Greetings,

I've been having a problem with part of my front lawn for the past several years. Something else is growing and I'm not sure what it is or how to get rid of it. The past couple of years I've tried digging it out and reseeding only to have it come back. I assume that's because I don't get all of it and it just regrows and kills the new grass. The affected area keeps growing in size. Whatever it is is so strong I can't pull it apart. Any suggestions on what it is and what to do next Spring will be appreciated. I live in Connecticut.

Thanks

Bermuda grass, and the only way to kill it is use a herbicide . It spreads by Rhizomes. Rhizomes are modified stems running underground horizontally. They strike new roots out of their nodes, down into the soil. They also shoot new stems up to the surface out of their nodes. That makes it impossible to pull them by hand because all of the nodes break when pulled.

Contact kill herbicide Glyphosate will kill it, but you have to treat the area 3 times. One spray won't work, because the rhizomes that were missed regrow again. Spray one time, then regrow the grass, and spray a 2nd time, then regrow the grass again, then spray a third time. That will take a year to kill the Bermuda, so the following year you can plant your good grass and not have any Bermuda.

Thanks for the info. I have a few questions.

How long should I wait between sprayings?

When you say to regrow the grass do you mean I should reseed that area with new grass?

As for the Glyphosate, I have Roundup and the ingredients list this: Glyphosate, isoproplamine salt 2.0%. Will that be OK to kill the Bermuda grass?

Again, thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.

Yes that will work fine, however make sure and spray when its hot. The best temp for roundup to work is 86F to 90F for 3 days in a roll. If you use it when its cooler, it won't work well. If you use a pump sprayer with Round up Concentrate and "mix your own" it has a much better kill and goes much farther.

The first kill will get most of the top growth, but will leave the bottom growth living under ground. After the first kill, water and regrow your weeds well and regrow the bottom growth to the top. Then spray your second spraying when the bottom growth grows to top growth. The third spray will be the last spray after all is gone and kill any new seed sprouts and any rhizome left.

Wear eye protection, long sleeve, long pants and gloves when using Roundup. Be careful not to spray in the wind or breathe the spray. Never spray roundup before a rain because it will travel and damage other plants.