# St. Augustine sod on existing grass



## hutch82

I've seen 2 schools of thought on this but thought I'd see if any of you have ever tried this. Laying St. Augustine sod down on existing Bermuda to over take it or on St. Augustine that had some dead spots to fill the holes without digging it up first. Some say it is fine to lay on top of existing grass. Let me know if any of you have experienced this or not.


----------



## Sometimer

No personal experience with what you're suggesting, but it seems to me that you'd want to take out the existing grass first. If'n you lay sod over Bermuda to over-take it, I would think the Bermuda would win that battle because it sends out runners. If'n you lay it over dead St. Augustine spots, whatever caused the St. Augustine to die in the first place would catch onto the new sod. Best to dig it up and treat the problem first.
Maybe someone with personal experience doing this could chime in and correct my assumptions.


----------



## scwine

Cut or weedeat the Bermuda down to as low as you can. You cannot remove it, the roots go down 12"-24" at least. I used roundup on mine(last house) to kill what is above ground to make it easier.
I then would,,,,Spread at least 1" top soil down.
Lay St. Augustine sod.
Use a starter fertilizer.
Water like crazy and do not cut the St. Augustine too low when mowing.
Top dress early spring.




St. Augustine will definitely take over Bermuda if not cut too short and watered properly.


----------



## hutch82

Thanks! Great advice.


----------



## rvj

Swine is correct. cut it as low as you can, then use you weed eater and cut it to the dirt, then spray the area with Round up, and grass killer. wait about a week, water the area down, then lay your sod. If you do not the bermuda will grow between the sods, and it will just be a matter of time.


----------



## czechgrubworm

Swine is correct second that.. i also ordered six yards of sandy loam and tossed that all over the lawn to create something for the roots to quickly take hold off. that advice was from a lawn care fella. and then he had me set out soaker hoses all over the st. augustine and water, actually flood for at least 14 days... i have done it four times on four different sections of my yard, and it works.... just keep the water to it no matte how soaked and swampy it looks


----------



## EndTuition

IF you water, St Augustine it will overtake Burmuda, quickly. I have done two yards from St. Augustin plugs, the burmuda is fast to take new ground, then the St. Augustine chokes it out. If you have bare spots of St. Augustine, watering may be the fastest solution, unless they are very large.


----------



## Flatfish4

*Randy Lemmon*

"
Ridding St. Augustine of Bermudagrass

In Houston, the vast majority of the lawns are of the St. Augustine variety. There are some Bermuda-based lawns, however, along with some of Zoysia, and very few (if any) Centipede. 







Most people with St. Augustine yards have bits and pieces of Bermuda, but some are overwhelmed with it. 
The obvious answer to removing Bermuda is to kill it, till it and replace it with new sod. But that's usually just for extreme cases where the Bermuda is absolutely solid. In most cases ... where there is a mix of Bermuda and St. Augustine ... cultural practices will help St. Augustine win the battle. 
Simply mowing properly is the answer nine in 10 times. If you mow as tall as your mower will allow, the St. Augustine will almost always crowd out the Bermuda. Conversely, if you want to accelerate the Bermuda, mow shorter and more often - then the Bermuda will win. 
The reason is Bermuda can't grow in shade - taller St. Augustine will shade the slower growing Bermuda. Yes, you still have to mow once a week, but if your neighbors don't come up to your level, it is going to look like you don't mow at all. However, I promise your lawn will be a richer green with a thicker texture than your shorter-cutting-neighbors. I call it the "Bring Your Neighbor Up to Your Level" debate. 
And there is an added benefit to growing taller-than-normal St. Augustine. You won't need to irrigate as frequently. First, because tall grass supports deeper roots which have more water available to them far down in the soil. 
A second reason is more biotechnical. 
Grass blades have microscopic pores (stomata) to transpire carbon dioxide (CO2), oxygen and water vapor. The stomata open in the morning and close when they get their fill of CO2. Since taller grass has more stomata exposed, it more readily collects CO2 released by soil microbes. And, as CO2 is heavier than air and tends to remain close to the ground, it's harder for wind to blow it away in taller grass. Therefore, tall grass gets more CO2 because it has more stomata and because the amount of CO2 is denser near the stomata. And, as a consequence, the stomata close off earlier in the day shutting off the transpiration of water vapor from the plant and allowing the plant (and soil) to retain water better. 
Yes, I know that was way more technical than you probably needed. But it does show you how much I like researching this kind of stuff for you. 
Finally, there are two more absolutes that you should keep in mind when trying to weed out Bermuda from your St. Augustine: First, Bermuda does not suffer from drought damage - like a St. Augustine yard ignored during a summer vacation. And secondly, it won't suffer *chinch bug damage* either.

*GardenLine is heard exclusively on NewsRadio 740 KTRH 6-9:45 a.m. Saturdays and 7-10 a.m. Sundays. "*


----------



## corpus shorty

i would kill it,till it,level it and plant some floratam.its good stuff.i Resoded 2 years ago.its all the good landscapers are using round here now.

heres a cool link

Plant Answers


----------

