you should make sure your lawn treatment company is properly licensed and insured. In the State of Florida, the company must have a Florida-certified operator on staff full-time in charge of the pest control operations. Furthermore, the operator must be certified in all the categories in which the business conducts operations.
There are separate certifications for:
- General Household Pest and Rodent Control
- Termite and Other Wood-Destroying Organisms Control
- Lawn and Ornamental Pest Control
- Fumigation
The majority of the chemicals for weed control, pest control, fungus control and disease control that a professional lawn treatment company uses are not available off the shelf at a big box store. The primary difference is potency and regular landscapers and the general public do not have the proper license to purchase and apply these professional-grade fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides.
A professional lawn treatment technician should be trained to notice the first signs of possible problems like disease and pests before the problem gets out of hand. It is much easier to deal with a major lawn problem in the early stages than after it has become a full-blown mess.
Having the knowledge of when to apply pre-emergent herbicides is another distinction between a quality lawn treatment company and someone that is under-qualified. Palm Beach County is notorious for crab grass and it is a lot easier dealing with these noxious weeds before they become seed-bearing adults. And not all herbicides work the same, so you need to know which ones will work for your specific problems without harming nearby plants and sod grass.
A quality lawn treatment company like ours cares about its customers and will make every reasonable effort to satisfy them. We guarantee it!
Our locally owned and operated lawn treatment company has professional technicians that provide quality fertilization and lawn pest control services for your Palm Beach County residential or commercial lawn. We can keep your West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington or Jupiter, Florida lawn lush, green and disease free no matter what type of sod you have.
How To Control Creeping Beggarweed in St Augustine Grass in South Florida?
Creeping beggarweed, scientifically known as Desmodiumincanum, is extremely hard to manage once it has become ingrained in your St. Augustine turf grass. Creeping beggarweed is a broadleaf weed whose seeds are known as hitchhikers because they “stick” to your socks, shoe laces, pants and other clothing and get stuck in your pets fur. The seeds or hitchhikers are then transported to new areas where the seeds create a new creeping beggarweed infestation. They can also reproduce from the weed’s stolen or a piece of its impressive taproot. Creeping beggarweed also produce a pinkish purple flower in the summer.
Even manually pulling creeping beggarweed can be problematic because of its strong, large taproot. Just a tiny piece of the root can grow into a new weed. The best way to control creeping beggarweed in your Palm Beach County lawn is to use a quality post-emergent herbicide that is safe for St. Augustine sod grass.
* Unlike many South Florida weeds, pre-emergent herbicides are largely ineffective on creeping beggarweed because its large taproot can tolerate them and be used to propagate new weeds.
Post-emergent Herbicides Safe for St. Augustine Turf Grass are the Best Way to Control Creeping Beggarweed in Palm Beach County
Roundup® is a herbicide product that will kill just about everything green, so be careful when using this product as it will damage your lawn and ornamental landscaping plants as well.
Creeping beggarweed, just like other weeds, competes with your lawn’s sod grass for nutrients and irrigation. So once again the healthier and thicker your lawn is, the harder it is for creeping beggarweed to prosper in the first place. Professional lawn treatment that includes fertilization service and pest control combined with weed control is the best way to maintain a healthy, beautiful lawn in Palm Beach County.
Why not leave your creeping beggarweed problems to the professionals. Our locally owned and operated company can keep your lawn looking great with complete professional lawn treatment that includes weed control service. We have been treating West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington and Jupiter, Florida residential and commercial lawns for decades and have the experience to get the job done right.
We offer natural, environmentally friendly and pet friendly lawn weed control products as an option to our clients. Our experienced technicians can discuss your concerns and the options available to you.
Who Can Diagnose South Florida Lawn Problems?
A professional lawn treatment specialist can usually diagnose your South Florida lawn problems by checking for lawn pests, unusual discoloration, fungi and diseases, or even deficient irrigation problems via a simple visual inspection and possibly a soil test. In extreme situations, a soil sample may need to be sent to The University of Florida for further review.
South Florida lawn problems can be caused by a variety of different issues from something as simple as improper irrigation to something as complex as sugarcane mosaic virus, so getting the proper diagnoses can mean the difference between a simple fungicide application to a complete removal and replacement of your sod grass. Lawn pests, drought damage, fertilizer deficiencies and lawn diseases all can cause your lawn to appear to be under attack, but understanding the root cause of your problem early can save you a lot of money down the road. Our Palm Beach County professional lawn treatment technicians have the knowledge to detect the signs of lawn pest problems, lawn diseases other possible lawn problems before they become overwhelming.
Symptoms of Possible Lawn Disease
- Does your lawn have unusual spots or lesions on the sod grass blades?
- Does your lawn have repetitive spots covering the turf grass area?
- Does your lawn have patches of discoloration for no apparent reason?
- Does your lawn have seem to be covered in baby powder?
Lawn diseases are commonly overlooked because they are easily mistaken with other lawn problems such as chinch bug damage or drought. A lawn treatment professional should be able to catch lawn diseases at an early stage before it becomes too late to repair the damage caused by them.
*A viral infection like sugarcane mosaic virus can’t be treated with fungicides and can be devastating to Palm Beach County lawns. In severe cases it may kill the entire lawn, which is called LVN or lethal viral necrosis. Beware of any lawn treatment company that says they can cure sugarcane mosaic virus. Also, it may be necessary for us to send a soil sample to The University of Florida to positively identify sugarcane mosaic virus.
The best way to maintain a healthy, beautiful South Florida lawn is with the proper combination of fertilization, weed control and pest control. Add in adequate irrigation, disease management and lawn maintenance and you should be enjoying a beautiful, lush, green lawn year-round.
Why not leave your lawn treatment problems to a professional. Our locally owned and operated company can keep your lawn looking great with complete professional lawn fertilization and pest control service. We have been treating West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington and Jupiter, Florida residential and commercial lawns for decades and have the experience to get the job done right.
Eco-Friendly and Pet Safe Lawn Fertilization & Pesticide Products Available
We offer natural, environmentally friendly and pet friendly lawn weed control products as an option to our clients. Our experienced technicians can discuss your concerns and the options available to you.
How to Get Rid of Chickweed in South Florida
Chickweed, scientifically known as Stellaria media, is a common broadleaf weed in South Florida that if not eradicated can damage your lawn. Chickweed has the distinction of being one of the most widespread weeds in the world. Left alone, chickweed will branch out and form dense, close-to-the-ground, carpets of the noxious weed. If possible, it is best to remove chickweed before it flowers and spreads its seeds into the wind to cause more infestation. It is easily removed by hand in small, affected areas, but once it has spread to large areas an herbicide will probably need to applied. As with most weeds, when removing chickweed by hand try to remove the entire root or regrowth is only a matter of time.
A proper pre-emergent herbicide is the best way to control future chickweed infestations in your West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington or Jupiter lawn. A pre-emergent herbicide will reduce the number of seeds that can grow into future chickweed.
Pre-emergent Herbicides are the Best Prevention for Chickweed in South Florida
Using Roundup® will kill just about everything green, so be careful when using this product as it will damage your lawn and ornamental landscaping plants as well.
Chickweed, like other weeds, will compete with your lawn’s sod grass for nutrients and irrigation, so once again the healthier and thicker your lawn is, the harder it is for chickweed to take root in the first place. Professional fertilization service and pest control combined with weed control is the best way to maintain a healthy, beautiful lawn in Palm Beach County.
Why not leave your chickweed problems to the professionals. Our locally owned and operated company can keep your lawn looking great with complete professional weed control service. We have been treating West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington and Jupiter, Florida residential and commercial lawns for decades and have the experience to get the job done right.
We offer natural, environmentally friendly and pet friendly lawn weed control products as an option to our clients. Our experienced technicians can discuss your concerns and the options available to you.
Take-All Root Rot Treatment & Prevention
Take-all root rot is a very common lawn disease in Palm Beach County caused by the Gaeumannomyces graminis var. fungal pathogen that attacks just about all warm-season sod grasses. Take-all root rot, like its name implies, can devastate the root system of St. Augustine and other sod grasses which in turn prevents the sod grass from being supplied with adequate nutrients and irrigation from the underlying soil. You won’t see take-all root rot fungi damage to the actual blades of grass until the lack of water and nutrients has started to cause the area of sod grass to die off. This disease is triggered by heavy rainfall and most commonly occurs around hurricane season in South Florida (the summer months and early fall).
* Technically, there really is no prevention and/or controlling take-all root rot. The fungus that causes take-all root rot lives in the thatch layer of your sod grass and is naturally present at all times in the soil of your South Florida lawn. The fungi only become a problem when your lawn is under stress from excess irrigation or rainfall, poor drainage and extreme temperatures
Take-all root rot is almost impossible to treat once you have noticed the visible portions of your lawn to die off, so prevention is the best deterrent for this fungal infection.
Take-All Root Rot Fungus Best Practices For Prevention
- Improving Drainage in Your Soil
- Have a Soil Amendment Done if Needed
- Raise Cutting Height on Lawn Mowers for Drought Stressed Lawns
- Avoid Liming Your St. Augustine Lawn During the Rainy Season
Will Take-All Root Rot Go Away Without Treatment?
Left untreated, take-all root rot fungus will spread throughout your commercial or residential West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington or Jupiter lawn and create large, unsightly patches of dead sod. So waiting to see if it goes away on its own will only cause a bigger problem for you and your lawn. Focus on what caused the pathogen to become active. Was is stress, poor drainage, unusually high rainfall or something else.
Do Fungicides Work on Take-All Root Rot?
Yes, take-all root rot fungus can be managed with the use of the proper fungicides, but because the pathogen is naturally prevalent in South Florida you should make whatever changes are necessary to prevent the fungal disease from becoming active. If the disease is a recurring problem it is best to apply the fungicide as a prevention and not a cure, so apply before symptoms are detected.
Why not leave your lawn fungal disease problems to a professional? Our highly trained pest control and fertilization technicians have been keeping the lawns of West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington, Jupiter and other Palm Beach County, Florida cities lush, green and fungus free for over twenty five years.
Bull Thistle Weed Control & Prevention in South Florida
The noxious bull thistle is a broadleaf weed in the Asteraceae family and is easily recognizable by their bright pink or purple flowers that are approximately 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter that usually bloom in early June and are present until fall. The underside of the flower is lined with protective spines. Bull thistle is also known as a common thistle, roadside thistle or plumed thistle. Bull thistle weeds thrive in soils rich in nitrogen and require only moderate moisture. Just one bull thistle weed is capable of producing over 4,000 seeds, which obviously will turn into future adult weeds next year. These unwanted pests are common in pastures and roadsides, but do end up in many Palm Beach County lawns.
Small infestations of bull thistle can usually be manually pulled, but make sure and get the entire root. Widespread infestations of bull thistle weed can be controlled with a post emergent herbicide application, but many of these products will also kill your sod grass and ornamental landscaping so try to spot spray only the weeds themselves.
Spot-Spraying Using a Broad-Leaf Herbicide Labeled for Thistle is the Best Remedy For Bull Thistle Weeds in South Florida
Roundup® is a herbicide product that will kill just about everything green, so be careful when using this product to kill bull thistle as it will damage your lawn and ornamental landscaping plants as well.
Just like other weeds, bull thistle will compete with your desired sod grass for nutrients and water. So once again the healthier and thicker your lawn is, the harder it is for bull thistle weeds to take root in the first place. Professional fertilization service and pest control combined with weed control is the best way to maintain a healthy, beautiful lawn in Palm Beach County.
Why not leave your bull thistle weed problems to the professionals. Our locally owned and operated company can keep your lawn looking great with complete professional weed control service. We have been treating West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Wellington and Jupiter, Florida residential and commercial lawns for decades and have the experience to get the job done right.
We offer natural, environmentally friendly and pet friendly lawn weed control products as an option to our clients. Our experienced technicians can discuss your concerns and the options available to you.