VIRGIN ISLANDS HOME LAWNS



 INTRODUCTION

 It is difficult to imagine what homes in the Virgin Islands would look like without lawns. They
 provide uniformity and beauty to our overall landscape, help control erosion and dust, and reduce noise
 and glare. Lawns have a significant overall cooling effect on the environment. And, of course, they
 provide surfaces for our youth to play on.
 To have a good lawn you must consider: I) choice of grasses; 2) construction of the lawn how
 the seedbed is prepared; 3) planting the lawn how and when it should be planted, and 4) maintenance,
 including fertilizing, mowing, watering, and controlling weeds, diseases and insects.

 LAWN GRASS SELECTION

 The correct species and variety for your lawn should be
selected carefully. This requires knowing where the lawn will be used,
how it will be used, and what appearance and maintenance level will "
be acceptable. Because each lawn grass species has good and bad
features, learn the strengths and weaknesses of each of the species to
choose the one best suited to our climatic and soil conditions.
 The following are descriptions of some common lawn grasses
adaptable to Virgin Islands conditions. Included are statements on how
they grow, where they grow best, their requirements, and how to
establish them.
 It should be noted that planting material for vegetatively
propagated lawn grasses (sod or plugs) is not easily available in the
Virgin Islands.
 Hurricane Grass
HURRICANE GRASS (Bothriochloo pertusa)

 This is by far the predominant lawn grass in the Virgin Islands. It is a hardy, aggressive, native grass
which stands up exceptionally well to wear. The agronomic characteristics of hurricane grass have not
been thoroughly researched, but practical experience with it throughout the territory suggests it
performs satisfactorily and is easily established by seeding. It has been considered a successful turf grass
at the University of the Virgin Islands campuses, the golf courses on St. John (Caneel Bay) and Virgin
Gorda (Utde Dix Bay).
 Hurricane grass has a dense thatch and apparently is drought, salt, disease and insect resistant.
It does not tolerate dense shade, but persists well in moderate shade if regularly mowed. The main
disadvantage of Hurricane grass is that frequent mowing is required to remove unsightly seed heads.