Zoysias are proving to be good grasses for Texas landscapes, but beware of claims made by mail order sources. Buy Texas-grown sod of a good variety of turf. Photo by Neil Sperry.

Gardeners know that plants grow and thrive based on their own particular requirements. If the environment and climate where these plants are to be grown do not meet the plant’s needs, then the plant and gardener suffer the consequences. Therefore, while thumbing through garden and seed catalogs or perusing the Internet for landscape plants, we need to temper our excitement and beware of sensational claims before making our purchases.

Some companies try to stretch the boundaries, and they market their lawn grasses or landscape and garden plants to gardeners in geographical regions where environments are not quite ideal for the plants involved. Turf grasses are a prime example of this. There are warm- and cool-season grasses, and businesses in both climates attempt to expand their market shares into other areas as much as they can — completely understandable. However, some declarations of how these grasses perform are on the verge of, let’s say it, ridiculous! Some ads lead you to believe a product will grow on concrete (not kidding). Let’s just put it this way: the seed could very well germinate on concrete, but it would not have any sustained growth after it germinated. Realistically speaking, the plant did not grow on concrete; it only germinated. Will there be roots and green shoots emerging (“growing”) from the grass seed? Yes, this is the definition of germination. Real growth, on the other hand, is the continued and sustained development into a grass plant. Just saying, can we be a little more truthful in advertising?

This is an extreme case, of course, but what gardeners need to do to avoid falling for these and other more subtle forms of marketing is to rely on the research and recommendations of their counties’ Texas AgriLife Extension offices, as well as the experience of certified nursery professionals where they live. These professionals can help gardeners make the most informed decisions possible before spending hard-earned money. Installing tested and proven plant material will also minimize the frustration of losing lawn and landscape plants in extreme weather conditions like those we experienced last year (more than 100 hours of below-freezing temperatures in Dallas-Fort Worth last winter, followed by a record number of continuous days at or above 100 degrees throughout Texas, not to mention our extreme and extended drought conditions for more than three years in some parts of the state).

Another aspect of marketing to be aware of is the promotion of turf grasses without proven records even within their own warm- or cool-season zone. Some grass plant varieties perform better than others in different regions of their preferred zones. For instance, when investigating your options for warm-season grasses in our region of the country, know that warm-season zoysiagrass varieties that thrive on the humid East Coast may not perform as well in our more arid conditions. There are cool-season grasses that achieve good growth in certain situations in warm-season climates. The need still exists to learn their limitations to determine if they will survive the elements in your surroundings before planting. A common regional mistake is installing a St. Augustine variety with purple stolons (runners) north of Austin. These varieties do not tolerate the colder temperatures of North Texas. St. Augustine varieties that can cope with the colder conditions are recommended and should be planted for the most part.

The advertisements targeted at gardeners are in the newspapers, catalogs and magazines now, so be prepared for the marvelous appeals, and remember, if it sounds too good to be true, investigate the claims thoroughly and proceed cautiously before buying.

About the author: Mike Sutton is a horticulture graduate of Purdue University with more than 25 years’ experience with turf grasses in Texas.