Common Versus Hybrid Bermuda Grass

Common Bermuda Grass Description

• With 1/8-inch-wide leaf blades, common Bermuda grass has a light green color and medium to coarse texture. It forms a poor quality, low-density lawn, according to the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Three to five flower spikes and seed heads emerge from the end of the main stem, and the grass establishes from seed, sprigs, plugs or sod. The numerous seed heads help distinguish common Bermuda grass from hybrids.

Hybrid Bermuda Grass Description

• Hybrid Bermuda grass creates a medium- to fine-textured lawn with a deeper color and fewer seed heads than common Bermuda grass. The leaf blades measure 1/16 inch wide, and the shoots grow at a greater density than common Bermuda grass shoots. Hybrids produce little or no pollen or seed, so they produce few seed heads and usually establish from sod or stolons. Varieties that are suitable for lawns include dark green “GN-1” and fine-textured “Tifway II,” according to Clemson University Cooperative Extension.

Maintenance

• Common Bermuda grass requires mowing to 1 1/2 to 2 1/4 inches high, while hybrids need more frequent mowing to 1/2 to 1 1/4 inches high. Although a reel mower gives the best results, you can use a rotary mower with sharp blades adjusted to their lowest height. Absent a soil test, common and hybrid Bermuda grasses need 6 1/4 pounds of 16-4-8 fertilizer or 8 1/3 pounds of 12-4-8 fertilizer per 1000 square feet every four to six weeks in the spring and summer. Provide 1 inch of water when either type of grass turns bluish-gray and the leaves begin to curl. Both types of grass develop thatch, which is a touch layer of roots, rhizomes and stolons. Remove thatch in the summer with a vertical mower when the thatch is 1/2 inch thick.

Pests and Diseases

• Both common and hybrid Bermuda grasses are relatively resistant to pests and disease, but all cultivars are susceptible to nematodes. Microscopic nematodes cause thin, weak lawn areas and are especially prevalent in sandy soil and in hot, dry weather. Disease problems include spring dead spot, which causes circular patches in dormant grass in the spring, and dollar spot, which causes tan spots and brown leaves in moist conditions. Proper fertilization, watering and cultural practices help prevent pest and disease problems, according to the University of Florida IFAS Extension.