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Are you fed up with Bermuda encroaching on your luscious St. Augustine lawn? Unfortunately, there are just two alternatives.
Let me clarify how Bermuda works before I go into solutions. It is very invasive, spreading by seed (when mowed), stolon (above ground “runners”), and rhizomes. (underground root system). Because it is a grass, any pesticide that kills it will also kill St. Augustine grass, which is why it is such a pain for Gainesville lawns.
The good news is that Bermuda and St. Augustine grasses can coexist in Gainesville lawns while remaining healthy. We have numerous customers who have found this to be effective, even if they would prefer a Bermuda-free yard. The bad news is that if anything causes the St. Augustine grass to struggle, such as irrigation issues or insect damage, the Bermuda will quickly take advantage of the opportunity to completely cover that area and will not allow St. Augustine back in without being completely removed and replaced with new sod.
A good lawn spray technician can utilize pre-emergent* Herbicides are being used to curb the spread of Bermuda, but nothing will totally halt it due to the runners.
Some individuals like Bermuda lawns and cultivate them as their main turfgrass, however this is uncommon in Gainesville. Bermuda is mostly utilized for golf courses and football fields in our region. In our sandy soils, it just requires too much upkeep and fertilizer to keep it looking healthy and lush to be a suitable lawn grass.
Here are the two alternatives for dealing with the Wild Bermuda grass problem.
The key to this option is to maintain the St. Augustine grass healthy enough to keep the Bermuda at bay. To make a decent start, you may need to sod any areas that are entirely infested with Bermuda.
- Mow the grass using the highest setting on your mower. (Bermuda prefers to be mowed low, so this will help the St. Augustine grass)
- Increased watering schedules to maintain the St. Augustine healthy and able to compete with the invading Bermuda grass.
- We provide an excellent fertilizer and pre-emergent weed management program.
- Controlling lawn insects such as chinch bugs and webworms. We also provide this service.
Extensive Option – This would include finding all locations where Bermuda is situated, even if they don’t seem to be in terrible shape yet, and removing and resoding Bermuda so that Bermuda is no longer taking over the land.
- We suggest beginning with a couple of non-selective herbicide treatments that will kill all of the Bermuda grass in your yard.
- The grass would next be sod-cut and tilled to ensure that all of the roots were removed.
- To assist the sod root fast, you would use a soil supplement such as milorganite.
- Install the healthiest sod available.
- Finally, use a lawn health regimen to safeguard the sod.