Bermuda

I want to know a way not to use chems and all but kill the bermuda grass out of my flower and veggie beds - Help Please!!!!

Welll.........

Hmmmmm.

Let's see.

There's till and hand-pick out every last bit of root. Effective for a year or two.

Some people say they've successfully smothered it. I've heaped mulch over a VERY thick layer of newspaper and cardboard, and it does keep it down for a few years, but eventually it finds its way back to the surface.

I don't know of any other way to suppress it - and that's about the best you're going to do as long as any bit of your land (or your neighbor's land) has bermudagrass anywhere on it.

I was wanting a ray of hope here! Oh well... got to get rid of the stuff somehow. I know newspapers dont stop it - put them double thick (12 sheets) and they came up through that..

Terry is right...there is no foolproof way to be rid of it forever. At least the roots (stolons) are not quite as tenacious as those of Johnson grass which I fight doggedly. If while digging out roots you encounter a piece that's caught under the ledge of a walkway or foundation, you can try killing it with strong vinegar. I use 9% pickling vinegar, but the 20% stuff from an organic nursery outlet would be quicker. Don't use very much, because the acidity would not be kind to a large soil area.

Yuck... the whole lawn, in fact our whole division is covered with the stuff... it is really a pain! I have thought about trying to cover the whole thing with a thick layer of stone and putting pots around for the plants! LOL will be trying for a long time I fear to get rid of the stuff... Thanks Mitch

Mitch, you have seen my yard, there is bermuda here and there, but it is under control.
Pulling and digging and mulching thickly will keep it under control.
The trick is, don't just do the job and forget about it and think it is done, the job is really never all done, you have to stay with it, just as with all other living things, nothing is ever static.
Terry said that newspaper and cardboard can suppress it up to two years, that is not bad at all.
Patience and persevearance will reward you, may be instead of trying to tackle the whole place at once, you could take a smaller area and do a really good job, and when that is under control, move to another area.
Sometimes unpleasant talks in small doses don't seem quite so bad.

I killed mine with Roundup. I watered it till it was green and healthy, then sprayed. I had to repeat this for about 2 seasons, then it was eradicated. Since you do not want to use chemicals, maybe this could work:

Till the soil and water it. Completely cover it with clear 6-mil poly sheet. Leave sheet in place for 2-3 months during hottest part of summer.

This technique is used to kill nematodes, weeds, and other pests. It is supposed to sterilize the soil. I have not tried this on Bermuda, but it might work. Perhaps someone else has actually tried it and could comment.

I am adding newspaper - my mulch is not ready yet but I have leaves in the fall I can use to cover the newspaper..... thanks, just hard to see more grass but then again it my plants are all really young still...

I tried solarization a couple times. I used the two-layer method (which supposedly intensifies the heat - you create an air space between the layers with empty coke cans or something that will suspend the upper layer rather than letting the layers press on each other.)

I'm sad to say the Bermudagrass grew quite lushly while the area was covered.

I've also read the conventional wisdom that says Bermudagrass won't grow in dense shade. Perhaps it doesn't grow lush, but shade (in the form of Magnolia grandiflora and/or heavy mulch) won't completely kill it.

The only thing I've found that works to beat it back is to thoroughly till the area, pick out every bit of root you find, then heavy layers of newspaper and mulch. Spot-treat with Roundup, if you're so inclined, or be prepared to hunt for signs of it and dig it out wherever it sprouts up for several seasons. Diligence is key. And if it is present in your neighbor's lawn or growing wild anywhere near, you'll never be completely rid of it. (You can keep it beat back, but it will be with you always.)

Poast was a sure-fire Bermudagrass herbicide recommended to me by another member here, although I haven't found it in quantities small enough to purchase without saving my pennies for a looong time ;o) Here's what one factsheet says about it:

Ortho Grass B Gone - That is what HDtold me to use - anybody out there use it does it really work?

Everyone here has it - I will always have a little and I can deal with a little it is when you have more grass then anything else!

The article I linked to says Fusilade (the active ingredient in Grass-B-Gone cannot be used within one year of harvest (it gives strawberries as an example, but my guess is it may apply to all veggies), so if you're planning to use this to kill bermudagrass in veggie beds, it's probably not a recommended option.

No veggies but I do let the birds eat the seeds in that area... may need to rethink this. Thanks Terry