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Bermuda grass is invading my plants, like this red yucca. What can I do?
Bermuda grass isn't a favorite for gardeners, but it's often planted in new homes as a lawn, since it's inexpensive and easy to grow. These new yards have more sun and young trees, a harder situation for St. Augustine. Bermuda is great for sun and it's very drought tolerant. It handles traffic well with children and dogs.
In a sunny lawn situation, it's faster to establish than St. Augustine and it requires much less water. Last summer my Bermuda Tiff 419 died virtually to the ground. I thought it was dead but it came back as soon as we got some rain in September.
At the same time, Bermuda grass is so tough that it's highly invasive to flower beds if you don't stay on top of it by edging or digging out roots that have gotten in. You must dig deep to get the entire root. If you just cut off the top, it only makes the situation worse. After a rain (or by watering to soften the soil), go in with a spade or shovel to dig it out.
You should never plant this grass near shrubs or multi-stem plants in an open lawn.
Trees are fine; they have a single trunk and you can get up next to them and get that Bermuda under control. Ideally, though, you should have a wide mulched berm around your young trees. You don't want grass invading them for nutrients and water. If your tree is mulched, it's much easier to dig out any invasive Bermuda.
But in the case of this red yucca, you need to go ahead and dig up the plant and dig up all that grass. Again, be sure to go deep to get out the entire roots. And stay with it! This may require several stabs at it. Once it's under control, be sure to edge your beds carefully to help prevent the problem.
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