Temperatures are rising, weeds are growing like gangbusters, and your rye grass needs mowed more frequently. That means spring is coming and it’s time to transition your lawn.
Your first step is to stop fertilizing. You don’t want to encourage aggressive rye growth because it will compete with the awakening bermuda grass, which will need all the sun, water, air, and nutrients available to it to recharge itself from its winter dormancy. If you allow the rye grass to grow too aggressively due to over-fertilization, you risk losing your bermuda grass when nighttime temperatures reach 65 degrees.
You won’t see the immediate impact of over-competing rye grass until the summer when it finally dies and you’re left with bare dirt instead of bermuda grass. This will not be an issue if you stop fertilizing now. Check back for subsequent steps in the spring transition process.