St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Bermuda, St. Augustine, Zoysia, Centipede, Bahia, Paspalum, etc
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Speed21
Posts: 3
Joined: May 8th, 2019, 2:31 pm
Location: Culver City, CA
Grass Type: TBD & UC Verde
Lawn Size: 1000-3000
Level: Novice

St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Post by Speed21 » May 8th, 2019, 6:07 pm

Hello,

I'm currently trying to decide between St. Augustine or Platinum TE Paspalum for my front lawn. I'm open to other options, but after a lot of research, I've narrowed down to these two.

The lawn is about 1600 square feet, it's mostly full sun and I'm in Culver City.

I'm actually looking to sell my house, so I'm laying down sod to improve my abysmal curb appeal. No one will be walking or playing on this lawn as it's on a busy corner, just need it to look great and not be a huge hassle down the road.

My key factors are finding something that isn't a water hog (ruling out Fescue) and doesn't require a huge ton of maintenance (ruling out Bermuda) but that doesn't break the bank (ruling out Zoysia or bent grass). Bermuda grasses seem to require constant mowing and I'm trying to market the lawn as being water-friendly and easy to maintain. I have UC Verde Buffalograss in the backyard that I installed via plugs about 6 years ago. It's great, but I don't have time to wait for the plugs to fill in the front yard.

I've been doing a lot of research and narrowed down to St. Augustine or Platinum TE Paspalum and I've been able to find them at close to the same price.

The St. Augustine will end up being a couple hundred dollars more, but that's fine if it's the better choice.

Could really just use some help to decide on a lawn that strikes the best balance of looks, price, watering requirements, and mowing & maintenance requirements.

Thank you.

Green
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Re: St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Post by Green » May 8th, 2019, 9:20 pm

Welcome.

I'm a cool-season guy, but I can tell you that the other type of Paspalum used for lawns--Seashore Paspalum--looks totally different from St. Aug. They are like opposites in terms of texture, the former being extremely fine and dense, and the other coarse and wide bladed. And Seashore Paspalum is a very high-maintenance grass that can be reel-mowed low, whereas St. Aug. is like the Fescue of the Warm Season grasses, and likes to be cut at 4 inches. I don't know how similar the type of Paspalum you're considering is to Seashore Paspalum, but I hope this helps while you wait for someone with real experience (other than looking at lawns made of those grass types) to answer!

Speed21
Posts: 3
Joined: May 8th, 2019, 2:31 pm
Location: Culver City, CA
Grass Type: TBD & UC Verde
Lawn Size: 1000-3000
Level: Novice

Re: St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Post by Speed21 » May 9th, 2019, 2:34 am

Hey Green,

Thank you very much for your reply.

I’m definitely leaning towards the St Aug as it sounds like it’s the best bet for what I’m looking for, and the added cost isn’t too much.

I think the Platinum Paspalum is very similar to Seashore, but I’m definitely not an expert. I love the idea of being as low maintenance as possible.

lojack323
Posts: 34
Joined: August 1st, 2018, 12:16 pm
Location: Huntington Beach, CA
Grass Type: St. Augustine
Lawn Size: < 1000
Level: Some Experience

Re: St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Post by lojack323 » May 9th, 2019, 11:20 am

While I am far from an expert, I do happen to have both St. Augustine (floratam) in my backyard and a random variety of paspalum in the front yard. I love how the paspalum does great in the summer without a ton of water and minimal care but the one or two days of frost we have during winter sends it dormant and brown. The St. Augustine slows down but stays green year round down here in the Huntington Beach, CA area. Earlier this year I put some St. Augustine plugs into the front yard hoping it'll eventually convert the yard.

Speed21
Posts: 3
Joined: May 8th, 2019, 2:31 pm
Location: Culver City, CA
Grass Type: TBD & UC Verde
Lawn Size: 1000-3000
Level: Novice

Re: St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Post by Speed21 » May 9th, 2019, 2:06 pm

Hey lojack323,

Thank you, sounds like another vote of confidence for the St. Augustine.

Is the maintenance on the St. Augustine pretty simple? How often do you mow?


lojack323
Posts: 34
Joined: August 1st, 2018, 12:16 pm
Location: Huntington Beach, CA
Grass Type: St. Augustine
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Level: Some Experience

Re: St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Post by lojack323 » May 9th, 2019, 4:44 pm

Yeah really simple for a novice like myself. Height of cut is at the highest my mower will go ~3.75" year round and just a regular string trimmer for edging.

Last summer I was mowing twice a week for both the St. Augustine and paspalum lol. But I was also trying to fill in some areas so I was pushing the organics pretty frequently (monthly alfalfa, milorganite biweekly, coffee grounds weekly). I don't plan on doing that this year... just some milorganite in the backyard whenever I think about it. So I'm hoping for just once a week mowing, haha.

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Dchall_San_Antonio
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Re: St. Augustine or Platinum Paspalum?

Post by Dchall_San_Antonio » May 13th, 2019, 6:23 pm

I mow my St Aug every other week at the highest setting. It gets a little shaggy looking, but not too bad. I delay mowing so the roots can grow deeper.

IMO St Aug is one of the least hassle turf grasses. I have yet to water my front yard this year. Back yard slopes to the south so gets hit by the sun harder. I watered it once this year. We just got 3.25 inches of rain in the past week, so unless we have an extreme arid spell, I probably won't water it this month. I fertilize with alfalfa pellets a couple times a year, but the lawn would like a little more. Generally St Aug is self weeding. It will out compete most grasses, but weeds like clover, dichondra, horse herb, and oxalis are relentless invaders.

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