How to remove Kikuyu grass from lawn?

[davo2102]

  

 please someone help me, these weeds seem to have come out of nowhere but are spreading very fast 😞 front and back lawns are being affected and it’s seems like there is a never ending lot of them. What are they? Is there something in particular that causes them? How do I treat them? And is there a way to try prevent them?  So grateful for any help thank you 

[Jewelleryrescue]

Hi @davo2102 

Those weeds look like you every day Kikuyu grass.

Is that your lawn in the photos as it is kikuyu too just the shorter mown look.  Kikuyu will send out those vigorous taller runners in to the dirt patches to multiple. 

Generally you have to poison the whole section to kill them off once they invade then let you lawn take over that spot. Or you can dig up some of your lawn and transplant it in spots to fast trck the process.

If the kikuyu has dropped seed then you will have many more pop up sorry to say all you can do is daily pull the same ones out 1 min a day to win that war.

[JacobZ]

Hi @davo2102,

@Jewelleryrescue is correct that these are above-ground runners from your kikuyu grass called stolons. They aren't really weeds; they are your lawn spreading to inhabit open space.

Kikuyu grass is extremely fast spreading and will inhabit any bare areas that it can find. If this is an issue, you can manually remove them with Grass Shears.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob

[davo2102]

So do I just let it grow and spread and let this become my lawn? I have been trying for days to remove it all and definitely feel it’s a battle I’m not close to winning. 

[MitchellMc]

Hi @davo2102,

Can I please clarify whether your lawn is Kikuyu or if this Kikuyu has infested your lawn and your lawn is a different grass species altogether? If your lawn is Kikuyu, then managing their runners is something that comes with that type of lawn. It's similar to Buffalo lawns as they also have aggressive runners that try to spread out into the surrounding area and garden beds.

If you are happy for this area to be occupied with the Kikuyu lawn, then you can let it go, but if that is not to be a lawn area, you can snip the runners off or consider installing a garden edging to contain it. That way, you can use a line trimmer along the edging to keep the lawn in check.

Here's a helpful guide: How to choose garden edging.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell