Zoysia in Juniper
 

Does anyone have any ideas on how to kill zoysia grass in shrubs, particularly juniper?

Any ideas would be appreciated,

Happy New Year,
Frank

I would contact Master Gardener, part of one of the local colleges to get your answer. They will be able to tell you if this can be done, and if so how to do it. They do have monthly(?) meetings in the villages, I do not recall where.

Here is a link to their website:

Florida Master Gardener Program - UF/IFAS Extension

It is difficult to remove or kill zoysia grass that is growing around and through a juniper ground cover shrub. Any herbicide (e.g. Roundup, etc.) would kill the shrub as well. The way I have done these jobs was to get down on my hands and knees and carefully start to dig and pull out the zoysia grass. Sometimes you can get a good grip on an underground stem and be able to pull out some long segments of zoysia. You can use a tool such as an old knife to cut and separate the grass but it is important to try not to disturb the juniper roots too much. The juniper roots should be deeper than the zoysia roots so it should be OK. It is a tedious job but with patience it can be done. In the future make sure to keep the zoysia at least 12 to 18 inches away from any shrubs. Stay on top of that and you shouldn’t have to do that big job again although some regrowth may be seen as you may not have gotten all the zoysia out, but just pull them up when you see them. There is no easy solution to your problem. If you have rocks that may require a more complicated fix as the grass sometimes sends roots into the landscape fabric making the job difficult, but you could cut the fabric away from the shrub. The shrub will grow better without being choked by fabric and rocks. Keep both far away from the rootball of any shrubs. Use bark mulch under the shrub, similar in color to your rocks and it may not be seen. (The fix isn’t easy and I have seen some people tear everything out and pay a landscaper to plant new shrubs but this is not necessary if you aren’t averse to a little hard work.)

Thank for the reply!

Thank you!