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If you live somewhere warm, you have two great choices for a lush lawn.
Many people will talk about how Bermuda grass is different from St. Augustine grass. If you want a beautiful lawn, you should choose the right kind of grass for your land.
Which one should you pick?
It can be hard to decide between St. Augustine grass and Bermuda, so we’ll help you out. With our simple guide, you can find out what these grasses are like.
Even better, the information given will show you how to keep them in good shape.
We’ll answer some of the most common questions about these two things so that you can get the most out of your lawn.
What exactly is Bermuda grass?
Bermuda grass grows well in places like India, Argentina, and South Africa, among other places. It was known to be a common grass in the southern part of the United States two hundred years ago.
This grass grows back every year and grows quickly during warm weather, especially from the end of spring until summer. Of course, it can’t handle the cold weather that is common in the northern part of the United States.
The leaves of Bermuda grass aren’t very wide. Also, Bermuda grass doesn’t grow into a single plant that spreads out but instead turns into a dense patch of many small plants.
Furthermore, this species of grass will have seed stalks that stay up for the whole growing season. Most of the time, the roots go six inches deep into the soil, but they can go deeper.
Bermuda grass care tips
If you have to take care of Bermuda grass, don’t worry. At its core, taking care of this grass is as simple as mowing, watering, and aerating it. For cutting this grass, the lawn mower needs to be able to work at a low height without scalping the whole lawn.
After the Bermuda grass has been cut, it should be about 1.5 inches tall. When it comes to water, Bermuda grass can get enough from rain and from watering the lawn yourself.
Since Bermuda grass is very resistant to drought, you only need to water it twice a week at a depth of six inches. This helps the roots grow, which makes your garden more resistant to both cold and heat.
Lastly, you should use a lawn aerator to poke holes in the soil at least once a year in early summer. With aeration, nutrients, oxygen, and water will be able to reach the roots of Bermuda grass on a lawn. Don’t forget to add fertilizer and water after you loosen the soil.
What is Saint Augustine grass?
St. Augustine grass, also called Stenotaphrum secundatum, grows in lots of places other than lawns. It grows in swamps, lagoons, sandy beaches, and marshes. People with lawns often choose this perennial grass because it can grow in different types of soil.
In fact, this species only competes with Bermuda grass in places that are warm and tropical. St. Augustine grass doesn’t do well in places that are either too dry or get too much water.
Despite this, the grass can handle the summer heat pretty well. Even when the temperature drops 10 degrees below the point where Bermuda grass starts to lose its color, it can still keep its color.
Unlike Bermuda grass, this grass has a rough texture and no rhizomes at all. The St. Augustine grass’s stems and leaf sheaths are both compressed. The smooth blades of its leaves are usually folded and have a round tip.
How to take care of St. Augustine grass?
When compared to other types of warm-season grass, this grass does well in areas with moderate shade. If the leaf blades start to look thin and weak, the grass might be getting too much shade and need more sun.
Most of the time, St. Augustine doesn’t need a lot of work. Just water it several times a day for the first week after you put it on the lawn. Once the roots start to grow, you only need to water the plant about half an inch deep.
After two weeks, the St. Augustine grass can be cut to a height of one to three inches. This can be done once a week or once every two weeks. Lastly, don’t forget to give your lawn a pound of nitrogen every month from spring to fall.
St. Augustine grass vs. Bermuda grass—differences
Both types of grass are very good at killing weeds like dandelions, crabgrass, and even quackgrass. This is because both St. Augustine grass and Bermuda grass can grow thick and full, leaving no space for weeds to grow and compete with your turfgrass.
Which one should you pick (analyzing 16 important criteria)?
1. Appearance
St. Augustine has big, flat stems and wide, coarse leaves, while Bermuda grass has short, flat leaves. Most of the time, you can tell that a plant is Bermuda grass by its spikelets, which have four or five thin spikes at the tips of their tall stems.
Winner: Tie
2. Color
Different types of St. Augustine and Bermuda grass are bred to have different and appealing colors. In other words, no two different kinds of Bermuda grass are the same color.
For example, Celebration Bermuda grass is a deep blue-green color, while Latitude 36 Bermuda grass is more of a dark green color. On the other hand, CitraBlue St. Augustine gets its name from the deep blue-green color of its leaves, while Floratam is a medium green color with red stolons.
When it comes to the battle over which grass has the better color, the results are clear: it depends on what you’re looking for.
Winner: Tie
3. Blades size and surface
St. Augustine grass and Bermuda grass have blades that are all different widths. In fact, this is usually the easiest way to tell the difference between Bermuda grass and St. Augustine.
Homeowners who like the look of thick, tropical grass blades often choose St. Augustine for their lawns. Most Florida lawns have something from St. Augustine on them. The blades of St. Augustine grass are very thick.
Bermuda grasses, on the other hand, are on the opposite end of the spectrum. They have grass blades that look like hair and feel soft to the touch.
Most blades of St. Augustine grass are between 8 and 9 mm long. The blades of Bermuda grass can be anywhere from 1.67 to 1.7 mm wide, which is at least 1/6 the width of a blade of St. Augustine grass.
When a homeowner chooses Bermuda grass over other types of grass, they often want their yard to look like a golf course or sports field. Again, there is no clear winner when it comes to blade width and texture because each person has their own tastes.
Winner: Tie
4. Tolerance to weed
St. Augustine and Bermuda grass are both very resistant to weeds. They spread quickly and grow quickly, making a thick, full lawn. Because of this, they can crowd out and kill weeds on their own, so you won’t have to use as many weed killers on your lawn.
If crabgrass and other weeds take over your lawn easily, planting Bermuda or St. Augustine will help you get rid of them easily because these two types of grass can easily compete with and beat the weeds.
Before you can choose a type of turfgrass, you need to know what USDA zone you live in. You can find out by putting your ZIP code into the USDA plant hardiness zone map.
Bermuda grass is suitable for zones 7, 8, 9, and 10, while St. Augustine grass really only does well in zones 8 through 10.
So, St. Augustine grass is a better choice if you live along the Gulf Coast or in other warm coastal areas. Bermuda grass is a better choice if you live in parts of Tennessee, North Carolina, Central California, Oklahoma, or Arkansas because it can handle the occasional cold snap better.
Winner: Bermuda grass
5. Water requirements
With the way the weather changes, we should always put water use at the top of our list. Bermuda grass is definitely the best choice if you want to save water or cut back on how often you water.
At least twice as much water is needed for St. Augustine grass as it is for Bermuda.
This might not seem like a big deal now, but in the long run, it will show up on your monthly water bill. So, you should think about this if you live in an area that has water conservation rules or where droughts happen often.
Bermuda grass, on the other hand, doesn’t need much water when it’s dormant and can handle drought if it’s cared for properly.
Taking care of turf is the key to keeping it in good shape. If you don’t want to do extra work, choose Bermuda.
Winner: Bermuda grass
6. Drought resistance and drought tolerance
There is a difference between being able to handle drought and being able to resist it.
The ability to live through a drought is called “drought tolerance”.
Unlike drought tolerance, drought resistance is the ability to look good during a drought until the grass can no longer live without water.
As part of normal maintenance, both Bermuda grass and St. Augustine need about an inch of water per week, including rain. However, St. Augustine has a moderate drought tolerance and a high drought resistance.
Bermuda grass does a little bit better when it comes to both being able to handle and resist drought. This is why it does so well in hot, dry climates. Celebration Bermuda grass, for example, was bred and developed in Australia, so it is more used to handling and resisting drought.
Winner: Bermuda grass
7. Sun and shade requirements
St. Augustine grass is tough when it grows in the right climate, and it doesn’t mind being in the shade around your home. Bermuda grass, on the other hand, should only be used where there is full sun. It does best in full sun, but it won’t grow as well in areas with a lot of shade.
Does your lawn get a lot of shade?
Take a look at your lawn. Does it get shade from trees or is it in the sun all the time?
St. Augustine grass does well in both full sun and shade. Bermuda grass, on the other hand, will struggle to live in areas with a lot of shade. Most of the time, they do best in full sun.
If your yard is surrounded by trees and buildings that block most of the sun during the day, I would strongly suggest planting St. Augustine grass.
But if your lawn gets direct sunlight all day long, choose Bermuda grass because it does better in full sunlight.
Winner: St. Augustine grass
8. Setting up a new lawn
When putting down a new lawn, the choice between the two types of grass comes down to personal preference and how quickly they grow.
Planting seeds in a spot is an easy way to grow Bermuda grass. If you don’t need a lawn right away and like to watch the grass grow, this will be much cheaper than sod.
You can’t reliably grow St. Augustine grass from seeds, so laying sod or plugs is your best bet, but you’ll see results right away. Overall, St. Augustine grass will need to be mowed and trimmed more often than other types.
One of the worst things about St. Augustine is that it tends to get thatch faster than other grasses. Most lawns only need to be de-thatched in the worst cases, but in some parts of St. Augustine, it will need to be done almost every year.
Bermuda grass is a little easier to take care of, but don’t let that fool you. The grass will grow thicker the more you cut it, and if you don’t keep up with it, it can get out of hand quickly.
Winner: Tie
9. How the soil is?
If you’re new to gardening, you should test the soil first. You can buy soil test kits at gardening stores near you.
When your soil doesn’t have enough iron chelate or iron sulphate, it’s hard for St. Augustine grass to grow. Even though it needs the same amount of potassium as other grass, it needs to be fertilized at least once every two months.
On the other hand, Bermuda grass needs soil that is high in nitrogen. It can grow in both acidic and basic soil conditions.
St. Augustine grass needs three to six pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet of lawn every year, but Bermuda grass only needs one to four pounds for the same area.
More often than St. Augustine, Bermuda grass will need a layer of compost on top, and it usually needs much richer soil.
St. Augustine grass can handle salty and sandy soils very well. This makes it a good choice for homes near the coast, where the topsoil is often poor.
By testing your soil, you can find out if it needs more nutrients to change its pH range. Bermuda grass wins the battle for soil preferences and salt tolerance because it can grow in a wide range of soil types and salty conditions.
Winner: Bermuda grass
10. Tolerance for traffic
How many people will walk on your lawn?
Where on the lawn do you want to grow the grass?
Will there be a lot of foot or car traffic all the time?
Some types of grass do well when people walk on them, while others don’t. For example, Bermuda grass does well with a lot of foot traffic, but St. Augustine grass doesn’t do so well with it.
St. Augustine grass doesn’t like it when people walk on it, so it’s easy to damage. The Bermuda grass, on the other hand, is strong. Even when a lot of feet and paws walk on it, it keeps its shape and grows back to its full size.
So, there’s a reason why Bermuda grass is used on golf courses and sports fields instead of St. Augustine’s: Bermuda grass is usually more durable and can handle a lot of heavy foot traffic while recovering quickly.
Winner: Bermuda grass
11. Resistance to cold
Both Bermuda and St. Augustine are warm-season grasses, which means they do their best when it’s warm. You can plant your lawn with either seeds or sod, or you can use both. If you do, keep in mind that Bermuda grass can quickly overtake St. Augustine grass, especially if you mow it often.
Zones 8 and 10 are good for St. Augustine grass, but Zones 7 and 10 are fine for bermudagrass.
Winner: Bermuda grass
12. Maintenance
St. Augustine grass is harder to take care of because it needs more water and needs to be cut more often. It can spread quickly and take over other parts of the lawn.
So, if you have a St. Augustine lawn, you need a lawn mower that works well and is strong. When it comes to taking care of your grass, a mower might be your best friend.
On the other hand, Bermuda grass needs less mowing and watering because it grows thicker when either is done. Bermuda grass should also be trimmed often because it can easily grow into driveways and sidewalks.
St. Augustine grass needs more water and fertilizer than Bermuda grass. The grass can also be cut less often.
Bermuda grass needs soil that has more nutrients and needs to be covered with compost more often.
Winner: Bermuda grass
13. How high to mow and how does the grass grow?
Each type of grass needs to be cut at a different height to work and look its best, just like the different colors of Bermuda grass and St. Augustine cultivars.
At different times of the year, these heights will also change. Check out these guides on how to care for Bermuda grass and St. Augustine for more information.
Bermuda grass is usually kept between 0.5 and 1.5 inches tall, and St. Augustine is kept between 2 and 4 inches tall. Mowing heights are important because they often determine how often a homeowner needs to mow. Since different kinds grow at different rates, this isn’t always true.
All Bermuda grasses use rhizomes and stolons to grow and spread.
A rhizome grows horizontally in the ground, often just below the soil’s surface. Rhizomes send out new roots into the soil and also send up new stems.
A stolon is a stem that grows above the ground and creeps along the surface of the soil. At the end of the stolon, a copy of the original plant grows. St. Augustine only spreads by what are called stolons, which are runners that grow above the ground. Because of this, they usually do a better job of getting rid of weeds than Bermuda grass.
Since Bermuda grass grows in both directions, it is usually better at withstanding wear, healing from damage, and drought.
Bermuda grasses also grow faster and in a more aggressive way. They need more mowing and trimming because they will grow into your driveways, sidewalks, roads, or garden edges. St. Augustine wins the battle of mowing heights and growth habits because Bermuda grasses need a little more care when they are mowed.
Winner: St. Augustine grass
14. Fertility and pH
First of all, it’s important to note that all grasses need some kind of food. The grass is a living thing, just like us, and it needs food to stay healthy.
There’s more to this than just water and sun.
Both St. Augustine and Bermuda grass need a certain amount of macro and micronutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium (NPK), iron, manganese, and sulphur.
St. Augustine likes soil with a pH range from 5.0 to 8.5. Like St. Augustine, Bermuda grass can grow well in a wide range of soil types, but it does best when the pH is between 6.5 and 8.0. St. Augustine, on the other hand, only grows well in soils that drain well.
Winner: Bermuda grass
15. Pest control
There are many insects and other pests that can hurt both St. Augustine and Bermuda grass.
Some types of St. Augustine grass are more likely to get chinch bugs than others.
At first, Floratam St. Augustine was said to be resistant to chinch bugs. However, chinch bugs have changed, so this is no longer true. Grub worms, sod webworms, and fall armyworms are some of the other kinds of bugs that can hurt St. Augustine.
Most of the time, Bermuda grass mites, billbugs, and, like St. Augustine, sod webworms and fall armyworms attack Bermuda grass.
Here are a few ways to get rid of these different kinds of bugs.
Winner: Tie
16. Diseases
The same can be said about turfgrass diseases: St. Augustine grass and Bermuda grass are more likely to get different diseases.
Many turfgrass diseases, like brown patches, SAD, grey leaf spots, pythium, and others, can affect St. Augustine grass.
But Palmetto St. Augustine is resistant to viral diseases like lethal viral necrosis (LVN) and sugarcane mosaic virus (SCMV), which can’t be treated with fungicides because they are caused by viruses.
The most dangerous of these diseases, though, are gray leaf spots and brown patches. Dollar spot, spring dead spot, leaf spot, brown patch, and pythium are more likely to happen to Bermuda grass.
Winner: Tie
Overall score
Which grass will you choose for your lawn, Bermuda or St. Augustine?
Use Bermuda grass if: you live in Zone 7; your area often has droughts; the area where you want to plant has a lot of foot traffic; the area gets full sun.
Use St. Augustine grass if: you live in Zone 8, 9, or 10; you live near the coast; your lawn area is in the shade; your lawn area gets low to moderate foot traffic.
In some areas, St. Augustine may be stronger than Bermuda grass, but in other areas, Bermuda grass may be stronger than St. Augustine.
As was already said, this article talks about the similarities and differences between St. Augustine and Bermuda grass from a general point of view. Each type of St. Augustine and Bermuda grass does things differently because it was bred at different times and for different reasons.
In this round of turf wars, St. Augustine gets an overall score of 8/16, including the ties, while Bermuda gets an overall score of 14/16, including the ties, and Bermuda grass wins the war between turfs.
Frequently asked questions
Bermuda grass can take over St. Augustine grass if the conditions are right. But the opposite can also happen, depending on where you live, the soil, and how well you take care of the grass.
Bermuda grass is a very invasive plant that spreads through seeds, stolons that grow above ground, and its roots. It can kill St. Augustine grass if it is not stopped.
Setting your mower to 4 inches and mowing twice a week will keep Bermuda grass from taking over your St. Augustine grass. The blades of St. Augustine grass could kill the bermudagrass.
Conclusion
In short, Bermuda grass is very resistant to drought and doesn’t need to be watered when it’s hot in the summer, while St. Augustine grass needs a lot of water to grow well.
Another big difference is that St. Augustine grass does well in shady places while Bermuda grass does not.
Image credits: Pixabay, Unsplash and Pexels