Time for a chop

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Symon asked me why I hadn't blogged in awhile, and I mentioned it was because A, I'm super busy at the moment, and B, I don't have anything exciting to talk about. So I decided it was time to do go on google and find something! Here goes...

When I was tidying up my Onerahi house a few weeks ago so I could get some tenants in, I discovered some bamboo in the front garden that I thought I'd got rid of 6 months ago. Now I know bamboo is a pain in the neck and it takes a lot to get rid of but here's some really cool boring facts I found out:


There are some 2,000 species of bamboo which can be virtually indistinguishable from each other, but which do grow in a wide range of climates. Depending on your location, there are species that will grow in temperatures that drop as low as -20F. If you start out with the right type of bamboo for your temperatures, soil composition and moisture, you can soon be enjoying a lush, "exotic" greenery that will grow and spread faster than you could ever have imagined. Bamboo plants grow on rhizomes, a network of roots that run along under the ground, and put up new shoots to start other clumps of culms, or stalks. The clump will grow to its maximum height, usually within the first season, and then will sprout additional branches. That first season can be quite a surprise though, when you see an eight inch diameter stalk reaching 60 ft. In scientifically controlled conditions, stalks have been known to grow as much as 47 inches in one day. However in the average garden or the wild, 12 inches a day would be closer to the norm.

12 inches a day! Crikey! No wonder it's a menace in the garden. While on my google travels I also found this site here that is actually dedicated to promoting and growing bamboo. Why anyone in their right mind would actually want to promote it I don't know but each to their own I guess.

So to conclude this riveting post, here are some top tips from the Yates website to keeping your bamboo under control or getting rid of it altogether. Wish I'd read this before I did my garden! Enjoy.


- To stop bamboo spreading uncontrollably, plant bamboo pieces for your screen or hedge in a trench lined on either side with sheet metal or hardboard. The barrier need not go deeper than about 45cm as bamboos are shallow rooted but may spread naturally by underground stems or rhizomes.
- To eradicate bamboo that has got out of hand, cut the canes down to ground level, and spray them with a strong solution of glyphosate herbicide, such as Roundup or Zero. Any suckers which emerge later should be similarly treated, but be careful not to let the spray drift onto other plants.

27 comments:

PaisleyJade said...

Wow - Jase will be so proud.. and I hope Symon reads this post so he can get some tips as to how to rid us of the bamboo forest in our bush.

Rachel Kate said...

Tehe Symz can stop hassling me about putting a new blog up now :)

Symon said...

Out of all the billions of interesting things in the universe to write about, you write a post about... Bamboo?

Symon said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Symon said...

A serious comment this time... I read once that as a form of torture, Japanese used to tie victims horizonally to four stakes and plant a bamboo shoot under them. The eventual result? You guess it... human kabab. Don't know if it's true of not, but I just googled it and am pretty sure it's fair dinkum. ( I knew there was something interesting about bamboo).

Rachel Kate said...

Hay at least I posted about something :) even if it was a trivial topic such as bamboo tehe and at the time when I was getting tenants into my house, it was a big deal. so yeah. that's my theory and I'm sticking with it!

Rachel Kate said...

human kebabs huh.... Did you find out at all if they ate them afterwards?

Stephen said...

"I would like to dedicate this riveting post to my betrothed, Alice."

*10 days later*

"She dumped me :("

Stephen said...

Lol, sym. I've heard of that torture method too.

Rachel Kate said...

hahaha you think this post is that depressing that someone would break up with you over it Jon? Best not be writing about petunias and dedicating it to Laura then...

Stephen said...

*tears "no.9" off to-do list*

N..n..noo that was nothing. It was for my horticultu..agriculture exam!

Rachel Kate said...

just deliver the package to Lord Nelson ok

Miss Elizabeth said...

*ckoke* she's breaking up with me over a petunia! *wipes eyes and tries to blink away the rest of the tears* I knew it should have been a lily

Miss Elizabeth said...

I somewhat have my doubts about Yates' *strong solution of roundup* tho. I would suggest painting it on straight or even using somethin stronger.

that aside... A Phenomenal Post Katie

Stephen said...

*hissss* she's breaking up with me.. *hissssss* sorry what was that?? I can't hear you, you're breaaaaking uppppppppppp

*static*

Stephen said...

Lol georgina, you actually read the whole thing?? I'm surprised you didn't demand 15 minutes of your life back.

Stephen said...

Snax, you should turn off word verifications. It's what all the cool cats are doing. (me)

Symon said...

How come you get a hundred comments on a post about bamboo, and I get just one on my latest?
:-{

Rachel Kate said...

it's all about what you post symz... post something as trivial and boring as bamboo and you're bound to get 100 comments just so they can have the pleasure of livening things up!

Rachel Kate said...

thanks for that georgie :) I've got a better idea for how to get rid of bamboo tho... it's called get your guy mates to do it! tehe no?

Stephen said...

It's called a flamethrower

Rachel Kate said...

it's called what to do with daylight

Miss Elizabeth said...

It's called come to flame tonight

Rachel Kate said...

It's called file your tax return tonight

Stephen said...

It's called file your nails tonight

Miss Elizabeth said...

It's called jump in the nile tonight

Anonymous said...

nice post. thanks.

 
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