Need mower with high blade height

[Ric]

I live near Orlando and have lived here almost 2 years. We had the front lawn re-sodded about a year ago. When we first had it installed, it was thick and very lush looking. We have always mowed it on the highest blade setting. Then, we hired a lawn service (fertilizer, bugs, weeds, etc). My theory is that when they fertilized, the root system grew and spread on the surface of the lawn. After that happens, it looks like the area between the ground and the top of the grass, there is more roots and less grass blades. Now, when I cut the lawn, it looks like it's getting scalped. In fact, if I even could find a mower with a higher blade height, the roots would just expand and I would still have the problem.

The root system doesn't really grow or spread on the surface, the roots go into the soil. St Augustine grows by spreading stolons. It does not produce any rhizomes. I think that is probably what you are seeing. The stolons can grow to be several feet long and they root at the nodes. It sounds like possibly your not watering enough. Did you have the same problem with the lawn service?