It's that time again... Time to renovate or overseed your fescue lawn. In the southeast, lawns are usually the largest part of the home landscape. Fescue is considered a cool-season grass. As the name implies, cool-season grasses can endure cool temperatures but decline in summer’s heat. For many years, Kentucky 31 tall fescue was the only fescue widely used as a turfgrass. It is a tall growing, clumping grass that has a rather coarse texture. Today, there are numerous turf-type fescues available. Turf-type fescues are improved fescue varieties. They have finer blades and deeper, more vigorous root systems. As a general rule, they are more disease and drought resistant. They can also tolerate shade and temperature extremes better than some of the older fescue varieties.

BENEFITS: Fescue’s coarse texture and fast germination make it an excellent grass for erosion control. It can also tolerate compacted soil, like our Georgia red clay; it stands up to heavy foot traffic, making it a good choice for play areas or sports venues; and it stays green all year.

DETERRENTS: Fescue does not tolerate our hot, dry summer weather very well. It must be watered frequently during the summer months or it will quickly turn brown. This makes it necessary to overseed your lawn annually to supplement areas that were weakened or killed by the heat.

LIGHT REQUIREMENTS: Sun to light shade.

WATER REQUIREMENTS: After sowing fescue seed , do not allow the seed bed to dry out. It should be kept moist at all times until the seed germinates. After the grass sprouts, fescue requires at least one to two inches of water per week. During the summer months, you may need to water even more often. To determine if your grass needs water, step on it. If it doesn’t spring back, water it! Don’t just sprinkle a little water over your lawn. For best results, water the grass thoroughly and deeply.

After installation, water fescue sod about every two to three days, depending on the temperature. It will take about three weeks for it to completely root into the ground. Once the sod is well-rooted, it will require at least one to two inches of water per week.

MOWING HEIGHT: Maintain fescue at a height of 1 ½ inches to 2 ½ inches. Mow regularly. Fescue grass will weaken if allowed to grow too tall and will burn out if it is mowed too short.

WHEN TO PLANT: For best results, plant fescue seed from mid-February through mid-April or from mid-September through mid-November. The mild days and cool nights that occur during these time periods encourage strong root development. The stronger the root system, the better the grass can withstand our summertime temperatures.

Fescue sod is widely available from mid-November until May.

PLANTING SPECIFICATIONS: Before planting, till the area, then smooth the planting surface with a rake. Sow the fescue seed at a depth of ¼ inch to ½ inch. When planting turf-type fescue seed, use approximately 8 pounds of seed per 1000 square feet. It will take about 14 days for the seed to germinate if sown at the proper time of year.

FERTILIZER: Apply fertilizer to fescue grass two to three times per year.

In October, apply a fertilizer formulated especially for the fall season. These products are designed to strengthen the root system and prevent winter injury to your lawn.

In late February or early March, apply a slow release lawn food high in nitrogen. This fertilizer will promote a healthy green color and will feed your lawn for about two months. Apply a second application of slow release fertilizer in early to mid-May.

If seeding or sodding, apply a starter fertilizer instead. Starter fertilizers stimulate strong, vigorous root growth and accelerate the maturity of your new lawn.

Do not apply fertilizer to fescue grass during the summer months! Fertilizer promotes rapid growth and that would only put extra stress on the root system during the hot summer months. Fertilizing in the summer also encourages the development of fungus on fescue grass.

WEED CONTROL: The best way to get rid of weeds is to prevent them in the first place. Apply a crabgrass preventer between February 15 and March 15. These pre-emergent products put a barrier on the soil that prevents crabgrass and certain other weed seeds from germinating. If desired, spread a second application of crabgrass preventer in May to prevent late crabgrass and certain summer weeds from developing.

A word of warning. Crabgrass preventers will also prevent grass seed from germinating, so if you plan to plant fescue seed in the spring, do not apply a crabgrass preventer to your lawn.

If necessary, you can apply a lawn weed control to growing weeds in established lawns when temperatures are less than 85 degrees. Do not apply a weed killer to new fescue grass until it has become well-rooted and you have mowed it at least four times.