Centipede Grass
Eremochloa ophiuroides · Warm-season, Perennial, C4 grass
AI-generated identification · may be incorrect
Grass Category
Lawn/Turf Grass, Erosion Control
Hardiness Zones
USDA Hardiness Zones 7 through 10. Good heat tolerance, moderate cold tolerance (TifBlair extends better into Zone 7). Goes dormant and turns straw-colored with the first hard frost.
Grass Family
Poaceae, subfamily Panicoideae, tribe Andropogoneae
Variety / Cultivar
Common Centipede, TifBlair (known for better cold tolerance and lighter color)
About This Grass
Centipede grass is a low-growing, coarse-to-medium textured warm-season turfgrass. It features a characteristic light yellow-green to apple-green color. When left unmowed, it reaches heights of 4 to 6 inches, but when maintained, it is typically kept much lower. It forms a moderately dense mat with creeping stolons that root at the nodes. Seed heads are typically slender, single spikes resembling centipedes.
Blade Characteristics
Blades are medium in width (approx. 3-4 mm), flat to slightly folded, with rounded or bluntly pointed tips. The color is distinctly light green or yellowish-green. Vernation is folded in the bud. It has a membranous ligule with a fringe of hairs, and auricles are absent. The leaf surface is relatively smooth with distinct parallel veins.
Root System
Moderately deep fibrous root system combined with creeping above-ground stolons. It has a low thatch-forming tendency compared to grasses like Bermuda or St. Augustine. Establishment speed from seed or sod is moderate. Forms a moderately tough sod that provides decent erosion control.
Growing Information
Origin Region
Native to southern China and Southeast Asia; widely naturalized and cultivated in the southeastern United States and similar subtropical climate zones.
Growth Habit
Stoloniferous, spreading strictly by above-ground runners (stolons). It forms a moderately dense, apple-green to light green turf and has a slow to moderate spread rate.
Sunlight & Water Needs
Thrives in full sun to partial shade (more shade tolerant than Bermuda, less than St. Augustine). Requires moderate watering; has good drought tolerance by going into dormancy during prolonged dry spells. Prefers acidic soils (pH 5.0 to 6.0) and performs poorly in high-pH or highly alkaline soils.
Mowing & Maintenance
Ideal mowing height is 1.0 to 2.0 inches, performed every 7 to 14 days during the active growing season. Low maintenance requirements; needs minimal fertilization (0.5 to 2 lbs N per 1000 sq ft per year). Excessive nitrogen can cause yellowing and decline (centipede decline). Low dethatching needs.
Special Characteristics
Low maintenance ('lazy man's grass'), moderate traffic and wear tolerance, sensitive to high phosphorus and high pH soils, poor salt tolerance compared to St. Augustine, good weed suppression once established due to dense stolon mat.
Ecological Information
Introduced species in the United States. Provides basic wildlife habitat and good soil stabilization for erosion control on slopes in sandy southeastern soils. Generally non-invasive outside of cultivated landscape borders.