The Grass Doctor

I think I damaged my St. Augustine Lawn with herbacid (2,4-D)?

I'm a new home owner and have never had to care for grass before. I saw some weeds in my lawn and decided to buy some weed and feed. I went to Home Depot and asked the sales person what weed and feed product he recommended. He asked me what kind of grass I had. I let him know I was not sure, so he recommended I use Sta Green Weed and Feed, which I applied on my St. Augustine lawn (which I figured out later). It's been a few weeks now and I've noticed brown areas in my grass. I was searching the internet trying to research why my grass is dying and noticed that I should not use a herbacide 2, 4-D on St. Augustine grass. I checked the ingredients of the Sta Green Weed and Feed and noticed that it has this 2, 4-D herbacide in it. I'm now worried that my whole lawn is going to turn brown. Is there anything I can do or is it too late? I appreciate any suggestions or ideas.

Public Comments

1. Hold on big fellow. The label for Sta Green Weed & Feed says it can be applied to St. Augustine lawns! Yes, St. Augustine is sensetive to 2,4-D, but if you follow the labeled directions you should have been OK. Here is the product label for Sta Green Weed & Feed: http://www.sta-green.com/ProductCategories/LawnFertilizer/WeedFeed/ProductLabels/default.htm If you really think its the Weed & Feed, then contact Sta Green; they offer a money back guarantee! But it may not have been the weed & feed. First, this product is 100% fast release nitorgen sources. If you apply this product at the improper rate or spill this prodcut on the lawn, you not only risk damage due to 2,4-D, you'll burn the grass with its fast release nitrogen sources. Next, applying all this fast release nitrogen, even at the prescribed rate when your lawn is drought stressed can also cause it to burn. You should apply after a rainfall or when well irregated. Another problem is that a warm season grass like St. Augutine should not be fertilized late in the growing season. Fertilization in September is too late for most of areas of the US for St. Augustine grass. The cut off date depends on where you live. St. Augustine will go dormant when the temps drop. Are other lawns starting to go dormant in your area at this time(they naturally turn brown when dormant)? Finally, you may simply have a diseased lawn. Water the lawn and see what happens next. One last question: Why do people think Home Depot is a lawn care expert?
2. Water the lawn every day at in the morning for about half an hour. Just let the hose run. You may be able to leach the toxins down past the grass root zone, thereby remedying the situation.
3. Water it every day...it should be fine. The brown spots may be where some other type grass was growing...and the fertilizer killed it. I had no luck with Sta Green. I recommend Scott's Weed & Feed (for St. Augustine grass). Water, water, water.... =)