01 / Lawn care
Zoysia
Not automatically a low-water lawn. It may brown into drought dormancy and green up when moisture returns.
Watering
UF/IFAS care reference Water when dry-stress signs appear; usually 1/2-3/4 inch per needed watering.
Zen care collection / Beyond St. Augustine
Different grasses.
Clearer care.
Zoysia, Bermuda, Bahia and specialty turf do not all need identical timer settings. Start with your grass, then use rainfall, dry-stress signs and measured sprinkler output to decide when and how long to water.
02 / Lawn care
Bermuda
Full-sun, closely maintained turf needs attentive mowing. Drought dormancy is possible; a brown lawn is not always dead.
Watering
UF/IFAS care reference Water when blades fold, wilt or look blue-gray; usually 1/2-3/4 inch per needed watering.
03 / Lawn care
Bahia
A lower-input option for larger sunny sites. It can survive dry periods by going dormant; year-round green color still requires water.
Watering
UF/IFAS care reference Water as needed rather than keeping a fixed green-lawn calendar; usually 1/2-3/4 inch when needed.
04 / Specialist turf
Seashore paspalum
Specialist turf, not an easy default home lawn. Salt tolerance does not make salty irrigation water safe for nearby plants.
Watering
UF/IFAS care reference Use a cultivar- and site-specific irrigation plan.
What can use the same guide?
Same water-depth target.
Different timing.
For established Zoysia and Bermuda maintained green, the main guide’s seasonal table is a starting point alongside St. Augustine. Irrigate when dry-stress signs appear, usually applying 1/2-3/4 inch per event where the soil can hold it. Do not automatically add water because a day on the calendar arrived.
Use the common seasonal starting plan, then skip cycles when roots are moist. Grass variety, mowing height, shade and soil can change frequency.
Use an as-needed routine. It is often managed with fewer inputs and may go dormant during dry periods; forcing constant green color uses more water.
Keep its specialist plan. UF/IFAS does not recommend it as a typical home-lawn choice because maintenance is high.
Minutes follow output, not grass name. At 1.5 inches/hour, about 20 minutes delivers 1/2 inch. At 0.5 inch/hour, about 60 minutes does the same. For 3/4 inch, multiply those times by 1.5. Check the actual zone output, stop for runoff and allow soak time. See sprinkler and drip lookup tables
New sod is a separate stage.
Freshly laid sod needs moisture at the sod-soil contact until roots enter the soil below. The main guide’s staged new-sod routine is a starting point for common warm-season sod. Seeds, sprigs, plugs and specialist turf may need a different establishment routine. Confirm the rooting before reducing watering.
Ornamental grasses are different: muhly and fakahatchee are landscape plants, not mowed turf. Use species-appropriate new-plant care, then dry-spell watering as needed; do not put them on the lawn’s automatic routine. Artificial turf has no living-root watering requirement.
Follow local watering rules. These are starting guidelines for South Florida, not a universal schedule for every cultivar or site.