How-to Guides

Kurapia is easy to plant, and a little preparation makes the biggest difference in how fast it fills in. This guide walks through everything in order, from checking your site to the first mow. Most of the work happens before the plants arrive, so start about a month ahead.

With loose soil, a thin layer of seed-starting mulch, and the right watering, Kurapia typically fills in within 2 to 3 months, and faster in warm climates with good sun. For deeper detail on any topic, see our Support Guide. Hiring someone to plant it? Read Tips for Hiring a Great Kurapia Installer first.

1. Check your site

Sun. Kurapia does best with 5 or more hours of direct sun a day. It can grow with 3 to 5 hours, but plant closer (12 inches apart) and mow monthly to keep it dense. In heavy shade the stems stretch toward the light and the planting stays thin.

Climate. We recommend USDA Zone 7b and warmer. Kurapia stays green through mild winters. In a hard winter it may drop its leaves, then grows back from the stems when warm weather returns.

Trees and shrubs. Kurapia grows well around other plants as long as it gets sun. Trim branches below about 2 feet and thin dense canopies so light reaches the ground.

Slopes. Measure along the ground, up and down the hill, not the flat distance on a plan. A slope has more surface than it looks from above. Plant at 12 inches, with light terracing. Drill each hole straight down, not perpendicular to the slope, and plant each plug straight down. Set up irrigation so water flows into each planting hole. Be careful that water doesn't just roll down the hill, because it can miss the plugs. Once the planting is established, the terracing and plants blend into a clean, even look.

2. Order the right amount

Use our planting calculator. Enter your area and check any conditions that apply, and it recommends a spacing and tells you how many flats to order. Each flat holds 72 plugs.

15 inches apart is our standard spacing.
12 inches apart is better for slopes, soil that washes away, 3 to 5 hours of sun, very sandy or heavy clay soil, drip irrigation, or when you want it to fill in faster.

We recommend a triangle pattern. It fills in faster than square rows and fits around paths, patios, and trees.

Planning 30 flats or more? Use our Project Estimator for pricing and estimated freight. Landscape professionals can apply for a trade account.

3. Clear the weeds

New plugs grow best with no competition. Remove all existing lawn, weeds, and groundcover before planting. Do not plant over existing grass.

1. Kill spreading grasses first. Bermuda, kikuyu, and other spreading grasses come back from any root left in the soil. Remove them completely, using a grass herbicide if needed, and allow time for repeat treatments.
2. Water the site for about four weeks before planting. Soil that hasn't been watered in a while, or was just tilled, is full of dormant weed seeds. Watering brings them up now, instead of after your plugs are in.
3. Remove each flush of weeds with a hula hoe or scuffle hoe as they sprout. The more you clear now, the less hand weeding later.

4. Prepare the soil

Kurapia spreads by rooting along its stems, so the top of the soil needs to be loose enough for new roots to push in. For more on why soil and roots matter, read Growing Strong Roots: The Key to a Healthy Kurapia Lawn.

Avoid thick, bulky mulch and decomposed granite. Stems cannot root through them.

5. Check your irrigation

Kurapia will not spread into dry spots, so even coverage matters more than total water.

1. Spray irrigation: low-flow rotary nozzles such as Hunter MP Rotators work best. Space the heads head to head (each head reaches the next one) and match the precipitation rates.
2. Drip irrigation: use subsurface inline drip only. Space emitters 12 inches apart and plant one plug at each emitter. Surface drip emitters do not water evenly enough. See our drip irrigation guide.
3. No sprinkler system? You can still grow Kurapia with a hose, soaker hoses, or by hand. It takes more attention to water evenly and deeply. See Watering without a sprinkler system.
4. Its own zone: Kurapia needs far less water than lawn or typical garden plants. Do not put it on the same zone as high-water plantings.
5. Test it: run each zone and look for dry spots and puddles before you plant.

6. Caring for your plants until you plant

Orders ship from our grower in Fresno once a week. California orders usually arrive Wednesday, and most other states Thursday. See Shipping and Pickup in our FAQ.

1. Open the boxes the day they arrive and check your plants. Report any problems right away, as described in our Exchange and Returns terms.
2. Water every morning until each plug is fully soaked. Kurapia declines quickly if it dries out. In shade or cool weather the flats may need less, but check them every day.
3. Give them some sun, but not heat. A spot with 3 to 5 hours of morning sun is ideal. Keep the flats off hot pavement and away from south- and west-facing walls.
4. Trim if they grow tall. If the plugs grow taller than about 1 1/2 inches, trim them back to about 1 inch with scissors or shears.

More tips: Maintaining Kurapia Plugs Before Planting.

7. Planting day

You can plant Kurapia any time of year. In the warm season it spreads quickly. In the cool season it roots faster, but shows little to no top growth until the days get longer and warmer. See The Best Time to Plant.

1. Mark your spacing in a triangle pattern, 15 or 12 inches apart.
2. Dig the holes. A 2 1/2 to 3 inch bulb auger on a drill works for most sites and loosens the soil around the hole. In heavy clay or compacted soil, a wider auger, such as a standard 4 inch post hole auger, gives better results. In compacted heavy clay, drill deep, several feet if you can, and backfill each hole with a blend of sand, seed-starting mix, and the native soil you removed.
3. Remove the plugs gently. Push up from the bottom of the tray, or tip the tray sideways and slide them out. Do not pull plugs out by the stems.
4. Plant slightly low. Set the plug 1/4 to 1/2 inch below the soil surface. The whole soil plug should be buried, with the stems partly covered and about half the leaves above the soil. If any of the plug shows above the soil, it is too high and will dry out.
5. Water each plug in right away until the soil around it is soaked.
6. Apply Barricade right after planting. Barricade is a pre-emergent that keeps weed seeds from sprouting while your plugs fill in. Its active ingredient, prodiamine, does not slow Kurapia's spread. Use prodiamine only. Many other pre-emergents have been shown to slow the spread of Kurapia, and we haven't tested many of the newer ones. Choose a form with no fertilizer added, and skip combination products such as Barricade with 18-0-4 fertilizer. For most homeowners, the granular form is easiest, such as The Andersons Barricade. Spread it around the plugs and follow the label.
7. Top-dress with seed-starting mix. Spread 1/2 to 1 inch of fine, dark seed-starting mix over the planted area. It holds moisture and helps the plugs establish, especially in hot climates and sandy soil. In arid desert sand, up to 2 inches may be needed. It should not smell like ammonia, manure, or sawdust.
8. No fertilizer on a new planting. Fertilizer pushes leaf growth at the expense of roots, and new plugs need to put their energy into rooting. Feed the soil, not the plants: the seed-starting mix does that job for now.

8. Watering the first two months

The goal is to train deep roots. Start with daily watering so the plugs never dry out, then water longer and less often as the roots grow down. A good starting plan:

Every yard is different. Your sprinkler type and output, slope, soil drainage, and climate all change how long and how often to water. Use the plants and the soil as your guide: push a finger into the soil, and water again when it starts to feel dry a few inches down. Overwatering is the most common problem with Kurapia, so once it is established, let it dry out between waterings. In slow-draining soil amended with organic matter (seed-starting mix, coco coir, or peat moss), overhead watering with a heavy soak every few days works well.

The chart shows how roots deepen as watering gets longer and less frequent. The times on it are examples, not settings for your system.

Weeds during establishment: pull new weeds while they are small, with a hula hoe or by hand. Do not spray broadleaf weed killers on Kurapia. See weed control after it fills in.

9. After it fills in

1. Mow monthly at 1 inch. Once Kurapia has filled in, mow once a month with a rotary mower to keep it low, even, and dense. If your mower doesn't go down to 1 inch, use its lowest setting. Definitely mow if it gets foot traffic or pets, or to keep it out of areas you don't want it. Mowing twice a month gives a tighter look and fewer flowers; if you don't mow, it blooms more and looks fuller and more natural. Edge as needed to keep it out of beds and walkways.
2. Water deep and infrequently. Established Kurapia grows very deep roots. In well-prepared clay soil with slow drainage, some plantings stay healthy on a heavy overnight soak once a month.
3. Feed the soil, lightly. Wait until the planting has fully grown in. Then feed only in spring and early fall, never in late fall or winter, at half strength, and water the area thoroughly the day before. Each of these works well in its own way: Grow More Sea Grow 16-16-16 or Osmocote Plus Indoor and Outdoor (both always at half strength), Soil Hume from Simple Lawn Solutions (after Root Hume, if you used it), or balanced organic fertilizers with kelp meal (balanced means the three N-P-K numbers on the label are equal). Once a year in early spring, a thin 1/4 inch top dressing of good-quality compost is a solid addition; keep it thin so it doesn't smother the plants. Do not use lawn food, high-nitrogen fertilizers, or anything with growth stimulants, such as Miracle-Gro.
4. Control weeds. Monthly mowing, deep and infrequent watering, and a Barricade pre-emergent (prodiamine) prevent most weeds. For grasses, use a product with sethoxydim (such as Grass Getter). For nutsedge, use halosulfuron (we prefer Monterey Nutgrass Nihilator; Sedgehammer also works). Both are best used after the Kurapia has filled in. Broadleaf weed killers will damage Kurapia. For a large weedy patch, spot-treat with triclopyr, covering nearby Kurapia with a cardboard shield or an upturned bucket, and keep the spray off the plants.
5. Aerate only if needed. Core aeration helps only in heavy soils with drainage problems, and only after the planting is more than a year old. Use an aerator that punches straight down, never one that drags across the surface.

For winter care, disease, animals, and other problems, see our Support Guide. Questions about your planting? Use the contact form on our home page.

How many flats do I need?