While most lawn owners will easily go for the more popular warm season or cool season grass as applicable in their region, what if you decided to do something a bit different? If you’re wondering how, we are introducing you to the grass specie known as Kikuyu grass.
Kikuyu grass with botanical name Pennisetum clandestinum is a warm season grass that grows perennially in locations with minimal winter cold. Although it is indigenous to East Africa, this grass grows really well in Southern California, parts of Texas and Central America. Kikuyu grass seed grows a perennial grass that grows fully into thick matted stretch of greenery. It’s ideal for erosion control and use in areas where minor maintenance is needed.
Why Choose Kikuyu Grass
As much as this grass species isn’t an indigenous one, it’s been adopted by a lot of people who own lawns in Texas. Kikuyu grass offers a lot of advantages over other types of grass. Some of the reasons why you should choose Kikuyu grass include:
- It is heat tolerant
- Drought-durable and recovers quickly
- An ideal cover for erosion control due to how it grows
- Low maintenance cost
- Suitable species for golf courses
- Disease tolerance and survives injuries with fast recovery time
If you decide on Kikuyu grass, you need to be prepared for it because it’s an invasive species that can easily take over the rest of your landscape. While Kikuyu grass resembles grass species like Augustine grass and Bermuda grass, but it’s still unique in form. It has hairy leaves that are flatter with rounded tips.
Features of Kikuyu grass
To identify Kikuyu grass, there are some features to look out for. Whether you are having Kikuyu grass problems or simply want to try out Kikuyu grass on your turf, we have compiled the qualities of the beautiful, light green grass.
- Kikuyu grass is a warm season grass that grows well in Central America, Texas, and Southern California.
- Kikuyu grass grows well in moderate temperature where it grows quickly to fill up space
- Kikuyu grass can be seen as weed in places where it isn’t wanted. It’s an invasive plant that can take over yards if not managed properly. Kikuyu grass problems are quite common in areas where this species has been planted.
- As already mentioned, Kikuyu grass is a disease-tolerant species of grass.
- Kikuyu grass has high powers of recovery and will survive heat, insects, disease, cold and other unsavory conditions.
- Has rapid growth which makes it ideal for erosion control practices
Lawn Care and Management Tips for Kikuyu grass
At this point, you might just be considering giving Kikuyu grass a shot on your lawn. In this section, we have discussed a simple guide to reference when growing and caring for Kikuyu grass seeds on your landscape.
Mowing
Kikuyu grass requires frequent mowing, at 1.5 inches maximum height to avoid scalping. Due to how Kikuyu grass grows, you might want to leave its mowing in the hands of a professional lawn mowing service like GOMOW Lawn Care Service.
Planting
Kikuyu grass is better planted as seed plugs or sods. Visit your favorite lawn accessories store to check if they have Kikuyu grass seeds. Online orders are also possible, in which case, the grass seed plugs or sods will be brought to your doorsteps.
Fertilizer Application
Fertilize the lawn during the heat of summer to replenish the starving earth of essential nutrients required by the grass. A rich, mostly-organic Nitrogen fertilizer will serve well for this purpose.
Watering Concerns
Kikuyu grass is drought resistant and can survive with minimal water availability. Make sure you water this species sparingly but deeply. Watering once a week can be enough for Kikuyu grass.
Types of Kikuyu Grass
There are different types of Kikuyu grass to choose from for your lawn. Each variety has a pronounced feature or group of features. Below is a list of varieties of Kikuyu grass in Texas:
- Breakwell Kikuyu grass
- Village Green Kikuyu grass
- Kabete Kikuyu grass
- Whittet Kikuyu grass
- Kenda Kikuyu grass
Starting Cost of Kikuyu grass
Kikuyu grass seeds are not expensive generally. Costs can range between $6 to $15 depending on the variety and quantity required. Because it is not indigenous to the US, some Kikuyu grass seed orders will require shipment from certain locations to another where they’re needed.
100 seeds can cost up to $15, with every square meter of your lawn yard taking as much as 2 handfuls of seeds uniformly spread on it.
Advantage of Kikuyu grass
Kikuyu grass offers several benefits to individuals who plant it as their lawn grass. Below are some benefits to know more about:
- Can tolerate varying range of pH and soil conditions
- Has high drought tolerance
- Quick restoration and recovery from disease infestation or wear
- Can cope with heat
- Resistant to heavy foot traffic
- Pest and insects resistance
Disadvantage of Kikuyu grass
As awesome as Kikuyu grass is, there are things that might give you concern in your bid to have Kikuyu grass on your lawn.
- Can become scalped if mowed too low
- Grows rather fast, and vigorously which means it needs to be watched
- Encourages significant buildup of thatch
- Can be considered a troublesome weed in areas where it isn’t wanted
- Mowing might not always be easy due it’s coarse rough nature
- An invasive species that can be challenging to manage
Treating Kikuyu grass problems requires having the right information about them and knowing how to go about it. This grass specie makes an amazing alternative to the regular types of grass that are common in Central America. Kikuyu grass in Texas is low maintenance and durable so it’s truly worth considering for lawns in certain areas.
If you’re looking to experience lawn mowing delivered with your interests at heart, GOMOW Lawn Care Service is available to connect with you. We do the work required to keep your lawn space beautiful and green, so you can focus on other aspects of your life and home.
Learn more about our grass mowing services here – https://gomow.com/
