Living in Middle Tennessee, I have had to come to grips that I live in Bermuda Grass Country. Some may think this a blessing because of its high tolerance to heat and drought and its ability to withstand heavy use, but for me it is more akin to a sea creature sending out tentacles obliterating anything in its path.
Referred to as Dhoob, dog grass, devil’s grass, and scutch, this “lovely” sounding description of a grass, sends out its own form of tentacles which allows it to grow leaps and bounds ostensibly overnight. Creeping under and over brick and stone barriers, breaking through weed cloth and grey crush-n-run, and not ever seeming to die, it wraps itself around and eventually strangles whatever is in its way. In a short period of time, because of this persistent hideous grass, four of our well established shrubs met their early demise.
My son-in-law, Andy, who has recently started his new lawn care business, Mustard Seed Lawns, and has taken over the upkeep of ours, has come face-to-face with this stark reality. After spraying our graveled sidewalks now two separate times to no avail—the second with increased concentration of weed killer—he has declared, the battle is now personal.
It’s one for me too. But not only for my lawns.