Clearing Bamboo

[beast 1,884]

advice please gentlemen! (and ladies!)

 

my cottage had been empty for some years before i moved in, and after 2 years i have now sorted the building out, the sheds and most of the garden. but i am having hell with bamboo! there is an area about 10 yards by 10 yards where someone has previously planted some bamboo, and the stalks are up to 15 feet high in places, and the roots are like iron, twisted into great knots and impossible to dig (i've tried, took a whole day to dig a trench a foot deep and about a foot wide and about five feet long, couldnt use a shovel had to use an axe and a pair of loppers).

 

i got a mate to cut the whole lot down a few days ago, and i plan to spray the area with roundup, then rotavate it to get the roots out, what do you think? any alternative suggestions gratefully received!!

[forest of dean redneck 11,194]

What sort of bamboo is it,go to a garden centre and you pay £50 for a large tub of it,if you could dig some 5/6 ft high clumps and pot it,you could make some money on ebay/preloved.

[Tiercel 6,986]

advice please gentlemen! (and ladies!)

 

i got a mate to cut the whole lot down a few days ago, and i plan to spray the area with roundup, then rotavate it to get the roots out, what do you think? any alternative suggestions gratefully received!!

That should ensure they come back nice and strong. The council here are spraying Japanese knot weed, every spring they go around with the weed killer and spray the young plants. Next year they are spraying the same young plants. I am not sure what weed killer they are using but it does not seem to be effective.

 

A chap on our allotments had a plot on the edge of the allotment and the knot weed was encroaching from outside his plot. He used round-up the first weeks of September to good effect. the theory was that as the sap was dropping from the plants it took the weed killer with it and the systemic nature of the weed killer killed the roots of the Knot weed over the winter.

 

Perhaps it would work the same for the bamboo?

 

TC

[beast 1,884]

i'm pretty sure its SASA PALMATA. might be worth potting up a bit, see if i can flog it, but there is SO MUCH!!!!

[beast 1,884]

 

advice please gentlemen! (and ladies!)

 

i got a mate to cut the whole lot down a few days ago, and i plan to spray the area with roundup, then rotavate it to get the roots out, what do you think? any alternative suggestions gratefully received!!

That should ensure they come back nice and strong. The council here are spraying Japanese knot weed, every spring they go around with the weed killer and spray the young plants. Next year they are spraying the same young plants. I am not sure what weed killer they are using but it does not seem to be effective.

 

A chap on our allotments had a plot on the edge of the allotment and the knot weed was encroaching from outside his plot. He used round-up the first weeks of September to good effect. the theory was that as the sap was dropping from the plants it took the weed killer with it and the systemic nature of the weed killer killed the roots of the Knot weed over the winter.

 

Perhaps it would work the same for the bamboo?

 

TC

 

 

i had to cut it down as it was blocking the light to the whole of one side of the house, but i did worry that it would return with added vigour if i didnt follow up the cutting. i really need the roots out i think, and wonder if a rotavator is the best option?

[blackmaggie 3,375]

you need to get all the root system out has its roots spreads far a rotavator only goes down so far a bamboo root goes alot deeper you may need a mini digger i know it sounds over kill but its the only way you can be sure all the root system is all out it does spread like wild fire if left

[beast 1,884]

certainly i have dug/chopped out roots over a foot deep, so maybe a otavator wont be deep enough (i've never used one before). what if i rotavated, then turfed over the the top, then kept cutting the grass back hard so the new bamboo shoots kept getting chopped down, would it be able to cope with this treatment over a long period? this works against nettle, bramble thistle etc

[vanman1 411]

Mate unfortunately you gota get the roots out, no other choice it will come back otherwise.My advice would be to dig round it then break into smaller clumps with a bar or axe,i warn you now its bloody hard work,if you have that much it would pay you to hire a mini digger about £90 down my way, but will save you alot of work and your be sure to get it all!! Good luck.

[beast 1,884]

some food for thought there gents, thank you.

[j j m 6,483]

ive just dug some out for my sister last week ,you need to get right down to the root its hard work

[johnny boy68 11,725]

Cut the bamboo close to the root system and inject round up straight down into the root system, when the roots die off dig them out best you can and put some old carpet/tarpaulin down over them, no light= no growth(in theory).

 

Have used the same system with knot weed and had results.

[spade 224]

 

advice please gentlemen! (and ladies!)

 

i got a mate to cut the whole lot down a few days ago, and i plan to spray the area with roundup, then rotavate it to get the roots out, what do you think? any alternative suggestions gratefully received!!

That should ensure they come back nice and strong. The council here are spraying Japanese knot weed, every spring they go around with the weed killer and spray the young plants. Next year they are spraying the same young plants. I am not sure what weed killer they are using but it does not seem to be effective.

 

A chap on our allotments had a plot on the edge of the allotment and the knot weed was encroaching from outside his plot. He used round-up the first weeks of September to good effect. the theory was that as the sap was dropping from the plants it took the weed killer with it and the systemic nature of the weed killer killed the roots of the Knot weed over the winter.

 

Perhaps it would work the same for the bamboo?

 

TC

 

Then the council don;t know what they are doing, the recognised method of dealing with Japanese knotweed is by stem injection.