Hybrid Bermuda Question

15 years ago

First a small introduction. I've been lurking here for a few days now. Great resource, I must say.

My wife and I just built & bought our first home. The contractor sodded the front yard with Bermuda but left the back yard bare.

So I did a bit of research on Bermuda seed vs sod, costs etc. I decided on seed for a number of reasons, but cost was the primary factor. I did a lot of calling around and discovered a local company that carried Blackjack seed and opted for that.

I planted early in April and I understand that it may have been a little early for good germination, but I'm in San Antonio and we were getting good rains at that time, the temps were warming up and I didn't want my topsoil washing away. Seedlings started sprouting a few weeks later. It's done alright. My coverage is a little sparse right now, but I just noticed it has started putting out runners (yay!) so I'm hoping it will fill in soon. I just put down some 15-5-10.

Anyway, enough of all that.

Now, my understanding is that there are hybrid seeds and that Blackjack is one of them? I assume that this is accomplished by cross pollinating two different bermudas to create a seed and the resulting plant is then sterile? I ask because I also keep reading that the only way to propagate a hybrid bermuda is via sod, plugs, or runners. Is this true anymore?

Also, assuming that my blackjack seed IS a hybrid does that mean it won't go to seed itself?

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Comments (6)

texas_weed
15 years ago
Ok lets define the terms in simple talk. With Bermuda grass they fall into 3 catagories:

Common, Improved Common, and Hybrid:

We can lump common and improved common together by just saying they produce viable seedheads under stress conditions such as drought. Thus, the seeds provide another method by which the species can survive extreme drought. Blackjack is a Improved Common and will produce Blackjack seeds.

Hybrids on the other hand do not produce viable seeds and can only be propagated by sod, sprigs, and plugs.
dledeaux
Original Author
15 years ago
Ok, so the next question I have is regarding the speed of growth.

I have blackjack seeded in the back and some form of tif sod in the front.

I had mowed Friday morning before we left to visit some family and when I came home Tuesday my back grass already desperately needed mowing, so I mowed. The front was fine.

Wednesday it was already looking ragged again, Thursday you could tell it needed mowing already and today I just couldn't stand it any longer and mowed it again.

I mowed the front, but it definitely didn't need it as much as the back.

Now, I mow at 1.5 inches because I'm trying to outcompete some weeds, and my soil isn't 100% even. I seeded the back this spring and the front got sodded this spring since this was a new build. I recently put out 15-5-20 front and back. It's been raining a bit.

But is this normal for blackjack to grow at such a rate? I thought this was supposed to be a slower growing grass. I'm having a hard time keeping up.
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texas_weed
15 years ago
Yeah that is somewhat normal. Common Bermuda grasses grow upright and vertical with coarse blades. Hybrids are finer in texture and should grow more horizontal.

Now with that said I suspect there is some soil or environmental differences between the front and back yards because Tifway or any hybrids are also very fast growers.
dledeaux
Original Author
15 years ago
I haven't had a soil analysis done since I'm reasonably certain I would need to have two different soil tests done.

They should be similar because they put topsoil in when the house was built, but in the back a lot of it washed away when it rained, since there was no lawn yet.

So theoretically the back would be less fertile?

The only other thing I can think of is this is the first time I've ever put out fertilizer and I may have underfertilized the front. I changed my handheld spreader from a 3 to a 4 when I did the back.
dwrecktor
15 years ago
Could it be a sun issue? My front yard face west and it grows faster than my backyard.
texas_weed
15 years ago
You bet sun is an issue. For Bermuda, the more sun the better.