Buffalo Grass (Buffalograss)
Perennial
Warm Season
Native
Seeded Variety
Buffalo Grass is a warm season, native perennial turf grass. Buffalo grass grows about 3-12 inches. When used for grazing, it can be allowed to grow its full height but when used as turf, it can be mowed to about 2 inches. Buffalo grass propagates both by seed and vegetatively. You can purchase seed or sod; however, not all varieties of Buffalo grass are available in sod. Buffalo grass can be used for:
• Grazing
• Turf
• Erosion control
• Reclamation
Buffalo grass can be planted by itself (mono-culture) or together with other grasses as it is done very frequently. Buffalo grass can be mixed with Blue Grama and Curly Mesquite to make a 100% native drought tolerant turf grass. We have this seed mix available and it is called
Starr Native Turf®
.Adaptation and Maintenance: Buffalo grass does best in heavier (clay) soils rather than sandy soils. It can also do very well in limestone and caliche soils with high calcium carbonate content. It requires good sun light. It is recommended to only use seed that has been treated with KNO3 to improve the germination. Without this treatment, Buffalo grass seed is a slow getting established. Buffalo grass is a very drought tolerant and low maintenance grass. It is an excellent turf grass where watering is limited or strictly dependent on rain fall.
We carry several varieties of Buffalo Grass seed. Below are a few of what we carry:
Texoka Buffalograss
Timeless Buffalograss
Cody Buffalograss
Sundancer Buffalograss
Bowie Buffalograss
Bison Buffalograss
Growth Height: 3-12 inches
Drought Tolerance: Good
Cold Tolerance: Good
Minimum Rainfall: 12-16 inches
(less for pasture and more for turf)
(less for pasture and more for turf)
Planting (Seeding) Rate: 8 PLS Lbs/acre
for pasture application)
Planting (Seeding Rate: 2-3 Lbs / 1,000 sq. ft. for turf application)
for pasture application)
Planting (Seeding Rate: 2-3 Lbs / 1,000 sq. ft. for turf application)
Planting Time: December 1st - June 1st
(planting time window depends on the region that you are located and rain considerations)
(planting time window depends on the region that you are located and rain considerations)
Planting Depth: 1/16 inches
Soil Adaptation: Clay Soils, caliche soils, limestone soils (not recommend for sandy soils)
Fertilizing
Starter Fertilizer (15-15-15)
at a rate of 200 Lbs/acre is a catch all rule of thumb; however, if you have a fresh root plow on virgin brush, you may not need to fertilize. Soil samples can be taken and analyzed for N-P-K requirements.
For Turf:
Maintenance Fertilizer: (30-10-0)
is a typical fertilizer used to restore the nitrogen depletion during the grazing or baling process. Again, soil sample analysis can tell you more accurately what type on how much fertilizer you need.
For Grazing or Erosion Control:
Maintenance fertilizer is not need. As with most native grasses, it requires minimal nitrogen.
Starter Fertilizer (15-15-15)
at a rate of 200 Lbs/acre is a catch all rule of thumb; however, if you have a fresh root plow on virgin brush, you may not need to fertilize. Soil samples can be taken and analyzed for N-P-K requirements.
For Turf:
Maintenance Fertilizer: (30-10-0)
is a typical fertilizer used to restore the nitrogen depletion during the grazing or baling process. Again, soil sample analysis can tell you more accurately what type on how much fertilizer you need.
For Grazing or Erosion Control:
Maintenance fertilizer is not need. As with most native grasses, it requires minimal nitrogen.