On 12 Jul 2005 16:19:48 -0700, "Doug Lassiter"
wrote:



Actually, clear plastic does a better job of solarization and burning
out bermuda. However, bermuda has the ability to lay dormant deep in
the soil, up to 18 inches down.

Yep. Been there done that. Works well for killing the surface grass,
but the roots remain. I once had an old window laying on a patch of
grass out back (mixed buffalo and Bermuda) during the summer. Removed
it from the bare patch a year or two later and, amidst the weeds that
blew in and sprouted in the spring, Bermuda sprouts came up from the
center of the patch. I was impressed.

Certainly clear plastic is what you'd want, but it's not that easy to
kill the stuff if you want to be sure. Once I lay in xeriscape plants,
I want to be sure. I'll throw some Vapam under the plastic.

I don't know what vapam is, but as another solution you can use
Finale,which is a herbicide, but is not as invasive or toxic AS
glyphosate. It's hard to find, but Barton Springs Nursery and Garden
Center on Bee Caves Road sells it in a concentrate. If I were to step
over the line with pesticides, I'd use that. It's non-specific, so
watch drift and only use it on a calm day.

Victoria