Get rid of St Augustine and Keep Bermuda

long_river_1 – posted 06 August 2003 14:45

My yard has St Augustine and Bermuda. I would like to get rid of St Augustine and keep the Bermuda. Does anyone know how to accomplish that?

Dchall_San_Antonio – posted 06 August 2003 23:02

St Aug doesn’t grow from seed, so it has to invade from your neighbor’s yard. The best way to keep it on it’s own side is with a border of some kind. I like concrete curbs or short rock walls. Then you edge it each time you need to. Or you could separate the two yards with a ground cover.

To get rid of the St Aug, you should be mowing very short at 1/2 inch high. St Aug will still creep weedily under that height and be messy looking. So you’ll have to pull it out. Fortunately, it grows mostly on top of the ground so when you pull it, it comes up in long stringers. Do that for a season and you’ll have it all out and it won’t return.

long_river_1 – posted 07 August 2003 09:20

Thank you Dchall_San_Antonio for answering my question. Actually I grew St Aug 10 yrs ago in my yard just to cover the shaded area. However it spreaded and it’s covering more than 1/2 of my yard. The bermuda area has been shrinking. The reason I want to get rid of St Aug is because it requires more mowing . One more question: is there a spray or something that can get rid of the St Aug other than pulling it off by hand? (I am lazy, I know 🙂

Dchall_San_Antonio – posted 07 August 2003 22:59

What I’ve seen is that if you’re taking proper care of it, bermuda takes more mowing. Bermuda should be kept at 1/2 inch high. That’s tough to do. With St Aug you can set your mower at the highest setting and never change it. The grass will still need to be mowed weekly in the summer but it will remain green longer into the fall/winter and will green up sooner in the spring. Maybe that’s what you meant about more mowing, not more frequently, but more weeks of the year.

Maybe the reason you’re having trouble with the St Aug is that it is mowed at a height that favors the St Aug over the bermuda.

By the way, if you set your mower to the highest setting, your bermuda should go away by itself, eventually. It cannot stand any shade, not even the shade of its own blades. So the wider blades of the St Aug will knock it out altogether – especially when it’s tall.