While some of the chemicals in commercial Bermuda herbicides are impressively effective, they carry the potential to cause great harm to your fruit and vegetable garden.
In this case, vinegar deserves consideration for being an eco-friendly, economical, and effective herbicide.
More specifically, it is not a disposable product that will sit idle in the corner of your home after your garden renovation.
And now, it’s time to find a bottle of vinegar stored on your kitchen counter! Study this article carefully for the most detailed instructions for killing Bermuda grass with vinegar in 24 hours.
What Is Bermuda Grass?
Bermuda grass is native to countries located in subtropical and tropical regions.
This perennial grass thrives, especially during the warm season, and reappears yearly in the right weather (mostly late spring through summer).
Bermuda grass’s roots are typically about 6 inches above the soil surface, reaching depths of more than 6 feet.
Thanks to its lush root system, nutrients are easier to absorb, resulting in superior regenerative capacity.
Bermuda grass’s cold tolerance is worse than warm-season Zoysia grass and cool-season grasses (such as fescue).
This disadvantage has directly limited its proliferation in the northern and transitional regions. The southern areas (from the Atlantic Ocean to California) are ideal for growing Bermuda grass.
This grass requires full sun and a well-drained, nutrient-rich soil environment.
The ability to withstand drought, salt, high temperature, and quick recovery makes Bermuda grass stronger than other common types of grass.
As a result, some lawn owners in the United States have chosen to cover their football fields with this entire plant.
Killing Bermuda Grass With Vinegar- 4 Steps To Succeed
Thanks to its good drought tolerance, Bermuda grass appears abundantly on lawns in many areas of the United States.
But in other localities, it unintentionally causes extremely serious landscape encroachments. Using natural vinegar instead of herbicides to protect your garden can be incredibly safe and effective.
So, how to kill Bermuda grass naturally by using white vinegar? If you’re ready for this “grass conquest,” scroll down and make sure you don’t miss anything in the following process.
Step 1: Get Ready For The Process
So, what can I use to kill Bermuda grass naturally? Before you start, please prepare the following tools:
- Aerosol
- Dish soap/salt
- Protective equipment (gloves, glasses, long-sleeved shirt, long pants, helmet, boots)
- White Vinegar
If a healthy lawn is growing among other vegetation in your garden, the first step is to protect the plants from Bermuda grass eradication.
Wrap a trash bag around the Bermuda weeds to insulate, then secure the edges of the black plastic bag with bricks.
Mix 1 oz of dish soap (liquid) and 1 gallon of white vinegar, then fill your garden sprayer. Although the acidity of vinegar can eliminate Bermuda grass, it isn’t easy to reach their roots.
Add 1 cup of salt to the solution in your spray bottle for a more thorough weed-killing process.
The surfactant of dish soap can dissolve any protective coating of the foil. Meanwhile, salt dries out the root systems of the weeds, halting their ability to absorb nutrients.
Note: Only spray the solution on the weed leaves instead of watering the soil. Overusing this solution and too much salt can make the healthy garden soils become irreparable.
Step 2: Kill The Bermuda Grass
It would help to use a spray with an adjustable nozzle instead of a mist to get the best effect. Shake the spray bottle gently to avoid too many soap bubbles inside.
Direct the spray nozzle directly over the Bermuda grass area until the leaves drip. You must repeat this process and promptly replenish until all spots are wet.
Never choose a windless day to kill Bermuda grass in lawn. You should select a sunny day because showers can wash away all the solution on the Bermuda grass.
Besides, the sun’s heat can increase the salt’s dehydrating effect and increase the acid’s efficiency.
If a sudden downpour spoils your plan, repeat the weeding process the next day when the ground is completely dry.
Once too many sudden rains ruin your work, you should stop doing this and choose more appropriate methods, such as traditional tilling.
Step 3: Clean The Leftover Mess
All used trash bags should be discarded. Sunlight will accelerate the destruction process and cause the Bermuda grass patch to wilt more and more.
After 3 to 5 days, you should spend a morning cleaning and inspecting the dead grass areas. Roots and roots must be completely cleared because even a shower can increase respawn rates.
If signs of regrowth (green roots and new leaf growth) are detected, use specialized garden tools or a white vinegar solution to remove them completely.
Once the Bermuda grass is destroyed, you can dig up the soil and use it for other growing purposes.
Unfortunately, you cannot control the rate at which the grass spreads and grows. There’s no guarantee it won’t pop up in your garden in the future.
Therefore, using a garden fork to remove the Bermuda grass whenever the new grass invasion comes.
FAQs
What Is The Best Thing To Kill Bermuda Grass With?
Killing stubborn weeds like Bermuda requires a lot of work. If you don’t know where to start, here are some of our suggestions to kill a grass invasion:
- Commercial herbicides: Glyphosate-containing products like Roundup can eradicate Bermuda grass faster than you think. Fully water the grass patch for about 1 week before spraying glyphosate on them. After the entire lawn turns brown, remove the dead layer of grass.
- Digging them out: Use a garden fork to dig up the Bermuda grass roots and wrap them up with a leaf bag.
- Cover with newspaper: Spread a thick layer of newspaper (about 10 sheets) on each other, incorporating the same coating by approximately 6 inches. After a few days, this grass will die from a lack of water and sunlight.
- Soil solarization: Cover the grass with a transparent plastic sheet (1-6 mm thick) and keep it for about 2 months.
- Vinegar: Mix it with water, soap, and salt and spray on the grass surface.
What Kills Bermuda But Not Grass?
If you’re having trouble with Bermuda grass, a short-term effective method is to use an herbicide, such as Ornamec 170. This herbicide will only target Bermuda without causing any damage to other plants.
Alternatively, you can refer to more environmentally friendly methods, such as manual tilling, boiling water, white vinegar solution, or soil solarization.
What Is A Natural Weed Killer For Bermuda Grass?
White vinegar is one of the most environmentally friendly methods of killing weeds.
Just mix 10% vinegar with a mixture of water and soap, and salt, and you’ll be able to get rid of these stubborn invasive weeds at the extensive root.
However, its biggest drawback is the non-selectivity of the object to be removed.
Alternatively, you can refer to the boiled water method. It will penetrate the soil and thoroughly destroy Bermuda root growth.
Some Last Words
The beautiful garden covered with stubborn Bermuda grass is a sad story because it will take a lot of work to destroy these opponents completely.
But instead of using chemical treatments, you should consider more environmentally friendly solutions.
That way, your soil quality can maintain good quality and be ready for planting in the following days
This article shares all the information about the effective method of killing Bermuda grass with vinegar. It will help a lot in your garden cleaning work. Have a nice day!
