!88: How To Kill St Augustine Grass in a Bermuda Grass Lawn

!±8± How To Kill St Augustine Grass in a Bermuda Grass Lawn

For those of us who love our lawns, and put great effort into our lawn care to create a lush carpet of green turf, there's nothing worse than when an invading grass species begins to take a foothold in our lawns.

Bermuda grass lawn owners who are facing an invasion of St. Augustine grass in their sod can be especially annoyed. The very wide leaf blade and thick stolons of St. Augustine grass will always look odd, and visually stand out amongst the very fine leaf blade of Bermuda grass. The result is a patchy mix of two very different grass types which deprives the sod of it's otherwise beautiful appearance.

The source of a St. Augustine grass invasion will be from an existing grass source close by, this is because Saint Augustine grass will almost never propagate from seed. So it may be a neighbor's lawn which is causing the intrusion, or may even be some existing grass which was previously grown as a lawn before the new Bermuda grass sod was laid in its place.

To kill St. Augustine grass in a Bermuda grass lawn is rather easy, and can be achieved in one of two different ways. The method chosen will depend entirely on the severity of the grass invasion.

For very small patches of St. Augustine grass, the easiest, most economical and most environmentally friendly method will be to simply pull the unwanted runners out of the Bermuda lawn. Use a small knife or small gardening tool to help dig into the sod to remove as many of the roots of the runners as possible.

For larger areas of St. Augustine grass, the best method of control will be to use a broadleaf weed killer on the Bermuda grass lawn. Many broadleaf herbicides which contain the active ingredient of Dicamba will kill St. Augustine invader, which is why this grass requires its own special herbicide type for weed control.

Be sure to check the label of the herbicide for the active ingredient of Dicamba, and that the label specifically warns not to use the product on St. Augustine grass.

To apply, simply mix up the herbicide in a handy sprayer to manufacturers instructions and apply to the entire Bermuda grass lawn. Not only will you have great success in killing the invading grass type, but you'll also be killing many weed types in the home lawn at the same time.

Allow two weeks for the herbicide to take full effect. Should any St. Augustine grass remain alive after this time, simply repeat the same herbicide application process.