I always thought it was St Augustine that I have. Went and looked. It's kikuyu. The stuff is evil. It clambers fences and six foot tall cactus. When I pull it up I end up yanking out six feet of runner. Can't stand the stuff.

The best way to keep kikuyu out is to avoid introducing it in the first place. Use oats, millet or some similar temporary cover crop to stabilise bare ground until the native vegetation that was there originally can re-colonise the site. Avoid collecting manure or mulching materials from sites where it occurs. If you notice it becoming established, remove it quickly, before it has a chance to spread.

Kikuyu can be dug out, but this can be very laborious, unless it is growing under a thick mulch. In this case the runners grow along the surface, and are easy to pull up. It is very easy to kill with non-selective herbicide, or some grass-specific herbicides can be used to remove it from among native grasses, with minimal damage to the natives.

Thank you for your responses. I'm assuming it is St. Augustine, but am not sure. I will look up some photos of both or maybe post a photo tomorrow. I pulled up quite a few runners today. Most were maybe around 6-8 inches long. It seems worse at the edges. The gardner no longer uses an edger, just a weed whacker... I'm thinking an edger would be better at keeping this from the edges.

I just looked at some on line photographs of the two grasses. I think what I'm getting is St Augustine. Seems the St Augustine has a broader leaf blade. Mine is very broad. The kikuyugrass looks as if it has a narrower blade. Since it hasn't gotten to the whole yard, I might use Round Up on it for now before it takes over everything.
SharB

Well, St. Augustine is not as bad as bermudagrass, which can go down into the soil several feet. St. Augustine is usually in top part of the soil, maybe a couple of inches deep. I would use round up, and pull what I can by hand. Once St. Augustine dries up, it is dead, doesnt re-grow like other grasses. Catch it now before it fills up your yard. It doesnt leave seeds or anything like that... once you pull with roots, that stolon is over.

Thanks skrip. I will continue to pull out what I can and also use the Round Up. When we first landscaped this yard, in 1973, we put in hybred bermuda grass and I loved it. So short and soft and green. When we built the back porch, I wanted a more traditional look and went with Marathon. I did like the hybred bermuda a lot. I don't like the wide blades of the St. Augustine and the rough feel of it.

Thanks for the suggestions.
SharB

There's selective herbicides for lawns. I know one I used will kill St. Augustine while leaving the Fescue.

I am certain I have St. Augustine coming up through my (less than 1 year old) Marathon II. How do I get rid of the St. Augy without damaging the sod?

When we bought a previous house built in 1905 we had a front yard in common with our neighbor a 1902 model. Her lawn was St.Augustine and mine was blue grass. With no border between us it was impossible to contain her grass. A professional I consulted said a solid barrier 18 inches deep was needed to separate us. I dug a trench and poured concrete with a curb about 6 inches above the lawn. It was expensive but effective and did not improve neighborly relations. Al

Sharburk, PLEASE don't use Round Up any time, any where. It's very harmful to the environment and to wild creatures, like pollinators.