Buffalo grass is a very effective, native choice lawn grass in the USA because of its color, low maintenance, reliability, and ability to survive. Even buffalo grass can survive shade for 15 to 18 hours in a day.
Buffalo grass can handle both higher temperatures as well as very lower temperatures.
Let's understand how to care for buffalo grass of lawn in USA while different growing stages.
Buffalo grass lawn care in USA
Before the care of buffalo grass in lawn, let's understand how does buffalo grass look like and quality of buffalo grass-
What is Buffalo grass?
Buffalo grass leaves grow on a purple horizontal stem. These stems can be long up to 12 inches. Each stem has multiple bunches of leaves on a gap. These leaves are dark green and soft.
Even in case of least water availability, buffalo grass can live for several years. Although buffalo grass doesn't need too much care it is important to do basic care of buffalo grass to make your lawn green with buffalo grass throughout the year.
Buffalo grass lawn care in USA
- Buffalo grass weeding
There are high chances that your lawn may have spontaneous plants with buffalo grass if you regularly moist the soil. If you have a very big lawn then you can use spontaneous plant killers or if you have a small or medium lawn, then you can do it by manual weeding.
These spontaneous plants must be cleaned with their roots, otherwise, they can grow again. You can easily identify them just by checking their shape of appearance. It means if there are small plants with wider, bigger, and taller plants, then the high chance that they are spontaneous plants.
- Buffalo grass care
In summer, you should do watering on your lawn once in 10 days. In winters, it should be once in 25 to 30 days.
Irrigation is necessary when the lawn gets dry and low shining on grass leaves.
Don't use fertilizers every month on your lawn. It is better to use them twice or thrice a year. In winters, the fertilizing process should not be applied.
- Dormant buffalo grass and brown spots solutions
It is possible that your buffalo grass leaves may dry(yellow or brown) because of some reason. But their treatment is not possible in summer. If dry leaves can survive till the winter season, it is possible to recover them. If buffalo leaves get dry at starting peak of summer then better to accept them as dead grass. It is better to clean that grass and start with new buffalo grass growing.
In an old lawn, you can find gaps between grass patches. There are chances that either that gap doesn't have either enough fertilizer or the soil is very tight. To grow the grass at those gaps, you should use pointy tools to make some very thin holes in the soil and apply fertilizer. Check the moisture every week and let the grass cover the area automatically.
If grass doesn't grow in gaps without seeds then there is the last solution for this. You have to use an instant buffalo grass patch there for recovery.
- Lawn moss removal
Although we don't use too much water with buffalo grass it is not certain that overmoisture without drainage doesn't allow moss to appear.
If your lawn doesn't have any drainage system then it is not good, especially in the rainy and winter seasons. Too much moisture without drainage can invite moss to your lawn. In cold areas, it is normal that your lawn gets moss fast. It can cover the entire lawn if don't get treatment.
To understand lawn moss removal, you can follow the link lawn moss removal in the USA.
- Buffalo grass mowing
Buffalo grass mowing may be bad if its timing and implementation are wrong. Most people think that it is better to mow their lawn in the summer season but they may be wrong. If you mow your lawn in summer then direct sunlight can affect the growth of the root grass directly.
In winters, when you mow your lawn, grassroots get proper sunlight and growth.
Too much and too deep mowing is very bad for your lawn. It can almost destroy your lawn grass growth and the pattern of buffalo grass in the lawn.
You can use manual mowing machines on your lawn to make sure the cutting of buffalo grass. Automatic machines are too costly and make things complicated. You can use grass cutting as fodder or pasture in poultry farms or you can make compost from it.
Tips Before having a buffalo grass lawn
- Don't use the same buffalo grass seeds from your lawn or other lawn. Only buy quality seeds that germinate in native soil properly.
- In winters, too much water can invite moss to your lawn. So before growing buffalo grass on your lawn, make sure to make a proper slope of the lawn or install a drainage system.
- Don't use liquid and solid fertilizers and unwanted plants killer together before growing buffalo grass.
- Although buffalo grass can grow in sandy and light clay soil. The pH must be between 5.6 to 7.8.
- It is better to make the soil moist before sowing buffalo grass. The best season is spring and the early days of summer to grow buffalo grass on the lawn.