Painting dormant warm-season grasses such as Zoysia, St. Augustine, Centipede, and Bermuda has grown in popularity over recent years as individuals desire to have green color for their lawns during the winter months.  Turf paints or colorants eliminate the need to over-seed lawns with cool-season grasses such as ryegrass to give winter color to the lawn.

Painting your lawn has several benefits versus traditional over-seeding with ryegrass.  Turf paints will not compete with your existing grass for nutrients and sunlight in the spring when warm-season grasses come out of dormancy.  Also ryegrass must be mowed throughout the fall, winter, and spring months.  Turf paints or colorants keep individuals from having to mow their lawns during cooler months.  In order for lawns over-seeded with ryegrass to look their best, they must be fertilized to allow the ryegrass to mature and produce desirable green growth.  By apply a turf paint or turf colorant to your lawn, individuals can save fertilizer and mowing costs associated with over-seeding, while getting the green color they desire for their lawn.

One product that is showing favorable results for coloring dormant grasses and lawns is Grass Greenzit™.  This product is actually a permanent green pigment that does not wash off or fade with sunlight.  It is harmless to all grass types including St. Augustine, Bermuda, Zoysia, Centipede, and Fescue.  Grass Greenzit™ is sprayed onto turf and should be mixed with water.  When applying Grass Greenzit™, sprayers should be set up to deliver at least 3 gallons of finished solution per 1,000 sq. ft.  This will ensure that you get good coverage over the leaf blades of the grass to produce a solid color.  The rate of Grass Greenzit® on dormant grass is 16-32 oz per 1,000 sq. ft.  

When spraying Grass Greenzit™ to color turf, start with the lowest recommended rate.  If the color of turf paint is not dark enough for personal satisfaction, apply a second coat.  When making a second application of the turf paint or pigment, spray perpendicular to the first application.  This will ensure an even coverage of the paint on the lawn and will disguise any overlap. 

Turf or lawns that have been painted with Grass Greenzit™ come out of the spring transition stage stronger because they do not have to compete with over-seeded ryegrass.  Also grasses that are painted instead of over-seeded with ryegrass, allow individuals to use pre-emergent herbicides in the fall to prevent cool-season annual weeds.  This type of weed control is not possible when over-seeding with ryegrass, because it will prevent seed germination.  The combination of pre-emergent herbicide and Grass Greenzit™ produce weed free, green lawns that are visually attractive during the cooler months in South Carolina.

Grass Greenzit™ should only be applied when temperatures are above 40°F when painting grasses.  Shake container thoroughly before mixing with water.  Mixing rates for painting turf and lawns will vary due to individual preferences.  Grass Greenzit™ is available in 2.5 gallon jugs from your local W.P. Law Inc. store which are located throughout South Carolina.  Grass Greenzit™ can be applied residential lawns, commercial lawns, athletic fields, and golf courses.