I must add, I own a very boisterous Amstaff dog and Kikuyu is the only grass that I’ve found that will repair under Cosmo’s thunderous 36 kg zoomie running. He is a force of total lawn destruction! 🤣😎👍
Thanks for the information. We have a Great Dane, a Great Pyrenees, and two Blue Healers. Lotsa feet doing the Zoomies over the grass and there are doggie pathways all over the yard. I just bought some Kikuyu seed to do a test area. Hope it likes Texas because nothing else has been able to survive the abuse.
This video made me decide on a conundrum I had, my front lawn is Bermuda, a section of Kikuyu has started, I was contemplating killing Bermuda and growing Kikuyu only, as my back lawn is Kikuyu. I think I'm going to keep the Bermuda extra-low, pull out Kikuyu runners and have that as a Bermuda only - so thanks for this vid.
Great, I’m glad I was useful 😂 I was also in two minds before starting this whole series and so I thought it would prove educational to both viewers like yourself and me. I’ve found herbicides that can target KK in Bermuda but I need to source them locally. Might make life easier. Pulling out KK is hard work and it will probably keep coming back in drips and drabs
If you had a choice to replace all your lawn ...would you choose Bermuda or LM grass or Kikuyu? Taking into account that vast areas get shade in the afternoon and the areas under large trees.
That’s a tough one to answer without seeing the exact circumstances. Kikuyu is the simplest all-rounder but doesn’t do well in dense shade. Light shade is fine, it just thins out a bit. Lm does well in sun and partial shade but doesn’t handle lots of traffic. Bermuda gives the the finest texture of those options but doesn’t tolerate shade at all. So it depends on the texture you want vs the traffic it needs to tolerate vs shade. I’ve started separating my kikuyu/Bermuda mix from the lm by mowing at different heights and that seems to be the right solution for me at the moment. There are also cool season varieties that might work for you, but they will have much higher water, fertilizer and fungicide demands, plus herbicide applications are a little trickier.
If I plug my front bermuda(couch) lawn with kikuyu plugs from my back lawn with the kikuyu smoother the Bermuda and end up with a kikuyu lawn eventually.
You’ll unfortunately only end up with a kikuyu & Bermuda mix. I really don’t like my mix. Rye both have their pros and cons but they just don’t line up. Kikuyu if you want it slightly taller and coarser or Bermuda if you want it shorter and finer. Full son only for Bermuda. Kikuyu can take some dappled shade if there’s enough indirect light nearby
I know you get Kikuyu to grow in shade, but what about Bermuda - do you feel it will grow in a section that gets about 40 to 50% sun a day, considering its RSA sun?
This can depend on your region also. I have found that KK is doing slightly better in the shade than Bermuda but the Bermuda also hasn’t fully crept in their yet so I can’t say 100%. Remember, the Bermuda started at the top of my yard and crept downhill. The Bermuda at the little section by my pool does well but that’s about 60% sun I’d say.
I have them both in my lawn. Agree with the points. Upfront cost of Kikuyu should be the cheapest? What length do you suggest on the mow for Kikuyu and Bermuda?
Now that I’ve seen them both next to one another and under the same test criteria, 10-20mm for Bermuda and 20-30mm for KK. KK appears to be expensive these days but that’s vs common Bermuda. Some of the fancier strands of Bermuda can cost a bit more if I recall correctly
In short, kk is stronger. No doubt. The decision is going to be based purely on your aesthetics. Keep in mind, Bermuda is no sissy grass either. I simply don’t like the messy look of kk when you’ve not kept your finger on the pulse 24/7. Bermuda can get much lower without discoloration and also doesn’t get ‘spongy’ nearly as fast. KK will hide lumps better because of its thickness though.
And lastly, Bermuda is the only grass that survived my glyphosate experiments. Kk died and never came back. Bermuda was severely damaged but is slowly making its way back. Of course, with enough glyphosate it will croak too and you do get herbicides for the control of Bermuda in particular so that’s also a plus.
Awesome video. Thanks. Exactly what I was looking for. Very informative.
It’s my pleasure! Thanks for watching
I must add, I own a very boisterous Amstaff dog and Kikuyu is the only grass that I’ve found that will repair under Cosmo’s thunderous 36 kg zoomie running. He is a force of total lawn destruction! 🤣😎👍
36kg😳That’s a big boy😂 Yip, kikuyu is definitely the most traffic tolerant especially when it’s kept just slightly taller. I’m glad my dog is small😂
I have a mini schnauzer that runs all day and had to put Kikuyu at my new place to tolerate his lawn laps
😂
Thanks for the information. We have a Great Dane, a Great Pyrenees, and two Blue Healers. Lotsa feet doing the Zoomies over the grass and there are doggie pathways all over the yard. I just bought some Kikuyu seed to do a test area. Hope it likes Texas because nothing else has been able to survive the abuse.
@katlur that does sound like a fair amount of traffic 😂 Good luck with the kk
This video made me decide on a conundrum I had, my front lawn is Bermuda, a section of Kikuyu has started, I was contemplating killing Bermuda and growing Kikuyu only, as my back lawn is Kikuyu. I think I'm going to keep the Bermuda extra-low, pull out Kikuyu runners and have that as a Bermuda only - so thanks for this vid.
Great, I’m glad I was useful 😂 I was also in two minds before starting this whole series and so I thought it would prove educational to both viewers like yourself and me. I’ve found herbicides that can target KK in Bermuda but I need to source them locally. Might make life easier. Pulling out KK is hard work and it will probably keep coming back in drips and drabs
If you had a choice to replace all your lawn ...would you choose Bermuda or LM grass or Kikuyu? Taking into account that vast areas get shade in the afternoon and the areas under large trees.
That’s a tough one to answer without seeing the exact circumstances. Kikuyu is the simplest all-rounder but doesn’t do well in dense shade. Light shade is fine, it just thins out a bit. Lm does well in sun and partial shade but doesn’t handle lots of traffic. Bermuda gives the the finest texture of those options but doesn’t tolerate shade at all. So it depends on the texture you want vs the traffic it needs to tolerate vs shade. I’ve started separating my kikuyu/Bermuda mix from the lm by mowing at different heights and that seems to be the right solution for me at the moment. There are also cool season varieties that might work for you, but they will have much higher water, fertilizer and fungicide demands, plus herbicide applications are a little trickier.
I love listening to South Africans with strong opinions... as long as I'm not the one at fault
😂I can’t even remember making this vid but I’m sure I was messing with someone somewhere along the way. Either way, what’s wrong with an opinion?
If I plug my front bermuda(couch) lawn with kikuyu plugs from my back lawn with the kikuyu smoother the Bermuda and end up with a kikuyu lawn eventually.
You’ll unfortunately only end up with a kikuyu & Bermuda mix. I really don’t like my mix. Rye both have their pros and cons but they just don’t line up. Kikuyu if you want it slightly taller and coarser or Bermuda if you want it shorter and finer. Full son only for Bermuda. Kikuyu can take some dappled shade if there’s enough indirect light nearby
Just saw this to the end so I got my answer ( thought the electricity out would be sooner)
Brilliant video! Thank you
Thanks Shaye
Very nice video, thankyou from Sydney Australia 🇦🇺
Thanks bud
I know you get Kikuyu to grow in shade, but what about Bermuda - do you feel it will grow in a section that gets about 40 to 50% sun a day, considering its RSA sun?
This can depend on your region also. I have found that KK is doing slightly better in the shade than Bermuda but the Bermuda also hasn’t fully crept in their yet so I can’t say 100%. Remember, the Bermuda started at the top of my yard and crept downhill. The Bermuda at the little section by my pool does well but that’s about 60% sun I’d say.
I have them both in my lawn. Agree with the points. Upfront cost of Kikuyu should be the cheapest? What length do you suggest on the mow for Kikuyu and Bermuda?
My gut feel is that the KK will tolerate traffic better than Bermuda. Enjoying the South African perspective.
Now that I’ve seen them both next to one another and under the same test criteria, 10-20mm for Bermuda and 20-30mm for KK. KK appears to be expensive these days but that’s vs common Bermuda. Some of the fancier strands of Bermuda can cost a bit more if I recall correctly
In short, kk is stronger. No doubt. The decision is going to be based purely on your aesthetics. Keep in mind, Bermuda is no sissy grass either. I simply don’t like the messy look of kk when you’ve not kept your finger on the pulse 24/7. Bermuda can get much lower without discoloration and also doesn’t get ‘spongy’ nearly as fast. KK will hide lumps better because of its thickness though.
I should have rather said that kk is stronger when at a longer length. At 20mm or lower I actually think Bermuda is stronger ...
And lastly, Bermuda is the only grass that survived my glyphosate experiments. Kk died and never came back. Bermuda was severely damaged but is slowly making its way back. Of course, with enough glyphosate it will croak too and you do get herbicides for the control of Bermuda in particular so that’s also a plus.