eeew Bermuda is the worst. Unless you like grass. You will have to kill it and it's hard to do. You have to dig down three feet, I have heard. I wonder if you can just lay the black plastic on it for a while?

Unfortunately, with bermuda grass the only thing I have found that is effective is cutting it low so it doesnt form seed heads and using Round Up. Black plastic doesnt do it, some runners grow 14 feet and more looking for light. Even digging it out is a problem as any tiny root or leaf left touching the soil will grow..... I would like to think Im an organic gardener, but when it comes to bermuda grass it wins!

You CAN get it out without roundup. It's a painstaking process, but it can be done.

I agree with the Roundup treatment - Bermuda grass should never have been introduced into this area - the good folks at Supai and Havasupai have been battling with it for generations. It will require several applications of Roundup and careful scrutiny around any rocks, sidewalks where it may have gone into hiding. Almost impossible to cover with black plastic to 'cook' it - it doesn't seem to mind and will sneak out to the borders - This stuff is a menace - like Russian thistle. Let us know how your removal program works.. Good luck!

I, for one, like Bermuda grass for lawns for the SW. It likes our heat, isn't overly thirsty and does best with minimal fertilizer. It fills gaps and is also great in areas with a lot of foot traffic. That being said I do not have it in the xeric part of my landscape. We do have a small lawn and thoroughly enjoy it but the grass is contained.
Round-up works well on bermuda but it will take several applications this year and possible one of two next year to wipe it out. Herbicides work best on plants that are actively growing so watering the grass will, believe it or not, help the chemical "do it's thing".
Also depending on the pH of your water you might need to adjust the water:Round-up formula. It's designed to work in lower pH water than we usually have in NM.
Good luck.

It's getting killed off :) Waiting to see what pops back up since we had a good rain and some warm weather.

I'm using glyphosate at the recommended concentration, but with a couple tablespoons of vinegar per gallon to lower the pH of the water. That's the usual formula in Phoenix to compensate for the alkaline crud.

hmm...... never heard that one before about the ph! I know straight vinegar slows bermuda down but wont kill it (it just gets the top growth, not the roots which gleefully grow the green back). Im going to do as Lazy does and try a little bit of vinegar in my mix for the bermuda! Thanks

Vinegar? Good luck with that.

1 T. of ammonium sulfate/gallon of water/3 oz. glyphosate herbicide is the recommended formula in southern NM and for other hard water areas.

The Desert Botanic Gardens recommended vinegar. Silly me for assuming they knew what they were doing.

If you lower the pH, the hardness has less of a lock-up effect.

Ammonium sulfate is just another way to lower PH. Ammonium sulfate, vinegar, either one will do it. Take your pick. Ammonium sulfate has the added feature of adding nitrogen to the soil; whether that's an advantage depends on what you're trying to accomplish.