We are talking about bamboo – it looks decorative, it grows quickly… But if you don’t direct it in time, it will weed your entire plot.
Bamboo has been appearing in Czech gardens in recent years. This exotic plant has its advantages – it is evergreen, decorative and can create a 2-meter wall that ensures your privacy. But bamboo is not like bamboo! Some types of bamboo are unproblematic, others too invasive (spreading). That’s why gardeners often talk about “good” and “bad” bamboo. What is the difference between them?
Bad and good bamboo
Among the “good” bamboos is, for example, the bushy Fargesia bamboo, which does not spread anywhere and creates new shoots only around the basic bunch. That is why it is often used as a variant of a hedge. The exact opposite is the “evil” bamboo Phyllostachys. Its rhizomes are known to grow underground up to 2 meters from the parent plant, so they can emerge practically anywhere. “And that’s a problem, especially if they spread to the neighbors. Eradicating it then is a matter of several years,” warns the American gardening website The Spruce.
Bet on variety
For this reason, you should check the variety when buying bamboo. And if you buy an invasive (spreading) species, it is necessary to immediately demarcate its space with anti-root foil. If you don’t, its underground rhizomes will flood the entire garden and surrounding area. “Purchase a special, highly resistant root barrier and bury it around the plant to a depth of 60-65 centimeters,” advises The Spruce website, adding that if there is a pond or other body of water around the bamboo, you need to work more thoroughly because the rhizomes literally grow like lightning. To prevent them from getting further than you want, it is advisable to use foil in a wider strip, up to one meter wide.
Roots under control
If your bamboo has spread outside the habitat, do not wait for anything and get rid of it manually. How to do it: Use bush shears (or a chainsaw) to cut off all above-ground parts of the bamboo. Then take a spade, possibly a mattock (ie a garden fork with an axe), a crowbar or a root saw and dig up all the underground rhizomes, which can be up to several meters in extent. “Try to pull them all out. Because if anything is left in the soil, the bamboo will sprout again and you’ll have to go through the whole ordeal again,” warns The Spruce website.
