12 years ago, when we first moved into our house, we thought bamboo would be a good screen between our bedroom and the neighbors’ kitchen.
We knew that it had to be contained, so we did as the plant store suggested and built a concrete “curb” around the planting area. The concrete goes about 8 inches into the soil, plus there’s plastic under that.
This worked fine for 11 of our 12 years. This summer the bamboo escaped. I think it cracked the concrete.
There are shoots in the neighbors’ yard, and of course, in our lawn. The stand is about 6 feet from the house, so we’re worried it might attack the foundation.
We dig up any we find, but it seems to grow faster than we can dig. I’d hate to lose the privacy, but so be it, if it can’t be tamed.
Is there any way to stop it from taking over the entire block? If killing it is the only option, how do we do that?
Time to break out the old shovels. Depending on how far out the shoots are growing you might be able to tame the bamboo but it won’t be fun. First you’ll need to dig up the concrete and ensure that it has breached the barrier, not gone under it. Next, sever all the root systems you can find, and pour a new layer of concrete, this one deeper than the first, but only a few inches wide. Backfill and replace turf.
When I bought my house, the back twenty feet of the backyard had bamboo. I was able to remove the bamboo by cutting it all down, tilling the soil as deep as I could with a large tiller (cleaning the tines after each pass), removing all of the roots that I could find and reseeding with grass and pulling out all shoots as soon as I saw them. Even though the neighbors kept their bamboo, this worked for about 8-10 years, though I have slacked off a bit and the stuff has started to grow back.
Call these folks! She’s a friend of mine who grows bamboo for various and sundry theme parks, gardens and zoos, corporate places, private residences, and so on. You’ve got bamboo troubles, she’s your lady. They can rein it in for you, or at least give you some advice on how to handle it yourself. Good luck! I love bamboo, if I didn’t have a two-story high privet hedge, I’d plant it myself.
I think it has started to go under the cement barrier. 8 inches isn’t deep when they run out of root space. They start going deeper. It’s time for a deeper barrier.
Thanks for all the prompt answers. It sounds like we have our work cut out for us. Harmonious Discord, I think you’re right. They seem to be climbing over each other, so down is their only other choice.
Dinsdale, I’d love too, but I don’t think my 1/8 acre would sustain them for long.
Maybe all the people in the country with bamboo problems could rotate care…
Too late for you, but for anybody else reading this thread, not all bamboos are running bamboos. If you want to plant some, plant a clumping variety and get it from a reputable local source that knows what they’re talking about.
Yeah, I have a small bit of farghesia robusta, or “green screen clumping bamboo”
I asked the landscaper about 30 times, 30 different ways. . .“this stuff isn’t going to go crazy and take over the yard, and my neighbor’s yard, etc.”
It does expand, though. I’ve heard there’s a kind of leader root that spirals outward. You can see pretty big stands of it.
I love the plant, though.
ETA: the OP might call a landscaper. You’ll pay him, but he’ll bring in the boys with the mattocks, and shovels, etc. They’ll re-sod when they’re done. You need to ERADICATE it. You can’t hope to just contain it unless you plant it in a container.
IIRC my folks were told to put down a barrier extending three feet deep (some kind of galvanized sheet metal in their case) to prevent bamboo from spreading; my first thought about your OP was that eight inches deep can’t possibly be enough. I am not a landscaper but it sounds like others have it right - dig it up and till deeply, and put down a deep barrier to prevent re-spreading.
I had to cut down some out of control bamboo at a place I rented years ago. Fast learning curve - clippers didn’t work, saw didn’t work, axe didn’t work, I had to mow it down with a chainsaw. Tough stuff.
I heard Ciscoe Morris, the gardner of radio and TV fame talk about getting bamboo a few weeks ago. He suggested cutting off each shoot just above ground level then paint the stub with Round Up. He said this will have to be done daily for a month or so before you will see results.
Depending on how far out the shoots are growing you might be able to tame the bamboo but it won’t be fun. First you’ll need to dig up the concrete and ensure that it has breached the barrier, not gone under it. Next, sever all the root systems you can find, and pour a new layer of concrete, this one deeper than the first, but only a few inches wide. Backfill and replace turf.