So he cut it to 2 inches. Does that mean he mowed it to 2 inches? If so, what does unmowed mean?

What effect are you looking for in the unmowed look? Is it this...

{{gwi:80792}}

There is only one variety that does this clumping and I don't think it is either of the ones you have picked.

David FWIW the picture you are showing is Korean Velvet Grass aka Mascarene grass (Zoysia tenuifolia).

Very fine bladed, extremely slow growing, hates cold weather, and used as ground cover and ornamental grass. Will not tolerate cold weather and foot traffic.

OP FWIW Zeon and Emerald grass are golf course varieties used in both fairways and putting greens.

This post was edited by texas-weed on Sun, Feb 9, 14 at 0:03

Love the picture. I don't think that one will survive in San Antonio. I think I have decided to go with Emerald. Apparently it will look like shag carpet if unmown. I though I had found pictures of unmown zeon, but have since decided it was fescue
Thank you for your input.

To my surprise there are some landscape designs that use unmown Zoysia. I do not care for the look, but you can find some pictures out there and design tips on doing that. Go to the following web page and scroll down to about the 5th or 6th picture.

http://www.houzz.com/photos/landscape/Zoysia-/p/16

6 years later - Thanks! I am still wanting the unmown zoysia grass. Maybe this year! I have moved to a house with less shade.

It’s an interesting look to go for, one I’d love to see if you can pull it off. I have Zeon myself in San Antonio, and many years I cut it really high (4+ inches), which gave a hint of the aesthetic you’re after. Fine zoysias are gorgeous IMO. Let us know how it goes.

Years and years later... I finally did it! I ended up picking Zeon. My daughter has emerald, which is incredibly beautiful, but does form thatch like crazy. The emerald is like walking on a sponge. It is wonderful.

I am super pleased with my Zeon. I laid the sod in late March 2022 (in New Braunfels, Tx) , then we have had a terrible drought. I have watered it and we recently had a little rain. It is doing well, especially the areas where I did nor soil preparation. It is like a meadow in my yard.