Swale between sidewalk and street Bahia, Bermuda, something else.

pks2141 – posted 14 December 2011 11:09

Well I started a project by seed for a lawn that was mostly weeds and dirt when I started in Titusville, FL. (Central FL, East Coast near Cape Canaveral) Got a decent Bahia grass lawn working in the front yard. (The back yard I tried Bermuda but it is struggling. The weeds beat (70% to 30%) the Bermuda but patches of the Bermuda still exist.) Had some weed issues in the front but had 75% grass. Good start. And the weeds are in patches, not really dispersed, so I was able to kill most of those with Weed B Gone. Front and back. Headed into the cool season and over seeded with annual Rye for now to keep the weeds down until next spring.

Now, here is my issue. I have a swale (or parkway for us Midwesterners) between the street and sidewalk. This area is “V” shaped to handle the runoff rain water. I would say the pitch is 30 – 45 degrees or so. My first attempt at trying to establish Bahia grass here failed miserably. Of my 25% weeds in the front, 80% of them were in this section. Now, I have seen that Argentine Bahia is not good for slopes. Could this be my issue? If so, any suggestions for this space? Try the Bahia again? Switch to Bermuda? Seeded zoysia?