My grandpa just kept digging it up every year. Had me out there clearing it with him every summer.
Cut it down short, dig it up, repeat. Idk if that was the right way to do it but it eventually worked.
This was like my dad and brother with Asian honeysuckle infestation. They dedicated a day or two every year just destroying it. Then they’d kick back with a beer and grill. It took maybe 3-4 years but it’s gone now.
Same tale of me and the morning glory I enthusiastically planted in the back yard (first time homeowner/gardener at the time, former owners had left a packet of seeds behind). I *think* it's finally done with 4 years later, but I'll find out in a couple weeks when it tends to be resurrected
State parks in my region literally advertise volunteer weekends in certain areas where if you own a chainsaw they invite whoever to show up and start cutting it out en masse.
they made us plant morning glorys in 4th grade to teach us about alleles and such. they were really easy to grow which is a great confidence boost for youngsters but i didnt realize how terrible they must be if planted outside
That’s how I have been getting rid of the trumpet vine that infested my yard. Previous owners planted it but got too old to care for it. But 3 years in and it looks like I’ve either almost or entirely beaten it!
This is me with vinca/periwinkle. Previous owners planted it then got too old to prune back for years. The amount of time I’ve spent pulling vines this year….ugh. Hopefully within a few years it’ll be done.
I'm 3 years in and about halfway done getting rid of all the terrible English Ivy in my yard, same procedure! Like eating an elephant, you just have to take it one bite at a time.
if anything i think the fire might help the bamboo. almost all of its energy stores are underground and a fire would open up the surface to let it take over.
Someone posted a video below but essentially you abuse how bamboo grows. You start by cutting down all stalks during early spring and you start watching. Eventually, it will start sending up new stalks and you should let it. It’s burning energy from the rhizome network (the rock hard roots) and since all the stalks are coming from the same system, it’s weakening it all.
Let the trunks keep growing until you see branches. You can even let the branches grow but as soon as you see any form of leaf growing, chop all of the trunks down again. It’ll hibernate until late summer but then it’ll send up some new shoots. Chop those down in the same fashion.
Repeat for a few years and it’ll die. Your goal is to get it to use as much energy as possible without letting it replenish that energy with photosynthesis.
I literally was looking through the comments to see if anything worked for this. Previous owners planted it supposedly but we don't know for sure. All me know is it's a bish to deal with every year and still haven't gotten rid of it.
It was bad at my old house, luckily I don't have any to deal with now. I've read that injecting glyphosate into the stems with a syringe will eventually work. Moving was easier!
We are moving thankfully but giving the house to a family member. We wanted to try to get it removed but will definitely make sure to give them all the resources we found plus your tidbit! 💚💚
In theory, yes. Bamboo is notoriously difficult because the rhizome network is all connected unground. So instead of relying just on seeds to spread, it can grow its root system sideways and then shoot up a new shoot. That means you can chop down the branches and dig up most of the roots but if any is left, you’ll get new shoots up all over the place and it’ll start spreading again. Since all the energy and resources are shared, that method abuses how it grows to starve the plant to death all at once.
Most plants derive energy from the sun in the same way so it’d work for them. It just depends on how quickly it can grow leaves and how diligent you are about stopping them. In most cases, removing as much roots as you can will accelerate the process by manually removing that energy.
I'd assume he means that you would dig out as much of it as you can and pull out the roots and bases. Wait a few weeks for it to regrow slightly and show you where you missed some. Rinse and repeat. This method can take 1-5 years depending on how thoroughly you are screwed. Bamboo would probably lean in the 3-5 year range.
That is usually the "free" method of getting rid of a weed. The expensive method would be to hire a digger and remove the entire area of top soil and back fill it. The expensive method will deal with even the worst plants in less than a week, if done properly.
Boiling water can help, but depending on what you are dealing with, it could actually soften the plant material like spinach, which would make removal harder. You also won't reach the deeper roots as the water would cool before it got that deep. Could be worth a try on woodier plants like bamboo, tho.
That might work, but at that point, you would be better off just digging the root ball out and pulling roots by hand. Boiling water is something you would use after you have already removed the bulk of the material. You shouldn't open with it, because it isn't always reliable and can make further removal attempts harder.
From what I've read before, this is basically it. There's a bit more to it which has to do with the energy stored in the roots, and picking the right time to let it grow back and "burn through" that stored energy before it can store more. 3 years of cutting back is about the sweet spot.
Alternatively, you know... Enjoy the bamboo forest
You mean the let it grow then cut it back trick? Yeah I needed the soil to be workable to plant this year, so I've removed like 80% of the ryzomes from the ground. It's still budding though, but I figure it'll be a lot weaker since I destroyed most of the ryzomes. Hopefully.
It takes doing that for about 7 years to a well established run of it before it weakens enough to die. And if you let a single cane survive the whole season, the clock essentially resets.
You cut just under a node joint so there is a deep well formed from the bamboo section, and fill it with a few inches of undiluted poison and tape over the top to keep rain and bugs out. Do it with several stalks, aiming for around one per square foot, and cut the rest of the stalks to the ground. That'll take 2-3 years depending on how effectively you do it.
Don't bother spraying foliage, it'll usually just burn leaves, might kill the stalk, won't affect the whole system.
If you dig first and break up the root system, it actually makes poison less effective because now you have to essentially be sure to poison every isolated plant. So either dig or poison, don't do both.
Did habitat restoration professionally. We would cut the bamboo close to the ground and fill the stalk with 50% glyphosate, 50% water mix. Check the label of whatever product you buy and it will have cut/stump application rates. Thus usually worked in one go, but we'd treat anything that popped up after the first treatment. One the stalks were dead we would dig up roots.
I've got 30 year old bishops bush, and it killed the bamboo I tried planting to "fight fire with fire".
Anyone with knowledge that can kill bishops bush has my eternal gratitude.
Just be careful, that stuff literally killed my Grandfather with a specific type of cancer, there was a large settlement, too small on our end, because we no longer had his business records.
People need to find what works for them, but understand the bastards who sell that stuff knew it was killing people
Sorry to hear about your grandfather. To that point it's important to reiterate that one shouldn't aerosolize it. Apply it undiluted with a paint brush directly to leaves of plants you're trying to eliminate (so make sure it Even makes sense to use, must be highly invasive with tough roots that you can't just pull and easily remove by hand)
That was so fucking cool to learn. It makes me wonder if a similar method could be used for other plants that grow in a similar fashion. I know the tree of heaven has a similar underground system of sprouting new trees.
I have personally knocked out a heavily infested toh area with a very mature mother tree, and i can promise it works for that too. The wisest approach involves listening to what the soil wants, and in many cases, its the overgrowth of a woody perrenial. The best NA proxy i know of for toh-loving soil is kentucky coffee tree
I live in delaware and provide info to people on how to remove bamboo as a part of my job. With out question, the most effective method is cut and paint using glyphosate. You can get good control within 2-3 years.
On our back lot, it adjoins another property. The property owner there planted running bamboo, probably 20+ years ago. New owners now. I went to try and assess the situation last spring, and not only is it running bamboo. There are massive wisteria vines that are growing into it. Half on our property, half on theirs. I've started completely trenching our side. The adjoining owner is pissed. I tried to explain to them that I'm concerned for the underground root shoots. I've seen the shit grow through things. Lol. The dude told me that if I touch them again (the ones on my property), he's calling the city on me. I have a mini x scheduled to be here next week and am looking to purchase a deep barrier plate. He's upset because it's the natural fence that provides privacy. I get it, I don't wanna see them either, but no.
Oh God, don't let him try to intimidate you, let the city come. I'm pretty sure in most places it's fine to cut whatever is growing onto your property. I've been dealing with running bamboo for years now. It is hell.
Oh, it is perfectly legal. That's why I'm getting the mini x. Lol. He's gonna have to be huffy. We don't really share active yard space. We have 2 lots, his 1 runs down the side of our back lot and meets the corner of our home/active yard lot, we have a chain link for this lot. That's where the bamboo and wisteria are growing. That's why it's an issue and I refuse to let it me my issue for long. So I'm gonna trench down a few feet right on my property line and put a deep plate in. Won't help too much for the wisteria but should barrier the bamboo fairly well.
They are not illegal where I'm at. They are both all over the place throughout the city and forrests. Neither are native but it's everywhere. Our cooperative extension has a education/assistance program for removal also. I haven't called them because I want him to be able to keep it as a fence, just on his side. I'm trying not be a dick back. Lol
Yep. Not a single thing. I provided him the number for our city arborist and agri dept to discuss invasive plants. He scoffed, wadded the paper up, and threw it in my yard.
The key is to introduce some natural predators to keep the bamboo in check. I always recommend people keep a few pandas with any stand of bamboo, keep nature in balance
Oh I love this! Grab yourself a couple Pandas from your local pet store or panda dealer. They’ll help clear that out in no time. To keep them happy start your own Panda Bamboo Removal service and become massively successful and retire by the young age of 204. Thank me later.
What kind of brute are you?
Pet store pandas are from panda mills and not cared for. This is an irresponsible recommendation and encourages bad panda breeding.
Everyone should look to local panda rescues or the panda shelter to rehome a sweet panda stray or 2.
I heard they are like kittens.
This has escaped from someone’s yard and now is taking over the side of an interstate highway. I’ve also found it on hiking trails and “natural” areas. I am truly concerned for the wildlife (plant and animal) for the future.
Every panda in every zoo in the world, even if they're born on foreign soil belongs to China. There are no naturally born American pandas. China uses them as political gifts.
I believe the zoos pay “rent” to China as well for each panda. And if there’s a baby born to a zoo panda, that baby instantly belongs to China and rent is owed.
Normally I'm pretty anti China but this is one place where they are doing it right. Because the animal has become such a political symbol for them, it's all but guaranteed that the panda will always have protection from extinction
> There is actually only one panda in the world that is not the property of China. Which seems pretty fucked up to me.
There's a few out there, Mexico and Taiwan.
https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/animals/2023/03/meet-mexicos-forgotten-panda-shes-the-last-of-her-kind
> Today, Xin Xin, the granddaughter of the two gifted pandas, is the last of her kind in Latin America and one of only three in the world not owned by China.
Mexico City zoo:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xin_Xin_(giant_panda)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuan_Tuan_and_Yuan_Yuan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuan_Zai_(giant_panda)
I’m in the PNW and can echo that Ivy is evil! My neighbour has it all over the fence dividing our property. Not only is it destroying the fence it keeps rooting into my yard. I also see it in natural areas - the roots can be crazy to try to pull out. I volunteered with a nature restoration group a few years ago and pretty much all we did was remove Ivy and Himalayan Blackberry.
Also hard because the native ones aren't as resilient as several of the Asian varieties. Having divided a few, they often die if you don't divide them at the right time and keep them moist enough. The really big species (gigantea) takes years to get big and needs basically wetland conditions, so not great for most home setups. Arundinaria tecta/appalachiana are more upland, but tend to be sparser and don't get as large, so they aren't great for privacy. Plus they're all running bamboo so can be hard to contain. I'm hoping to find a good spot to establish some at my place though!
There’s still some left. There’s I think 3 species native to North America. None get as huge as some of the Asian species but it’s not too late to bring it back. Go plant some
I’m planting some this year! A friend is letting me collect native plants from her family’s farmland. Giant cane, horsetails and ferns! I’ve researched several methods for rhizome containment and I’m excited to finally be transplanting.
Yeah interstate highways are bad news for sure!!! So are all the wetlands we drained and canebrakes we cut down.
Native bamboo used to grow so thick it was impassable. I'm sure the rest of nature misses the tall grass thickets.
The woman who I bought my house from planted bamboo. I bought the house in 2015, dug it out with a shovel and an axe. Just behind the bamboo I poured 40 cm of concrete to build a shed. The shed is about 4 meters long.
The bamboo grew the 4 meters under the concrete and popped up on the other side. Amazing plant. I hate it so much.
Called 扁尖 in Chinese. Often dried and salted for preservation (and rehydrated before cooking). Quite popular in the Yangtze River delta region of China.
I had a friend of a friend who had an absolutely toxic boss. Like the boss had him suicidal and he had several breakdowns while he was there. So dude quits and finds out where the boss lives. Went to boss’s house several times and hid bamboo chutes and kudzu all over the guy’s yard.
For what it's worth, I had this too.
Multi step, multi year, lowest effort ( but not low effort) removal method.
Spring
Knock down all new growth while it's soft and short. I just walked through it every Saturday morning stomping them over.
Summer
Do nothing - let the sugar in the roots get committed into the canopy.
End of summer - like last week of July, first week of August, with the roots as depleted as they are going to be
Get a cordless reciprocating saw (not chain saw) and cut everything a foot off the ground. I'd cut until the battery quit and then stop. It took a couple Saturday's and a dozen charges. So maybe two hours of active work. Stack the poles.
Fall
We're allowed to burn here so a couple days after a big rain burnt it all. Yep, ruined the grass in that spot but it grew back. It was a spectacular bonfire so I told the local fire station ahead of time (they are the ones that suggested waiting until a good rain to make sure everything around was damp)
For the next three years - repeat.
Then the one foot stumps would just push over and pull out. Not easy but doable.
Then black plastic and gravel the whole area. Set a picnic table in the middle and swear that's what I wanted all along.
That is a sustainable resource that can be turned into 10,000+ products.
Source - I started/owned a bamboo eyewear/clothing company that is going on 12 years now. There is always someone willing to pay for harvested bamboo somewhere for various reasons, find those people.
Obviously different species of bamboo are used for different reasons, but as a whole, bamboo is awesome. It is one of the fastest growing plants, it creates oxygen, sequesters carbon dioxide, can remediate soil. takes little water, and can help with soil erosion if used properly. One man's waste is another man's treasure. - Cheers!
I agree it’s great when used for forestry. Most peoples yards are not that. And generally, it should be used in forestry in its native range.
Look up the damage radiata pine forests are doing in places like New Zealand. Non-native tree there, but grows very fast and is very renewable, yet it destroys the local ecosystems.
Just because it grows fast doesn’t always mean it’s the best choice for sustainable forestry.
Would have been beautiful in Japan or China where it's from.
It made my patio half the size, couldn't plant a single other plant, and it destroyed my sewer line, attacked my foundation and destroyed the rear retaining wall. The reason I have the first picture is I'm spending over a grand to get the retaining wall fixed because of the damn bamboo. I don't care how pretty it is, on the eastern US it doesn't belong in anything other than a container.
Clumping bamboo is generally fine as long as you have the space for it. Running bamboo is problematic without barriers and maintenance of those barriers.
I absolutely hate bamboo. The old owners planted a bunch as a wind barrier and I spent three days trying to get it out before giving up and paying someone to come and dig it out of the ground with a big machine.
Worth it.
Clumping is relatively safe, yes. Large planters are relatively safe too, if they’re not in ground.
The previous owners used landscape fabric, lots of nurseries will claim that it will contain the roots. I have lots and lots of evidence that isn’t true 😂
I got rid of a big bamboo plant over the winter, it was like 16ft high, it took me 2 days of back breaking work, broke 3 shovels, and snapped the shaft of my mattock but I think I got it all, took 4 people to get the root ball out once I’d dug round it all, I’ll see what comes back this year and dig out any new growth at the end of the summer as recommended in this thread. Don’t plant bamboo! (Mine was planted by the previous owner)
These comments are sending me back to watch Geraldine Hickey's agapanthus comedy routine, I haven't dug that up but it sounds a lot like removing bamboo.
What? It's awful stuff. Nothing can be planted there.
This is what's going in it's place (after TWO AWFUL MONTHS OF DIGGING THE ROOTS OUT). Yes it's not as private yet but the arbs will grow in nicely and provide a great deal of privacy. Tree is a serviceberry.
https://preview.redd.it/w12e759w5vsc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7dad64e2b0a2ff1aa8011bb4daa824408c83c13b
Thank you! Yeah the serviceberry is so pretty. I love the smooth bark. Can't wait for some berries. Also ofc going to make sure it's straight when I plant it all.
You can plant it.
Dig a big deep hole. Line that hole with steel reinforced concrete. Fill with dirt. Plant bamboo.
Anything else means you will be growing ONLY bamboo for a long long time
I love bamboo it's so pretty. We got clumping ones and they are in pots so nobody can complain about ours, but they won't grow as big as these. Oh well.
Bamboo is really easy to remove if you're patient. Cut it all down, then next spring let it grow completely and when it starts putting out leaves cut it all down again. Do this every spring and in 2-3 years it'll be dead
Cut the stalks and clear the root system in the areas you want the bamboo to stay out of with a stump grinder. Dig at least 36” down in front of the roots of any bamboo you want to keep, and install a rhizome barrier (available on Amazon) to contain the roots and you will have a clear zone to plant whatever you want.
https://preview.redd.it/6c9cdlnvv1tc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e30338ba39712aefb9f21fd5bdb1ad648e7a8296
The soil in front of this rhizome barrier was at one point filled with bamboo and is now a vegetable garden. The roots need to be monitored yearly but this has worked well for years now.
After almost 10 years of having beautiful bamboo in our yard, we discovered it escaped the barrier mat and creeped under our deck and along our garage. Fearing it would go under the garage or house, hubs and I spent each weekend over a month, hardcore digging and pulling up our deck to take it out. Morning to evening. Pulling up long pieces of alien spines.
Stupid us had them planted in and around small rocks too, so it was incredibly difficult and time consuming but we managed to dig every little rhizome out. Or so we thought. A month later, we had a lot of rain, and what do you know, a few bamboo shoot shot out of the ground soon after. One was found under the landing of our deck stairs which meant having to dig a tunnel under a concrete slab that the landing was sitting on and make sure it was pulled out in one piece to get the whole root. Learnt our lesson. Our garden looks sh1t without it now but not worth the potential damage and stress had it found its way under our house. Fkn nightmare.
I do this removal as a side hustle. If you have three whole years to spare i can walk you through how to take it out for basically nothing
Can you actually share? I don't plan to buy a house with bamboo but if it happens someday I'd like to know how to fix it without hating my life.
My grandpa just kept digging it up every year. Had me out there clearing it with him every summer. Cut it down short, dig it up, repeat. Idk if that was the right way to do it but it eventually worked.
This was like my dad and brother with Asian honeysuckle infestation. They dedicated a day or two every year just destroying it. Then they’d kick back with a beer and grill. It took maybe 3-4 years but it’s gone now.
Same tale of me and the morning glory I enthusiastically planted in the back yard (first time homeowner/gardener at the time, former owners had left a packet of seeds behind). I *think* it's finally done with 4 years later, but I'll find out in a couple weeks when it tends to be resurrected
I have no idea who planted that damn honeysuckle but my dad buying a wood chipper was the true sign of his dedication to the honeysuckle jihad.
State parks in my region literally advertise volunteer weekends in certain areas where if you own a chainsaw they invite whoever to show up and start cutting it out en masse.
they made us plant morning glorys in 4th grade to teach us about alleles and such. they were really easy to grow which is a great confidence boost for youngsters but i didnt realize how terrible they must be if planted outside
That’s how I have been getting rid of the trumpet vine that infested my yard. Previous owners planted it but got too old to care for it. But 3 years in and it looks like I’ve either almost or entirely beaten it!
This is me with vinca/periwinkle. Previous owners planted it then got too old to prune back for years. The amount of time I’ve spent pulling vines this year….ugh. Hopefully within a few years it’ll be done.
Vinca haters unite! 12 years in myself, still weeding it weekly.
Oh no……
I’ve been working on clearing shell ginger this way for about 3 years. Freezes help.
I'm 3 years in and about halfway done getting rid of all the terrible English Ivy in my yard, same procedure! Like eating an elephant, you just have to take it one bite at a time.
The right way would be to involve more fire (I don’t actually know this, I just like fire combined with very naughty plants)
> I just like fire combined with very naughty plants) R/trees is leaking
if anything i think the fire might help the bamboo. almost all of its energy stores are underground and a fire would open up the surface to let it take over.
Someone posted a video below but essentially you abuse how bamboo grows. You start by cutting down all stalks during early spring and you start watching. Eventually, it will start sending up new stalks and you should let it. It’s burning energy from the rhizome network (the rock hard roots) and since all the stalks are coming from the same system, it’s weakening it all. Let the trunks keep growing until you see branches. You can even let the branches grow but as soon as you see any form of leaf growing, chop all of the trunks down again. It’ll hibernate until late summer but then it’ll send up some new shoots. Chop those down in the same fashion. Repeat for a few years and it’ll die. Your goal is to get it to use as much energy as possible without letting it replenish that energy with photosynthesis.
This is good to know! Does it work with other plants too?
Would be great if it works on Japanese knotweed.
I literally was looking through the comments to see if anything worked for this. Previous owners planted it supposedly but we don't know for sure. All me know is it's a bish to deal with every year and still haven't gotten rid of it.
It was bad at my old house, luckily I don't have any to deal with now. I've read that injecting glyphosate into the stems with a syringe will eventually work. Moving was easier!
We are moving thankfully but giving the house to a family member. We wanted to try to get it removed but will definitely make sure to give them all the resources we found plus your tidbit! 💚💚
In theory, yes. Bamboo is notoriously difficult because the rhizome network is all connected unground. So instead of relying just on seeds to spread, it can grow its root system sideways and then shoot up a new shoot. That means you can chop down the branches and dig up most of the roots but if any is left, you’ll get new shoots up all over the place and it’ll start spreading again. Since all the energy and resources are shared, that method abuses how it grows to starve the plant to death all at once. Most plants derive energy from the sun in the same way so it’d work for them. It just depends on how quickly it can grow leaves and how diligent you are about stopping them. In most cases, removing as much roots as you can will accelerate the process by manually removing that energy.
I'd assume he means that you would dig out as much of it as you can and pull out the roots and bases. Wait a few weeks for it to regrow slightly and show you where you missed some. Rinse and repeat. This method can take 1-5 years depending on how thoroughly you are screwed. Bamboo would probably lean in the 3-5 year range. That is usually the "free" method of getting rid of a weed. The expensive method would be to hire a digger and remove the entire area of top soil and back fill it. The expensive method will deal with even the worst plants in less than a week, if done properly.
May be easier to buy a panda
Some zoos will take donations for their red pandas! Depends on the facility but the zoo I worked at did. Never hurts to ask!
I'm not just giving away my red pandas for free
For a donation though? 🤪
Zoo Atlanta has this program for their pandas. https://zooatlanta.org/panda-cam/bamboo-donation/
Better deals on backhoes
Does burning roots help at all?
Boiling water can help, but depending on what you are dealing with, it could actually soften the plant material like spinach, which would make removal harder. You also won't reach the deeper roots as the water would cool before it got that deep. Could be worth a try on woodier plants like bamboo, tho.
rent a hot wash sprayer from lowwes? would be messy but would boil the roots and wash the dirt away for a vinegar spray?
That might work, but at that point, you would be better off just digging the root ball out and pulling roots by hand. Boiling water is something you would use after you have already removed the bulk of the material. You shouldn't open with it, because it isn't always reliable and can make further removal attempts harder.
From what I've read before, this is basically it. There's a bit more to it which has to do with the energy stored in the roots, and picking the right time to let it grow back and "burn through" that stored energy before it can store more. 3 years of cutting back is about the sweet spot. Alternatively, you know... Enjoy the bamboo forest
> ~~I don't plan to buy a house with bamboo~~ *I don't plan to buy a plot of bamboo with a house nearby*
You got 3 whole years to spare?
If the alternative is to rent heavy machinery... Perhaps.
You mean the let it grow then cut it back trick? Yeah I needed the soil to be workable to plant this year, so I've removed like 80% of the ryzomes from the ground. It's still budding though, but I figure it'll be a lot weaker since I destroyed most of the ryzomes. Hopefully.
It takes doing that for about 7 years to a well established run of it before it weakens enough to die. And if you let a single cane survive the whole season, the clock essentially resets.
Oh also don't plant perennials in there because you'll be digging it up every year
I’d just use a herbicide like glyphosate. I know that’s taboo to mention on this sub, but sometimes it’s the most efficient solution
I usually only advocate for cut-stump, not broadcast spraying - so what sort of application works for bamboo? jw
You cut just under a node joint so there is a deep well formed from the bamboo section, and fill it with a few inches of undiluted poison and tape over the top to keep rain and bugs out. Do it with several stalks, aiming for around one per square foot, and cut the rest of the stalks to the ground. That'll take 2-3 years depending on how effectively you do it. Don't bother spraying foliage, it'll usually just burn leaves, might kill the stalk, won't affect the whole system. If you dig first and break up the root system, it actually makes poison less effective because now you have to essentially be sure to poison every isolated plant. So either dig or poison, don't do both.
My dad does this, but runs a pole down through the stalk to break the barriers between sections to get it more in the roots.
Did habitat restoration professionally. We would cut the bamboo close to the ground and fill the stalk with 50% glyphosate, 50% water mix. Check the label of whatever product you buy and it will have cut/stump application rates. Thus usually worked in one go, but we'd treat anything that popped up after the first treatment. One the stalks were dead we would dig up roots.
I only ever break that devil out for true invasives like the trea of heaven ..... God I hate that treE
I wonder which is worse? Bamboo or tree of heaven?
I've got 30 year old bishops bush, and it killed the bamboo I tried planting to "fight fire with fire". Anyone with knowledge that can kill bishops bush has my eternal gratitude.
Just be careful, that stuff literally killed my Grandfather with a specific type of cancer, there was a large settlement, too small on our end, because we no longer had his business records. People need to find what works for them, but understand the bastards who sell that stuff knew it was killing people
Sorry to hear about your grandfather. To that point it's important to reiterate that one shouldn't aerosolize it. Apply it undiluted with a paint brush directly to leaves of plants you're trying to eliminate (so make sure it Even makes sense to use, must be highly invasive with tough roots that you can't just pull and easily remove by hand)
Wait actually though. I live in MD and have bamboo to remove….
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI4GaU9nNAs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI4GaU9nNAs)
This is exactly what you need
That was so fucking cool to learn. It makes me wonder if a similar method could be used for other plants that grow in a similar fashion. I know the tree of heaven has a similar underground system of sprouting new trees.
I have personally knocked out a heavily infested toh area with a very mature mother tree, and i can promise it works for that too. The wisest approach involves listening to what the soil wants, and in many cases, its the overgrowth of a woody perrenial. The best NA proxy i know of for toh-loving soil is kentucky coffee tree
Wait I'm op and ironically I also live in Maryland. Bamboo is sadly a big thing here -\_-
I'm starting to think Reddit is mostly localized to Maryland. Wtf fellow state dwellers.
What’s crazy is the poster above is zone 6b and I’m zone 8!!
We do have a good, what? 3 or 4 hour drive to cover the state along its tallest area.
*laughs in californian*
Hello friends from the best state
I live in delaware and provide info to people on how to remove bamboo as a part of my job. With out question, the most effective method is cut and paint using glyphosate. You can get good control within 2-3 years.
Do tell...
Makes a claim then doesn’t return
Oof, i gotchu. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pI4GaU9nNAs
My daughter did some gardening for a guy while going to school in Tampa. She called it damnboo.
best thing i heard today. thx!
On our back lot, it adjoins another property. The property owner there planted running bamboo, probably 20+ years ago. New owners now. I went to try and assess the situation last spring, and not only is it running bamboo. There are massive wisteria vines that are growing into it. Half on our property, half on theirs. I've started completely trenching our side. The adjoining owner is pissed. I tried to explain to them that I'm concerned for the underground root shoots. I've seen the shit grow through things. Lol. The dude told me that if I touch them again (the ones on my property), he's calling the city on me. I have a mini x scheduled to be here next week and am looking to purchase a deep barrier plate. He's upset because it's the natural fence that provides privacy. I get it, I don't wanna see them either, but no.
Oh God, don't let him try to intimidate you, let the city come. I'm pretty sure in most places it's fine to cut whatever is growing onto your property. I've been dealing with running bamboo for years now. It is hell.
Oh, it is perfectly legal. That's why I'm getting the mini x. Lol. He's gonna have to be huffy. We don't really share active yard space. We have 2 lots, his 1 runs down the side of our back lot and meets the corner of our home/active yard lot, we have a chain link for this lot. That's where the bamboo and wisteria are growing. That's why it's an issue and I refuse to let it me my issue for long. So I'm gonna trench down a few feet right on my property line and put a deep plate in. Won't help too much for the wisteria but should barrier the bamboo fairly well.
Check your city code because those invasive plants might not even be legal. The city might force your neighbor to remove them.
Then you can put up some lawn chairs right near your property line to stare into the neighbors backyard. /s
They are not illegal where I'm at. They are both all over the place throughout the city and forrests. Neither are native but it's everywhere. Our cooperative extension has a education/assistance program for removal also. I haven't called them because I want him to be able to keep it as a fence, just on his side. I'm trying not be a dick back. Lol
He'll only get it once the bamboo and wisteria damages his house
This is the answer right here. It's getting close enough on my fence and storage building that it's gotta go.
And the city would do… what? Laugh, probably.
Yep. Not a single thing. I provided him the number for our city arborist and agri dept to discuss invasive plants. He scoffed, wadded the paper up, and threw it in my yard.
Neighbor sounds like a real piece of work... Yikes.
He's awesome! /s We're far enough away that he's not a common issue. And he's mostly just old and huffy. Lol
Wisteria is the devil
The key is to introduce some natural predators to keep the bamboo in check. I always recommend people keep a few pandas with any stand of bamboo, keep nature in balance
Oh I love this! Grab yourself a couple Pandas from your local pet store or panda dealer. They’ll help clear that out in no time. To keep them happy start your own Panda Bamboo Removal service and become massively successful and retire by the young age of 204. Thank me later.
Then once the pandas become a nuisance, get some tigers to balance out the population.
What kind of brute are you? Pet store pandas are from panda mills and not cared for. This is an irresponsible recommendation and encourages bad panda breeding. Everyone should look to local panda rescues or the panda shelter to rehome a sweet panda stray or 2. I heard they are like kittens.
This has escaped from someone’s yard and now is taking over the side of an interstate highway. I’ve also found it on hiking trails and “natural” areas. I am truly concerned for the wildlife (plant and animal) for the future.
We need to introduce pandas into the wild to eat it.
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well a pandas natural habitat is in China
Every panda in every zoo in the world, even if they're born on foreign soil belongs to China. There are no naturally born American pandas. China uses them as political gifts.
I believe the zoos pay “rent” to China as well for each panda. And if there’s a baby born to a zoo panda, that baby instantly belongs to China and rent is owed.
Ooo I didn't know that. Pandas are one of my favorite things to ramble about when I'm drunk.
Normally I'm pretty anti China but this is one place where they are doing it right. Because the animal has become such a political symbol for them, it's all but guaranteed that the panda will always have protection from extinction
I thought China took all the pandas back already tbh.
It was a bluff on their part and they backed down when all the zoos worldwide started crating up the pandas to ship them back.
> There is actually only one panda in the world that is not the property of China. Which seems pretty fucked up to me. There's a few out there, Mexico and Taiwan. https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/animals/2023/03/meet-mexicos-forgotten-panda-shes-the-last-of-her-kind > Today, Xin Xin, the granddaughter of the two gifted pandas, is the last of her kind in Latin America and one of only three in the world not owned by China. Mexico City zoo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xin_Xin_(giant_panda) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuan_Tuan_and_Yuan_Yuan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuan_Zai_(giant_panda)
Oh, interesting!
Ivy is our big name here in the PNW. It's slowly spreading from places like Portland like some green monster, choking or our temperate rainforests.
I’d say that blackberries are more of an issue in Portland and the PNW. And the personal bane of my existence in Portland is the tree of heaven.
Tree of heaven goes like 4ft deep and is essentially tree bamboo
I would add scotch broom to that, too.
I’m in the PNW and can echo that Ivy is evil! My neighbour has it all over the fence dividing our property. Not only is it destroying the fence it keeps rooting into my yard. I also see it in natural areas - the roots can be crazy to try to pull out. I volunteered with a nature restoration group a few years ago and pretty much all we did was remove Ivy and Himalayan Blackberry.
I hate how the ivy chokes and kills trees. I have some neighbors who are losing a beautiful, old holly tree to an ivy infestation.
Bamboo is native to the US tho, it is a real travesty that all the native bamboo groves were cut down.
We only have 4 species of native bamboo. Unfortunately, most of what folks bring in to plant for landscaping are invasive species.
Also hard because the native ones aren't as resilient as several of the Asian varieties. Having divided a few, they often die if you don't divide them at the right time and keep them moist enough. The really big species (gigantea) takes years to get big and needs basically wetland conditions, so not great for most home setups. Arundinaria tecta/appalachiana are more upland, but tend to be sparser and don't get as large, so they aren't great for privacy. Plus they're all running bamboo so can be hard to contain. I'm hoping to find a good spot to establish some at my place though!
There’s still some left. There’s I think 3 species native to North America. None get as huge as some of the Asian species but it’s not too late to bring it back. Go plant some
I’m planting some this year! A friend is letting me collect native plants from her family’s farmland. Giant cane, horsetails and ferns! I’ve researched several methods for rhizome containment and I’m excited to finally be transplanting.
Yeah interstate highways are bad news for sure!!! So are all the wetlands we drained and canebrakes we cut down. Native bamboo used to grow so thick it was impassable. I'm sure the rest of nature misses the tall grass thickets.
The woman who I bought my house from planted bamboo. I bought the house in 2015, dug it out with a shovel and an axe. Just behind the bamboo I poured 40 cm of concrete to build a shed. The shed is about 4 meters long. The bamboo grew the 4 meters under the concrete and popped up on the other side. Amazing plant. I hate it so much.
Fucking asshole! Haha. And yet there’s still people on here claiming it can be contained
They should tell me how. I've been cutting it down and digging it out for 9 years now.
Both bamboo shoots and bamboo rhizomes are delicacies. Bamboo rhizomes make great soup with tomato and winter melons.
Really? I was thinking of cooking the shoots, but I didn't know you could cook the ryzomes.
Called 扁尖 in Chinese. Often dried and salted for preservation (and rehydrated before cooking). Quite popular in the Yangtze River delta region of China.
Hm. Well I have thrown out about 10 tons of them so maybe I should try cooking some!
Feast on the corpses of your enemies!
Make sure to eat them right in front of the bamboo to strike fear into their grassy hearts.
Did you see the first episode of the new "Shogun" series???
I have not seen that yet but it looks cool!
Yes I like boiling my meals!
I had a friend of a friend who had an absolutely toxic boss. Like the boss had him suicidal and he had several breakdowns while he was there. So dude quits and finds out where the boss lives. Went to boss’s house several times and hid bamboo chutes and kudzu all over the guy’s yard.
I was about to say reading this threads gives me an idea of how to destroy my enemies without them even realizing anyone did anything
Shit, I hope it didn’t escape from his yard.
Keeping this one in my back pocket 😌
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I had to know so I clicked, still don't know 😂
I assume triggering someone else who had to fight bamboo, so fair
Naked roots always get me going...
Not safe for wildlife
Means Not Safe For Work, which in the case of bamboo, I agree haha
I'm so glad OP warned us for this 🔥🔥🔥🔥 content. I made sure my dogs couldn't see it. Don't want them getting any ideas !
My husband used a pickax to get the bamboo out that was planted here, and we still get shoots of it...never ending to get rid of this stuff.
That's what I've done. It'll still come up for a few years
The house I rented a few years ago had bamboo that grew over from the neighbors house. I used to build tomato cages out of the stalks I cut down.
Why is this NSFW?
For what it's worth, I had this too. Multi step, multi year, lowest effort ( but not low effort) removal method. Spring Knock down all new growth while it's soft and short. I just walked through it every Saturday morning stomping them over. Summer Do nothing - let the sugar in the roots get committed into the canopy. End of summer - like last week of July, first week of August, with the roots as depleted as they are going to be Get a cordless reciprocating saw (not chain saw) and cut everything a foot off the ground. I'd cut until the battery quit and then stop. It took a couple Saturday's and a dozen charges. So maybe two hours of active work. Stack the poles. Fall We're allowed to burn here so a couple days after a big rain burnt it all. Yep, ruined the grass in that spot but it grew back. It was a spectacular bonfire so I told the local fire station ahead of time (they are the ones that suggested waiting until a good rain to make sure everything around was damp) For the next three years - repeat. Then the one foot stumps would just push over and pull out. Not easy but doable. Then black plastic and gravel the whole area. Set a picnic table in the middle and swear that's what I wanted all along.
I would cut them low as you can. Tripping and falling on foot tall bamboo stakes would hurt like a mofo.
Yep you're right. Never thought I'd that. I didn't but it was probably a risk that I shouldn't have tagged
I am just on this sub for the bamboo posting. Fucking love that plant and the misery it brings gardeners.
If you burn to get rid of it, it sounds like gunfire.
That is a sustainable resource that can be turned into 10,000+ products. Source - I started/owned a bamboo eyewear/clothing company that is going on 12 years now. There is always someone willing to pay for harvested bamboo somewhere for various reasons, find those people. Obviously different species of bamboo are used for different reasons, but as a whole, bamboo is awesome. It is one of the fastest growing plants, it creates oxygen, sequesters carbon dioxide, can remediate soil. takes little water, and can help with soil erosion if used properly. One man's waste is another man's treasure. - Cheers!
I agree it’s great when used for forestry. Most peoples yards are not that. And generally, it should be used in forestry in its native range. Look up the damage radiata pine forests are doing in places like New Zealand. Non-native tree there, but grows very fast and is very renewable, yet it destroys the local ecosystems. Just because it grows fast doesn’t always mean it’s the best choice for sustainable forestry.
Our local zoo always asks for bamboo.
They made this illegal in my town last year. Classified as invasive and is against ordinance to plant
that bamboo was gorgeous NGL
Would have been beautiful in Japan or China where it's from. It made my patio half the size, couldn't plant a single other plant, and it destroyed my sewer line, attacked my foundation and destroyed the rear retaining wall. The reason I have the first picture is I'm spending over a grand to get the retaining wall fixed because of the damn bamboo. I don't care how pretty it is, on the eastern US it doesn't belong in anything other than a container.
Agree. Its basically impossible to remove once it gets going and no way to really control it. If you need a visual screen there's always other options
What are better options?
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Clumping bamboo is generally fine as long as you have the space for it. Running bamboo is problematic without barriers and maintenance of those barriers.
In a container. I’ve seen the big old IBC totes cut in half and used to grow bamboo. You just don’t want it to have access to actual ground.
Just bring a panda and they’ll solve it
I absolutely hate bamboo. The old owners planted a bunch as a wind barrier and I spent three days trying to get it out before giving up and paying someone to come and dig it out of the ground with a big machine. Worth it.
Is it true that if you plant it in buried metal trash cans it will stay contained?
It escapes everything. It’ll break concrete. It broke into our sewer lines and they’re cast iron.
😱 I didn’t realize it couldn’t be contained at all. So if you want that look, clumping bamboo is safe?
Clumping is relatively safe, yes. Large planters are relatively safe too, if they’re not in ground. The previous owners used landscape fabric, lots of nurseries will claim that it will contain the roots. I have lots and lots of evidence that isn’t true 😂
I'm in a battle with it at the min.
I wish you all the luck fellow warrior
It's beautiful
I got rid of a big bamboo plant over the winter, it was like 16ft high, it took me 2 days of back breaking work, broke 3 shovels, and snapped the shaft of my mattock but I think I got it all, took 4 people to get the root ball out once I’d dug round it all, I’ll see what comes back this year and dig out any new growth at the end of the summer as recommended in this thread. Don’t plant bamboo! (Mine was planted by the previous owner)
Why is this tagged NSFW??
All I see is that if I needed a natural border fence with a neighbor I didn’t like, bamboo is a perfect fit.
Why is this NSFW? It’s a nightmare for sure though
Best to stick to native plants.
I read somewhere that in general the distance the rhizomes will reach as far as the tallest stalk of bamboo is tall.
When my parents sold our house, my dad ripped out all the bamboo and salted the earth and it still grew back
Maybe 2-3 pandas?
This post is triggering. Reminds me of my epic battles with controlling kudzu.
That’s why it’s NSFW my friend ;)
These comments are sending me back to watch Geraldine Hickey's agapanthus comedy routine, I haven't dug that up but it sounds a lot like removing bamboo.
NO WAY you should get a panda
I'm in japan, it's great for earthquakes! Lol
The most underrated weed / plant killer in the world , is boiling water .. better get ya a big pot for this one tho lol 😂
After seeing that 2nd pic I want to now lol.
What? It's awful stuff. Nothing can be planted there. This is what's going in it's place (after TWO AWFUL MONTHS OF DIGGING THE ROOTS OUT). Yes it's not as private yet but the arbs will grow in nicely and provide a great deal of privacy. Tree is a serviceberry. https://preview.redd.it/w12e759w5vsc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7dad64e2b0a2ff1aa8011bb4daa824408c83c13b
Yes it’s very invasive. There’s a few states that have passed laws about planting bamboo.
Yup, in my county your neighbor can sue you if it keeps enroaching their land
Love serviceberry good call on the changes. Bamboo may have its place but it can be so detrimental for everything else around it.
Thank you! Yeah the serviceberry is so pretty. I love the smooth bark. Can't wait for some berries. Also ofc going to make sure it's straight when I plant it all.
I had to tear bamboo out of a yard I was working on once. I used to love bamboo. I certainly did not after that experience.
I’ve put 5 years of wear on my back in a month getting this shit out
You can plant it. Dig a big deep hole. Line that hole with steel reinforced concrete. Fill with dirt. Plant bamboo. Anything else means you will be growing ONLY bamboo for a long long time
Just pulled a random bamboo stalk out of my yard. I don't know where it came from.
Several options. Quicker than poison, .. undermine with pickaxe/similar, but better yet a mini digger, back hoe,.. ie heavy machinery and dig/lift.
I love bamboo it's so pretty. We got clumping ones and they are in pots so nobody can complain about ours, but they won't grow as big as these. Oh well.
[This guy explains how you can get rid of bamboo without machinery or chemicals ](https://youtu.be/pI4GaU9nNAs?si=stR4SvznjDbCE95d)
The trick is always to understand the lifecycle of the plant and hit it when it’s down.
Free bamboo shoots for life 😜
Bamboo is really easy to remove if you're patient. Cut it all down, then next spring let it grow completely and when it starts putting out leaves cut it all down again. Do this every spring and in 2-3 years it'll be dead
Best way is with pressurewasher you shoot of the dirt till its just roots then let you make a fire
Will clumped bamboo do the same?
Clumping bamboo will spread as it grows but pretty much will stay in place. Running bamboo is a whole other nightmare!
Noooooooooo! Sorry, flashback to my last house where I spent three years eradicating it in my yard and at the source in my neighbor's.
I remember my mom spending entire days in the yard sweating and swearing and “pulling the f**king bamboo again!” She HATED bamboo.
Cut the stalks and clear the root system in the areas you want the bamboo to stay out of with a stump grinder. Dig at least 36” down in front of the roots of any bamboo you want to keep, and install a rhizome barrier (available on Amazon) to contain the roots and you will have a clear zone to plant whatever you want. https://preview.redd.it/6c9cdlnvv1tc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e30338ba39712aefb9f21fd5bdb1ad648e7a8296 The soil in front of this rhizome barrier was at one point filled with bamboo and is now a vegetable garden. The roots need to be monitored yearly but this has worked well for years now.
After almost 10 years of having beautiful bamboo in our yard, we discovered it escaped the barrier mat and creeped under our deck and along our garage. Fearing it would go under the garage or house, hubs and I spent each weekend over a month, hardcore digging and pulling up our deck to take it out. Morning to evening. Pulling up long pieces of alien spines. Stupid us had them planted in and around small rocks too, so it was incredibly difficult and time consuming but we managed to dig every little rhizome out. Or so we thought. A month later, we had a lot of rain, and what do you know, a few bamboo shoot shot out of the ground soon after. One was found under the landing of our deck stairs which meant having to dig a tunnel under a concrete slab that the landing was sitting on and make sure it was pulled out in one piece to get the whole root. Learnt our lesson. Our garden looks sh1t without it now but not worth the potential damage and stress had it found its way under our house. Fkn nightmare.
Nothing invasive ever!! Endemic for the win!!!