buffalo grass pros and cons

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If you have a home where the buffalo roam, you may have heard of buffalograss. Buffalograss is a native North American grass that thrives in the western and central Great Plains but has made the leap to home lawns in recent years. Although it’s low maintenance once established, its natural lack of density means weeds are a constant concern. We’ll discuss the good, the bad, and the weedy about this native Great Plains grass.

Buffalograss at a glance

Classification: Warm-season grass
Spreads by: Stolons
Shade tolerance: Very low — best suited for full sun
Drought resistance High
Foot traffic tolerance: Very low, but light use or rare heavy use is OK
Maintenance needs: Low mowing frequency — once per week or less
Mowing height: 2-4 inches or leave unmowed
Potential for disease: Good tolerance against diseases and insects
Soil pH: 6.5-7.5
Soil type: Native soils, not sandy soils

What is buffalograss?

Native buffalograss thrives in the western and central regions of the Great Plains known as the shortgrass and mixed-grass prairies. These regions are drier than areas to the east and have progressively shorter grasses. As you may guess, native buffalograss is a primary forage grass for grazing animals in this region, including the American bison.

In true American fashion, breeders have sought to expand the reach of this native grass and developed turf-type cultivars that are well adapted for home lawns. If you know anything about native plants, you’d think this is a good thing. Native plants are generally low-maintenance, are a boon to the local ecosystem, and require little if any supplemental water. Buffalograss checks a few of these boxes:

• Low maintenance once established
• Less water once established than other turfgrasses
• Few insect and disease problems

One major “con” to buffalograss is its open growth habit. Turfgrasses with open growth habits will constantly battle weeds. Accept this as a way to increase the ecological diversity in your lawn or take up a regular weed control program to fight them.

Pros and cons of buffalograss

Although it is a native Plains grass (a plus for area homeowners), buffalograss for home lawns isn’t without its challenges.

Pros

✓ Establish via seed, sod, or plugs, depending on the cultivar

✓ No water once established, although it will go dormant in summer without some rainfall or supplemental irrigation

✓ Low fertilizer requirement once established

✓ No significant disease or insect issues

✓ A soft barefoot grass

Cons

✗ Not a fire-safe grass

✗ Open growth habit means weeds are a constant battle

✗ Higher seed costs and extensive water needs make establishing a lawn expensive

How to establish buffalograss

Although buffalograss lawns are lower maintenance once established, the work you’ll put in up front is substantial. Establishing buffalograss lawns is not low-maintenance.

To seed your buffalograss lawn , follow these steps:

• Get a soil test (for the best results).
• Seed in late spring or early summer when soil temperatures are 70 degrees or higher.
• Level the ground, remove debris, and compact the soil if necessary. Spread the seed and cover with ¼ to ½ inches of soil.
• Keep soil wet until most seeds germinate. Then, gradually reduce watering. Most treated seedlings germinate in 7–21 days.
• Buffalograss requires fertilizer. Spread lawn fertilizer two to three weeks after plants arrive. not (prevent weeds). Fertilize again after six weeks.
• Mow once the seedlings have grown to 3 inches.
• Hand-pulling, hand-seeding, or spraying particular weeds may control weeds. Check for buffalograss suitability.

If you’re using plugs , prepare the soil as for a seeded lawn. Plant the plugs on 12- to 18-inch centers and use a starter fertilizer. Apply another round of fertilizer about six weeks later. Irrigate to keep the soil moist for seven to 10 days, using as many as five short periods of irrigation every day. Keep the soil moist going forward.

It is safe to use pendimethalin (a pre-emergent) at the time of planting to keep weeds at bay. If the plugs turn brown, keep irrigating. They haven’t died and will turn green again once new roots have formed.

For sod , prepare the seedbed, water to moisten the root zone, and maintain irrigating even if it becomes brown. Once new roots emerge, plugs will become green again.

How much does buffalograss cost?

Buffalograss seed: Costs much more than other grasses. The seed is difficult to harvest, so this drives up the cost of seeding this grass type. On sale, it can easily cost $190 for a 5-pound bag.

Buffalograss sod : Costs from $215 to $275 per pallet

Buffalograss plugs: Costs about $60 for 70 plugs

Caring for buffalograss 

Mowing

Three ways to mow buffalograss:

• Higher-quality lawns: Mow every week at 2-3 inches
• Low-maintenance lawns: Mow 3-4 inches every 3-4 weeks.
• Unmowed lawns: Mow once in spring at 3-4 inches.

Water

Established buffalograss lawns go dormant (brown) without summer watering (rains or otherwise). However, it isn’t likely to die and will green up again with sufficient water. If you want to apply supplemental irrigation to prevent dormancy, give it just enough to keep it healthy, about ½ to 1 inch per week in drought conditions. Too much water can weaken the grass and lead to increased weeds and disease. (Remember, it thrives in the native environment and doesn’t mind going dormant until rains return.)

Fertilization

For buffalograss, “less (fertilizer) is more.” Apply 0.5-2 pounds of nitrogen per 1,000 square feet per year. Two summer applications six to eight weeks apart are usually sufficient.

Dethatching and aeration

Not usually necessary for a buffalograss lawn.

Disease, insects, and weeds

Disease: There are no significant diseases common to buffalograss. Bipolaris leaf spot may occur but can be managed with integrated pest management and routine maintenance.

Insects: Beneficial insects keep most insects on this grass under control. Some undesirables are:

• Mealybugs
• Buffalograss webworms
• Mites
• Short-tailed crickets
• Buffalograss chinch bugs

However, buffalograss pesticides are not always accessible. Lawn maintenance is the finest treatment.

Weeds: Weeds are perhaps the most common deterrent for establishing a buffalograss lawn. No grass is perfect, though, so in many cases, you trade one drawback for another. If you like the low level of maintenance that an established buffalograss lawn will provide, there are a few ways to deal with the weeds.

One way is to accept the weeds and mow over them. Weeds increase ecological diversity and provide a more diverse plant ecosystem in your lawn. Mowing the lawn regularly also will help reduce broadleaf weeds. These weeds don’t like being mowed over and will weaken over time.

Another way is to try to remove them. You can do this by hand or through chemical or natural means. In spring, put down a pre-emergent to prevent summer annuals; in late summer or early fall use a second application to prevent winter annual weeds. (Make sure the pre-emergents are safe to use on buffalograss.) To kill weeds once they’ve sprouted, spot-treat with a product that is safe for buffalograss lawns. Glyphosate may be applied only when the grass is fully dormant .

Related Questions

• Will buffalo grass choke out weeds?

  It grows four to six inches tall, spreads swiftly, and outcompetes most weeds in most places.

• Will buffalo grass spread on its own?

  Buffalo grass is a popular blue-green turfgrass in Canada, the US, and Mexico. It grows vigorously in full light.

• Is buffalo grass good for a lawn?

  Warm-season buffalo grass is drought-resistant and low-maintenance. Buffalo grass is a versatile, low-maintenance turf grass. This West, Southwest, and Great Plains grass can withstand drought, severe winds, heat, and chilly winters.

• Will buffalo grass survive winter?

  Once watered, buffalograss will recover from summer browning. Shade intolerant. Many cultivars of this plant may withstand winter dormancy.

• What are the negatives of buffalo grass?

  One major “con” to buffalograss is its open growth habit. Turfgrasses with open growth habits will constantly battle weeds. Accept this as a way to increase the ecological diversity in your lawn or take up a regular weed control program to fight them.

• What is the best grass to stop weeds?

  Zoysia

  Zoysia develops differently and is great. It spreads by sending out “stolons,” or runners. It chokes out most summer weeds and replaces grass because of its density.