Bermudagrass is a warm-season grass. Highly viable in southern and transition zones. Needs maximum energy to push through topdressing or sand leveling, requiring soil temperatures >75°F. It greens up around 65°F soil temperature.
It needs mild winters (zones 7–10) and won't survive hard freezes up north.
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The typical dates our alert engine would have texted a bermudagrass lawn, replayed with today's rules on archived weather from 2019 to 2025. Each range runs from the earliest to the latest city we tested in that zone; open a zone for its cities and the month-by-month calendar. Simulated dates, not texts we sent or observed emergence.
| Zone | Spring pre-emergent | First feeding | Fall pre-emergent | Cities tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zone 6Marginal | Mar 20 to Apr 21 | Jun 10 to Jun 14 | Aug 12 to Sep 10 | Topeka, Hebron, Kansas City, Cincinnati, Indianapolis |
| Zone 7 | Mar 2 to Mar 23 | May 11 to May 18 | Aug 16 to Sep 29 | Oklahoma City, Shelbyville, Knoxville, Nashville, Richmond |
| Zone 8 | Feb 5 to Feb 28 | Apr 22 to May 10 | Sep 10 to Oct 12 | Jackson, Dallas, Macon, Forsyth, Birmingham |
| Zone 9 | Jan 15 to Feb 7 | Apr 10 to May 11 | Oct 9 to Oct 20 | Brandon, Houston, New Orleans, Lake Charles, Tallahassee |
| Zone 10 | Year-round rounds: Jan 3, Apr 3, Jul 3 and Oct 3 | Mar 10 to May 10 | Rounds instead | Naples, Fort Myers, Vero Beach, Orlando, Phoenix |
How these dates are set, how much they move year to year, and what to do if you are early or late: When to apply pre-emergent for crabgrass.
Grass facts from University of Georgia Extension and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension guidance. How our timing models work
When the soil says so, which moves by zone and by year. Replaying our alert engine on recent weather, the spring pre-emergent text for bermudagrass went out Mar 20 to Apr 21 in zone 6; Mar 2 to Mar 23 in zone 7; Feb 5 to Feb 28 in zone 8; Jan 15 to Feb 7 in zone 9. Your ZIP's live soil reading decides the actual week.
Not until the lawn has fully greened up and the soil holds near 65°F. In our replays the first feeding text went out Jun 10 to Jun 14 in zone 6; May 11 to May 18 in zone 7; Apr 22 to May 10 in zone 8; Apr 10 to May 11 in zone 9; Mar 10 to May 10 in zone 10.
Bermudagrass does best in USDA zones 7, 8, 9, 10 and can be grown with extra care in zone 6. Bermudagrass is a warm-season grass. It needs mild winters (zones 7–10) and won't survive hard freezes up north.
About 0.5–1.5″ in spring and fall and 1–2″ through summer, never taking more than a third of the blade in one mowing.