I don't know if I would seal it in plastic in a non-climate-controlled environment.   I think I'd do a cardboard box or screen over the bucket or some such.

First because....condensation

Second because....there is SOME moisture in the bag as it is...

I think sealing it in plastic like that might lead to problems.

Put it where rodents can't get it and where it can't get more moisture in it, and let it breathe.  If you were keeping it for two years, I might tell you different, but that's what I'd do.

Perfect as long as it's not damp down there.

I didn't know there was such a pest.

Interesting.  What drew your attention to them?

Here in cool season grass I use triclopyr, but you can't use that on your warm season grass. (At least not while it's actively growing. Pros put this on lawns when they're dormant but unless you have some experience or do quite a bit of studying, I wouldn't do it


It is my experience that the "Triad"  or "Triplet" or what we call three-way herbicides, do almost nothing to wild violet on their own.   Technically the 2, 4-D *should* damage the violet, but they are very tough to kill because of the really waxy coating on the leaves, and the thick, tuberous roots.  So most of the time you just hurt them, do a little damage, and they come right back, stronger than ever. The dicamba helps some, but you are generally going to need a different type of herbicide in with whatever you put on there as either the primary or what we call a kicker. (Be careful..study before you mix your own.  Not all herbicides play well together in the same tank.)  It looks like from a quick check that both quinclorac and sulfentrazone will damage wild violet and not your bermuda.

Notice I said "DAMAGE"  which means that, although it looks in the video below that the violets are dying after just one treatment, in my experience it's going to take more than one.  Just a consistent "hurt them until they don't come back" way of doing this.  That's okay. A lot of weeds are like that.  



Be aware there is more than one way to do this.  I don't know if you already have anything on hand or not.  So...tell us what you HAVE, or whether you are wanting to just go to the big box stores and get something ready to spray, or whether you have a sprayer and want to order something specific, or what.

Here is a really good guy...Jason Creel, with Lawn Care Life, who is an excellent teacher and does this professionally.  
Killing Wild Violet in Bermuda

I will tell  you that the pros I know in the south use Celsius.  You will get sticker shock when you see the cost, but you can get it in a small bottle (homeowner size) for a very reasonable price (like $40 ish), and a little goes a very long way with these premium chemicals.  

Celsius in small bottle



Looks like celsius is on backorder right now, but hopefully that won't be long.
They are recommending another brand (generic) but it's not exactly the same, and I have no knowledge of anybody using this so cannot speak to it.
 

Are your rotators adjustable so that you can control the sweep, stop and start positions?

ETA:  Not that I know which are good or not.  I've just started my journey into irrigation learning, after encountering some real assholes in the irrigation business (meaning not ONE of the irrigation people I've encountered has been a good human being.)  I'm assuming not all irrigation people are like this, since we have one here in the thread who seems like a really good guy.

Anyway, any study takes time, so irrigation has to get in line for me.  Really excited that you are doing this.  

Share what you know!

Glad to have you here in the thread! I hope you will hang out and answer some irrigation questions!

@Avidrook where are you and what grass type do you have mostly?

I have you in NC in my head, but I'm not at all sure that's right.


ETA:   Here are two web pages.  I'm going to assume you have bluegrass and/or fescue.  That looks kind of like bluegrass there in the photo, though I can't really tell for certain with such a small visual sample, what makes up your turfgrass.

This is a page from OSU  BUT......They are wrong.   Fungicides can be used as a curative for PM (powdery mildew) and I do it all the time.  I'm putting this here because the photos are good.

This page is from NC State.  It's better factually, but the photos aren't as good.

A few questions:

1-How big is this patch of grass, and can we see a broader photo, so we can see more of the area?

2-Do you own a sprayer?   Like  a little pump sprayer or a backpack, etc?

3-Are you comfortable mixing and spraying stuff with some help?  Or are you more comfortable with "buy this bottle at home depot, attach a hose to it, and spray it on the lawn"?

Bermuda will absolutely work with a ride-on, though I don't know that you will be happy with it the same way you are happy with your fescue.

Some questions:

1-What part of California do you live in?  What is your climate?  Do you get cold in winter?  Snow at all?  Bermudagrass goes dormant in winter if you get any frost.   So the grass turns brown and stays brown all winter, then turns green again when temps warm up in the spring.  

2-What is that soil like back there?  Is it heavy clay?  Compacted? (Have vehicles been parked on it?  Does water stand on it a while before it soaks in?  Does it dry out slowly and crack?

3-Do you have in-ground irrigation?   (Your fescue looks great in front)

4-Are you willing to do some landscaping around that tree?  Bermuda is unlikely to do well underneath that tree, and I would hate to lose that, as it is a very nice feature.  A nice rock bed with edging (Just some metal, hammer-in edging from a big-box store is fine) would look fantastic, out to about the drip line, then Bermuda on the rest of the yard.  

5-The idea time to germinate Bermuda seed is spring, so it has the hot summer (with a lot of water) to get it going before it goes into winter dormancy.   So that's why I'm asking about your temps--(what is your climate like?)  I'm not sure the Bermuda will even GO dormant where you are.  

Okay we were typing at the same time.   I added some questions in an edit.  (Sorry) Take a look at those.

@TheStig

Some of my customers have the Rachio and although it's wonderful because you can use your phone, the interface is very difficult for most of them.

I will say two things about in-ground irrigation.  

1-Think about where you want landscaping.   If you know you want a design with, say, shrubs around the service boxes near the curb,  take into account that you're either going to have to sow grass/lay sod and have the irrigation serve that area, OR get the design done ahead of time with the beds built right off (even if no plants are there) and put the irrigation heads in the appropriate locations.

I cannot tell you how frustrating it is to try to get the irrigation companies to come out and move the heads out from under the (now full-size) shrubs.  I've had two customers for three years, and at least twice per season I flag those heads in the beds (cuz there's...you know....a giant puddle of water under certain shrubs, and no water on that part of the lawn) and place a call to the irrigation guys (or the homeowner places the call) and still, those heads are not moved.  

So unless you are doing your own maintenance and can move heads and don't mind doing so, pay extra attention to the placement of the heads, so the landscape design, if it's done later, can go in and have your grass still get good coverage.

2-If you are going to have a curb strip, pay the extra to get heads placed on the street side of the sidewalk, JUST FOR THE CURB STRIP.  It will make an enormous difference in the look of your property if you can keep that curb strip looking sharp all summer, and it's far, FAR easier, with less wasted water, if the curb strip has its own heads.   Even better if those could be on a separate zone, because the strip is going to need more water than the rest of the lawn (probably) because it's sandwiched between those two paved surfaces, and it gets a lot of traffic/takes a lot of abuse.  

If you can't swing the extra zone, I have some tools to suggest (like Hydretain) to help in dry seasons.

Okay, note the Landscaping thread on the later pages, where we talk about not putting a deep bed around trees.  Keep it even with the existing soil so nothing is piled high on the roots or around the trunk.  

Now then to the grass:

I feel like Bermuda would be ideal for you.   @TheStig is correct in that Bermuda LIKES to be kept very short which means twice per week cutting, but you don't have to do that.  Most people don't do that.   Keeping your Bermuda at about 2" or so, and cutting with a riding, rotary mower will work just fine.  ETA:  HOWEVER, cutting it very tall may result in a yard that's not as pretty.  

Some things to keep in mind:

1-The weed controls that work on your fescue (many of them anyhow)will damage or kill your Bermuda.  Same goes the other way.  Controls for Bermuda will harm the fescue.

2-Bermuda is an alpha grass, and will eventually take over your fescue and choke it out, gradually moving toward your front yard, unless you have a SERIOUS divider between the two.  Even then, I predict a full bermuda yard in your future.  There is nothing that will absolutely keep Bermudagrass out of fescue.   (I know that sounds contradictory, since I just said the weed controls that help fescue will harm Bermuda, but when I say Bermuda is the alpha, I mean that 100 percent.  Dinging the Bermuda with something like a triclopyr --commonly used on cool season grass like fescue--will make it look bad, but it probably won't die.  It will come roaring back.)

3-At 30 degrees, with frost, your back yard will turn brown part of the winter.  It may never get fully dormant, but it might.  So if it goes fully dormant, that's a great time to do weed control, because you can spray glyphosate on the dormant fescue to kill whatever else is in there that you don't want.  HOWEVER, if it's not FULLY dormant, you will harm your turf.  So....gotta pay attention to detail, and not knowing your climate for real, it's important that I make you aware that you will have to spend a bit of energy on knowing your grass this way.

4-The Bermuda is also going to try to invade everything else--like your garden.  So...hard edging is your friend, and you will be using some chemical to keep it out of there in spite of the hard edging.  

example:  My house is about 30' deep.   It had no original foundation because it was built in 1849, and was built on stacks of rock pillars.  Working under the house over the years I have found, several times, Bermuda stolons growing from the front of the house, under the skirting, 30 feet in the darkness and coming out the back of the house.  THIRTY FEET WITH NO LIGHT.  Only the food it's getting from the last rooted point.

Sometimes I worry that the wild Bermuda in my yard will creep in under the old window sashes at night and choke me in my sleep.  

Now then, that will to survive is a GOOD thing if you want that grass.  But....

If you have not grown Bermuda before, just be prepared. It is a force to be reckoned with.

With that sort of separation, you MAY be able to keep the Bermuda out, with a bit of effort.   Yes it might go under the driveway, but it might NOT, depending on how deep the pavement and base are.  A bit of Bermuda here and there, you can fight.   When it's intermixed at the sides of the house, the fescue will lose (unless there's shade).  

The Bermuda will save you some water (though you will still have to water).  

@Savage1971

You should get on youtube and do a little looking at Allyn Hayne's videos about Bermuda (The Lawn Care Nut)   Also Matt Martin's at The Grass Factor.

The Bermuda is so powerful because it spreads in three ways.  Stolons (above-ground runners, Rhizomes, (below-ground runners) and seed.

So the most invasive parts are the runners (above and below ground).   Birds, the wind, you and your equipment will all spread seed.  So if you want to play with the Bermuda, just be aware, part of having it will be keeping it out of the fescue.  People do it.  It's not impossible. But it takes work and you have to be on top of it constantly.  

The durability of Bermuda is a huge plus.  Especially if you have kids who will be playing out there.  Ballgames, etc...Bermuda can handle it.   Setting up a seasonal pool or even a weekend bouncy house or water slide that's gonna kill part of the grass? Nothing will fill back in like Bermuda.  Especially if you feed it.

The hybrid Bermudas can be incredibly dark and lush.   Don't sell it short for that.

Do spend some time on those sites (and I have more I can suggest) and search them both for Bermuda hybrids.   They are far, far better than common Bermuda for color and lushness.

Once you do that, come back and I will suggest other places to do research.  I also have a network of lawn professionals from California to Main to the Florida Keys, who do nothing but grow grass.   I can always hit them up for what THEY would plant if they had their perfect world, not only for beauty, but for resilience, for drought resistance, for disease and pest resistance as well.  Often it is better to spend the money up front on a quality seed for an improved variety, and save money on the pesticides later because you have a grass that can stand up to more attacks.

ETA: Okay, color me skeptical, and take this lightly because I think the Bermuda will work for you.  BUT....you WILL spread that Bermuda seed.  You'll spread it with your shoes.   Birds will spread it.  Wind will spread it.  The rabbit romping across the yard will spread it.    

It will spread to the front.  But since it won't be the runners doing that, you have a decent chance to fight it out of your fescue, especially if you keep the fescue strong, healthy, and thick.   You will get SOME.  But I believe you can win.  There are tools to use against the Bermuda to make it prefer to go other directions.   I'm happy to share those if you get a Bermuda back yard.

Just as a help...can I see a photo of your regular grass that is NOT gray?  Like...a broader photo of some of your lawn, and a closeup of grass that is not affected?

@avidrook

Before I went for heavy duty chemicals (especially since you said you went chem free for your animals) I would get this right here.  It's available at home Depot though you may have to order it and pick it up.

Neem Oil Concentrate

READ THE ENTIRE LABEL  

Be aware this is NOT a heavy duty fungicide, so you're going to get the kind of control you get from more natural agents.  

HOWEVER, since this is the first time in 32 years you've had this, I'm guessing it is a specific set of conditions that brought it about.

1-Make sure that grass is not wilted...water it well...say, the night before....so it's not bone dry.

2-Don't put this on wet foliage.

3-Mix some up in a sprayer and have at it.  I'd mix a gallon of it, and you'll probably get two sprays out of that.  I can't say for certain the product will still have efficacy after 7 days, but I'm betting it will.  I'm betting two sprays will make this powdery mildew wish it had not attacked your grass.

NOW THEN..

Pay attention because there is some reason this came to your yard.   Maybe just weird conditions and some spores blew in, landed there and spread.  But since it has done that, you might take a little more time watching to see if other things are happening you may wish to address.

I have some really good soil additives, btw, that I can recommend to you, to help your lawn even though you are not treating it.  If you should decide to give your grass a bit of help as far as feeding the soil and maybe even the grass itself, to help it along, just holler.  

Listen...if you're in, say, a facebook group of Lawn Treatment Professionals, there is SO MUCH HATE for DIYers and for the youtubers who reach out to that audience.

That is bullshit. (pardon my language, but that is just pure bullshit)

Allyn Hayne is responsible for as many awesome lawns in this country, as is ANY one Lawn Care provider like me. (Or someone much bigger than me. I'm a tiny business, in the grander scheme of things).   I don't know what's wrong with those pros, but put some of the lawns on the LCN facebook page beside ANY of their lawns, and sometimes, the LCN lawns would WIN!

Your lawn is proof.  You work it, and it's gorgeous!

It's not rocket science.  It's learning what the soil and the grass need!  

When we use a lawn heavily, we have to manage it differently.  But you have the skills. That front lawn proves it.  You are in a difficult environment for fescue, and you're doing great.  Bermuda will be a new learning curve for you, but it will be easier, in a lot of ways.

I would LOVE to see you go for it, and please share with us here, so others will be inspired that they can do it too!

A quick story (as if I EVER tell a quick story)

Only a very few years ago, I went to the GIE (Green Industry Expo) in Louisville. I'd been mowing professionally, and I'd decided I wanted to do lawn treatments.  Yes, I went to grad school for horticulture and landscape design, but I did NOT go through the turf program.   That was separate, and growing landscapes, or greenhouses full of plants...yeah...I was good to go.   Growing grass is a whole other thing.  Not many landscape plants are monocots.

So I had been on Youtube, watching everything from the NTEP trials to Lawncology to The Grass Factor(early vids...he is different now) to Allyn Hayne, the Lawn Care Nut (his early vids--right now he is shifting focus slightly).  I went to the Lawncology booth to connect and learn more about their NEXT (Nitrogen Extending) line of products that included use of Humic Acid, Fulvic Acid, and other interesting new stuff that had made its way into agriculture, but was still a new thing in lawn care.  Since I have the soil science background to understand it, I wanted to know more.

I was standing there, chatting with the folks who make those products, and who should step up beside me but...Allyn Hayne.   I was very excited to meet him, and I shared my goal....Start a lawn treatment company from a mowing company.   He said, "You should come to Lawncology." (a conference the following January).  I signed up.  I went.  I met hundreds of experienced lawn treatment pros there, and I was launched into the treatment industry because of that support network.

Allyn was there, as were several others in the Youtube community.  I have learned a LOT about who deserves significant attention and who does not, within that group.  So now that I've been in treatment for a bit and  have a network of pros I can talk with for any issues or to learn advanced stuff, I like to still watch and pay attention to Allyn and others who speak largely to the DIY community. Because I like to help people who want to do things for themselves.

If you are going to treat your own lawn, I'm not your lawn care professional.  I will lose NOTHING by helping you.  Right?

That is how I have always approached my business.  Advice is always free. Once I start doing physical work (which includes reading labels), that's not free. (Usually..unless...well...mowing or helping people who can't afford it...that's a different subject.)

So all that to tell you....the people I recommend you watch on Youtube are people I know, and deeply respect.  If I don't know them, I will say so.  Allyn Hayne is a good guy.  Loves the country. Son in the Air Force.  Building his business, but just an all-around good person.

I give him the credit for launching me into what I do for a living.

I like to support that kind of generosity.

So many great people in the lawn care community.    I cannot say enough about how happy I am to be a part of it.  I want to pay that forward by sharing any way I can.

All this came about because of the work, and kindness, of Allyn Hayne, the Lawn Care Nut.

You do NOT need a reel mower to manage a Bermuda lawn.

There are millions of bermuda lawns in the country, that look amazing, without a reel mower.

Whoever told you that bermuda needs a reel mower is just...wrong.

Backtrack on that mentality and start over.



And let me just tell you.

I freaking HATE Bermuda.  I kill it.

It is the enemy for me. (I grow fescue.  Bermuda is a weed for me.)

So it won't take long before I will be referring you to other people in your journey into Bermuda.

But for the startup, I can help.

And I will do anything I can to make it a success. (And I will learn from your journey!)