solarizing - Ask Extension
Hello,
Ten plus years ago, I tore up my small front lawn and replanted the grass. It looked great for two years, then this grassy weed appeared and...
Knowledgebase
solarizing #873487
Asked June 17, 2024, 4:21 PM EDT
Hello,
Ten plus years ago, I tore up my small front lawn and replanted the grass. It looked great for two years, then this grassy weed appeared and took over. It can't be dug up and relentlessly crawls into adjacent gardens, even over the pavement. A tree surgeon thought it was Bermuda grass. Do you have any information on solarizing in Maryland? I'd do it in July - August. Do you think it would kill this weed? I've read it can have rhizomes 3-5 feet deep and I'd hate to do all this and have it return in 3 years.
Most of the yard is gardens, some native, but I'd like to keep this one small section for a play area. Thanks. Mary
Montgomery County Maryland
Expert Response
Hello Mary,
We agree this looks (and acts) like Bermudagrass. It is a fairly common and hard-to-eradicate perennial grassy weed. Information on the linked page provides what few management options there are (largely using herbicide). Since you reside in Montgomery County, though, use of a systemic herbicide to treat Bermudagrass growing in lawn (flower beds don't fall under this restriction) may be prohibited. You can learn more on the linked county government page about the pesticide law. If you're not sure if their listing of a "mulched recreation area" applies to weed control in your play area, then you may need to reach out to county government to ask for clarification (an email address is included at the bottom of their pages).
We have little information about solarization use for specific issues, though you can learn about the process in general on our Manage Weeds Without Chemicals page. Solarization would not be expected to work well on Bermudagrass; it's too resilient. Soil is also very insulating when it comes to temperature changes, so solarization only affects the near-surface portion of the soil. Even if the top of the plant was "burned" off successfully, regrowth from roots would be likely.
If you are prohibited from using systemic herbicide to kill the roots, you would need to physically remove the Bermudagrass, and promptly remove any regrowth that it might produce in order to starve-out the plant by exhausting its root energy stores. Eventually, it would stop returning, though we can't predict how long that process would take. Even spot-treatment with systemic herbicide, where permitted, would probably require multiple attempts to be successful.
Miri
We agree this looks (and acts) like Bermudagrass. It is a fairly common and hard-to-eradicate perennial grassy weed. Information on the linked page provides what few management options there are (largely using herbicide). Since you reside in Montgomery County, though, use of a systemic herbicide to treat Bermudagrass growing in lawn (flower beds don't fall under this restriction) may be prohibited. You can learn more on the linked county government page about the pesticide law. If you're not sure if their listing of a "mulched recreation area" applies to weed control in your play area, then you may need to reach out to county government to ask for clarification (an email address is included at the bottom of their pages).
We have little information about solarization use for specific issues, though you can learn about the process in general on our Manage Weeds Without Chemicals page. Solarization would not be expected to work well on Bermudagrass; it's too resilient. Soil is also very insulating when it comes to temperature changes, so solarization only affects the near-surface portion of the soil. Even if the top of the plant was "burned" off successfully, regrowth from roots would be likely.
If you are prohibited from using systemic herbicide to kill the roots, you would need to physically remove the Bermudagrass, and promptly remove any regrowth that it might produce in order to starve-out the plant by exhausting its root energy stores. Eventually, it would stop returning, though we can't predict how long that process would take. Even spot-treatment with systemic herbicide, where permitted, would probably require multiple attempts to be successful.
Miri
