I came across this old thread because we are adjusting the contour of our Zoysia grass lawn And I wanted to check the recommendations for barrier depth. it turns out our old barrier is only 4” deep and it has easily contained the rhizomes from spreading underneath. What we have to watch is those that want to grow over the barrier. That’s just a matter of edging the lawn regularly. Nevertheless, I am installing a 6” deep barrier this time only because we have tree root problems going everywhere, but I think 4” is plenty deep. I’ve had this zoysia grass lawn for at least 30 years and never regretted choosing it. I chose it because I had German Shepherd Dogs and I wanted a grass that would take ball chasing and peeing. If I didn’t wet the urine spots down when they happened, the grass would tend to die out. But zoysia sends out rhizomes to cover those bare spots rather quickly. It also stands up well to big dogs chasing balls. It is extremely drought tolerant. It is thick and luscious underfoot. and while it does go straw colored dormant in winter, it does not go dormant for long, especially in the warmer winters we’ve been experiencing the last few years. Last winter it didn’t even go fully dormant. To compare, I’ve grown buffalo grass and it has a MUCH longer period of dormancy and is no more drought tolerant and not half as attractive. One more thing, I have a seedless cultivar of Zoysia so there is no seeding about. It’s a great lawn Grass.

Thanks esh & bagsmom! I figured that would be the only way to keep that stuff outta the beds. I was hoping someone might know of something that would kill the grass without hurting my plants. As if!! I know its asking alot but I am so frustrated. GGG, it sounds like you are describing my sisters yard who has the zoysia. I knew that was its nature but since so many people have it they would have some easy way to control it. grrrrrr Thanks again everyone!!

From what I understand, zoysia is just a fancy bermuda grass. goodbye gardens and flower beds! there is a chemical now thats supposed to kill it, but roundup wont touch it. good luck, i've battled bermuda for 40 years--its winning.

Pull it when you see it. And keep pulling. The time to use glyphosate would have been several months ago, when the plant you didn't want was growing and healthy. It's easiest to kill then. What you probably did was put it into hibernation and now it's reviving. To use an herbicide without killing the dymondia, get a bunch of big paper cups paper bags, or whatever is the right size for shields. Put the cups over the dymondia, spray the weeds, and an hour or so later, remove the cups. Save them for the next time.