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Bamboo is a fast-growing and recurring plant, which is why destroying it involves a lot of work and effort. You can find out which methods are available and when you should resort to chemical agents in our home article.
Eradicating bamboo – how to do it without chemicals
First of all, here are a few good ways to destroy your bamboo without chemicals:
- Digging: This option involves a lot of time and effort and only makes sense for small areas. You have to use a spade to dig up each individual plant, especially the roots. The roots have spread underground, so you will have to keep digging up individual plants. It is more effective and more durable if you dig up the entire area and remove all root residues.
- Note: Bamboo does not have real roots but so-called rhizomes. These are underground shoots that spread independently and ensure that the bamboo grows back regularly.
- Mowing: If you don’t want to dig up the individual plants and rhizomes, you can also mow them down with a lawn mower. Thicker plants should be cut off in advance with secateurs.
If you mow the young shoots regularly, the plant will be damaged over time and growth will decline. - Tip: Instead of a lawn mower or spade, you can also use an electric tiller. Use this to cut through the rhizomes and dig up the top layer of soil at the same time. The work is much easier and does not have to be repeated as often.
- Nutrient deprivation: Bamboo also needs nutrients, without which even the most resistant plant cannot grow. A simple but long-lasting trick is to cover the bamboo with a black, waterproof sheet. This prevents sunlight from penetrating, rainwater from reaching the plants and oxygen is also kept out. For this to work, you need to attach the tarpaulin firmly and, above all, very close to the ground.
- Note: This method will also damage the lawn, but it is a simple and above all ecological way to destroy the bamboo. Leave the tarpaulin in place for at least a month or even up to three months. After this time, you can replant the lawn.
Destroy bamboo – use chemicals
If you don’t have time to work in the garden or the above advice doesn’t work for you, you can use chemicals.
You can find out which ones are suitable here:
- Weedkillers: Bamboo can be damaged with weedkillers so that the plants die after a few treatments and do not sprout again. However, the timing of the application is particularly important. You should only apply the weedkiller to freshly cut shoots; anything else will have no effect.
- Tip: The effect is enhanced if you cut the bamboo as short as possible in winter. The cold temperatures will already have damaged it by then, so you can use the weed killer more successfully in spring.
- Root killer: Larger bamboo canes with correspondingly large roots can be controlled with a root killer. Apply it according to the respective description and even large rhizomes will be removed within a few months.
- Note: Only use chemical agents that are suitable for use in the garden. If your bamboo is near or in water, you must follow the instructions on the packaging. Not every product may be used in water. If used incorrectly, you may destroy the living organisms in the water. Other plants may also be damaged.
