Love Floratam St. Augestine.
Replaced all Zoysia.
Looks better, much easier maintenance.
Leave it cut at 4" height.

Try Next Door-its online and includes all the neighborhoods nearby. They have recommendations and I've never been disappointed.

We have zoysia and hate but we can't get a landscaper to change it. They say the lot is too small. Would much rather have St Augustine.

You can walk barefoot on Empire Zoysia grass with no discomfort. St. Augustine grass grows with thicker blades and needs to be mowed higher than Empire Zoysia. St. Augustine grass is uncomfortable to walk barefoot on. Empire Zoysia begins its dormancy according to the light levels of the season. If you get a hard freeze, Zoysia will go dormant (turn brown) and then start greening up again when the temperatures start turning warmer. Both St. Augustine and Empire Zoysia are excellent choices, but you really can not mix them together. There are different insects that feed on each one, different ranges of problems and different chemicals and fertilizers. Mix the two together and you have a lot of maintenance work to do.

Have you ever see a dog tip-toe across the grass? That is what our lab does in our St. Augustine grass. If the dog doesn’t like it, I don’t either.

I’ve always wondered what would happen if Kentucky Blue Grass was mixed with St. Augustine? In the winter months I think the blue grass would thrive.

I don't think you actually have a choice. Its what the developer puts in. In Brownwood area we have Zoyza and it started off a little slow but now its thick, lush, green, and softer then St Ag.

Where does one find this new Pro Vista cultivar?
Is it available locally?

Zoysia grass when properly grown is a beautiful green lawn. Sod Solutions, the company that holds the patent for Empire Zoysia (the variety that is planted here in the Villages) recommends the following: #1. Set mower cutting height at 1 to 2 inches. Higher mowing heights taller than 2 inches cause the grass to form a lot of thatch that attracts insects and fungus. #2. In the early spring you need to buzz cut your lawn to at least one setting lower than you mow normally. So if you mow all year at the highest recommended height of 2 inches you would buzz cut your lawn in March at 1 and 1/2 inches or less. This does not hurt the grass as the stolons of Zoysia are below ground level and the grass bounces back pretty fast. This can be hard on a mower so you can make partial passes doing a little each run. You need to bag up all this dead grass and remove it from the lawn. This early buzz cut goes a long way in keeping empire zoysia grass healthy.

I have followed these directions and my zoysia lawn has been growing very well. I mow my lawn at 2 inches. Commercial mowers balk at mowing zoysia low at 2 inches as they would need to mow every 5-7 days in summer to keep it at 2 inches. If you do mow each week at the top height of 2 inches the lawn takes on a carpet like look where the grass thickens up and looks flat without all the undulating look you get from higher mower heights. So bottom line is if you mow empire zoysia higher than 2 inches and don’t buzz cut it in the spring you are going to get a messy, uneven, diseased, insect infested lawn. The problem is no one is managing empire zoysia as it should be grown.

Yes, they are.
Thanks for the info...:coolsmiley:
provista st augustine grass - Google Search