Most lawn problems here are timing problems. The same fertilizer that helps in May damages a lawn in December. This is the calendar warm-season grasses in Central Texas actually run on.
Late winter through spring
February to March: apply pre-emergent for summer weeds before soil temperatures climb. This is the single highest-leverage week of the lawn year, and it is invisible work with no immediate result.
Rather hand it off? See our lawn care service in Austin: mowing, feeding and weed control on a schedule that fits Austin's watering rules.
April to May: wait for full green-up before the first feeding. Feeding a half-dormant lawn feeds weeds. Once it is actively growing, this is also the ideal window for core aeration, because the grass can knit the holes closed.
Summer
June to August: raise the mowing height rather than lowering it. Taller blades shade the soil and hold moisture. Water deeply and rarely, within your assigned days.
This is chinch bug season on St. Augustine in hot sunny spots. If an area stays brown after a week of watering, stop adding water and look for insects instead.
Fall and winter
September to October: pre-emergent again, this time for winter weeds. The last feeding of the year should land roughly six weeks before first frost, usually early to mid October here. Later than that pushes tender growth into a freeze.
November to January: the lawn is dormant and there is very little to do. Do not fertilize. Keep leaves off so the crown can breathe. This is the safe window for oak pruning if you have trees that need work.
What not to do, month by month
Do not fertilize a dormant lawn. Between roughly November and February, warm-season grass is not growing and cannot use it. What can use it are the winter weeds you are trying to suppress.
Do not scalp in early spring at the first warm week. A false spring followed by a freeze leaves scalped grass exposed with no protection. Wait for consistent green-up.
Do not aerate in the middle of summer heat or in winter dormancy. Aeration opens the lawn, and the grass has to be growing to close it again.
Do not water in the evening during fall and spring. Blades that stay wet overnight in cool weather feed the fungal problems that produce brown patch.
Adjusting the calendar to your grass and your soil
These dates shift with the year. A mild February moves the pre-emergent window earlier; a late spring pushes green-up and everything after it. Soil temperature is the honest trigger for pre-emergent, not the calendar date.
Grass type shifts things too. Bermuda green-ups earlier and tolerates an earlier first feeding than St. Augustine. Buffalo needs far less feeding than either and is often damaged by a schedule built for St. Augustine.
Soil matters as well: on caliche, feeding lightly and more often beats one heavy application that leaches through thin soil after a storm. On clay, fewer and heavier applications work because the soil holds nutrients longer.
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Recurring maintenance timed to what your grass actually needs.