Selecting a Warm Season Grass If you reside in the south or transition zone where warm season grasses are dominant, you already know choosing a variety and maintaining it can be challenging. The warm season grasses are commonly started vegetatively in the lawn as sod or stolons and require good soil to get a good start. Unlike the cool season grasses, warm season grasses grow best with temperatures between 80 to 95 degrees F. As most warm season grasses will turn brown with the arrival of cooler temperatures, it is common to overseed (also called winter overseeding) with ryegrass each fall. The ryegrass helps the lawn maintain a green color during the winter months and then go dormant in the heat of summer when the warm season grasses are at their best. When considering a warm season grass, consider the features that are important to you in the grass characteristics and the type of "use" your lawn will experience. Below is a chart of the different warm season grasses and inherent characteristics of each variety. Properties of selected warm season grasses Feature Buffalo Centipede Common Bermuda Hybrid Bermuda St Augustine Tall Fescue Zoysia Drought tolerance High Low to medium Medium to high Low to medium Medium Low Medium to high Traffic tolerance Medium to high Low High Medium to high Low Medium High Shade tolerance Low Medium to high Low Low to medium High High Medium to high Fertilizing requirement Low Low Medium to high High Medium Medium Fine to medium Leaf texture Fine Medium to coarse Medium Fine Coarse Medium Fine to medium Mowing height High Medium to high Medium Low High High Medium Cold tolerance High Medium to high Medium Low to medium Low High High Heat tolerance High High High High High Medium High Thatching tendency Low Medium Low High Medium to high Low Medium to high Acid soil tolerance Low Medium Medium Medium Low High Low to medium