Invasive Bamboo roots under concrete how to remove with herbicide?

Question

We have the bamboo roots running under the concrete going to our gunite swimming pool. I have the roots isolated and I cannot get under the cement, which herbicide do I use? and how do I completely kill the roots?

Answer 1

Any herbicide with Roundup's active ingredient Glyphosate .

GOOD LUCK...

Compilation..of ideas...Hope one works for you..

One idea:

cut it down to the ground ,,,and lower...(drench with roundup) then pour six inches of concrete over it. Not growing through & it has been two years

Removing a Running Bamboo

http://www.americanbamboo.org/GeneralInf...

If new shoots of bamboo are coming up all over your yard, it is a running bamboo. To get rid of it, there are four steps:

1. Cut it off.

2. Cut it down.

3. Water the area.

4. Cut it down again.

1. Cut it off. All of the culms (stalks) of bamboo in a clump or grove are interconnected underground by rhizomes (underground stems) unless you have cut them by digging a ditch or cutting a line with a spade. A bamboo grove is usually one single plant, not a group of plants. Many people have the impression that every bamboo culm is a separate “tree.”

If the bamboo in your yard has come across from your neighbor’s yard, separate your grove from his by cutting the connecting rhizomes, which are usually quite shallow. If you don’t, and his part is healthy and vigorous, the rhizomes in your part will still be supported by the photosynthesis in the leaves of his part, and your efforts will be in vain. On the other hand, if you do manage to kill your part with a herbicide you may also kill his part. Lawsuits or at least hard feelings can result.

Therefore, be sure to isolate the portion you want to keep from the portion you want to kill. Cutting rhizomes with a spade or a saw will do the trick if you do it every year. If the growth is old, you may need to use a mattock or a digging bar the first time. Digging a ditch and putting in a barrier* is a more permanent solution.

2. Cut it down

Cut the grove to the ground. All of it. If there is any part you want to keep, see (1).

3. Water and fertilize the area, to cause new growth.

4. Cut it down again. And again.

New shoots will come up from the rhizomes. Break them off or cut them off with pruning shears. Keep doing this until no more shoots come up. This will exhaust the energy stored in the rhizomes underground. Without green leaves to photosynthesize and produce new energy, they will no longer be able to send up new shoots. The rhizomes will be left behind, but will rot away.

That’s all you need to do. You need a saw, a pair of pruning shears, and patience, and maybe a spade and/or mattock. The widely advertised herbicides don’t work well on bamboo, probably because so much of the plant is underground. Since cutting the bamboo down will do the trick, and you have to cut the bamboo down anyway to remove it from your yard, herbicides are a waste of time and money in this case.

*Barriers:

To prevent a running bamboo from spreading, a “rhizome barrier” is essential. A barrier two or three feet deep is effective. It should be slanted outward at the top so that when the rhizomes hit the barrier they will bend upwards. A barrier does not stop a running rhizome; it only deflects it. The barrier should project an inch or two above ground level. Check the barrier once a year, and cut off rhizomes that arch over the top.

Barriers can be concrete, or metal, or plastic. The usual recommendation is high-density polypropylene, 40 mil or heavier, glued or taped at junctions, or clamped with stainless-steel clamps. This material comes in rolls, or as hinged sections, and is available from some landscape suppliers and bamboo nurseries, frequently termed root barrier. More elaborate barriers with corner posts that hold the material at the proper angle are also available.

A pond or stream can also act as an effective barrier.

Bamboo rhizomes will jump an improperly installed barrier. However, properly installed, it will at least deflect the rhizomes so they are visible above ground and can be removed before they have the chance to spread outward. It is important that the barrier extend several inches above the soil line for this purpose.

A ditch or stream is also a useful containment option. However, it is necessary to monitor the grove once a year, trimming off any renegade rhizomes. In some cases simply mowing the new shoots regularly or even kicking them over will suffice.

the most accepted method of containment is to excavate a trench 30 inches deep and line it with “rhizome barrier”, a heavy plastic sheeting designed to control aggressive plants. Most are 40 mil thick, but a custom 60-mil product can be made  (60 mil is about one-twentieth of an inch).

The pieces must be clamped together with special metal straps and bolts, the side facing the bamboo should be angled so that the roots are always deflected up (if its leaning the wrong way, the roots can get under the barrier, especially in loose fertile soil), there should be a lip above ground, and you should always be pruning back any culms that come up right next to the barrier. And that’s just the short take—here’s a link to more detailed containment directions from Ned’s excellent website: http://www.bamboogarden.com/barrier.htm.  (Note: Just about any specialized bamboo nursery will carry rhizome barrier and fasteners, and—perhaps most important—be able to recommend professionals to do the actual work. I get tired just thinking about it!)

You can also contain running bamboo with a steam or other form of water that does not include a liner (they’ll sneak under it). A wide, deep ditch filled with gravel will also stop them, as will a real road—but they’ll sneak under a typical asphalt driveway. You could also pour concrete. “Bamboo Ric” Venzie and I have often discussed using sheet metal or corrugated roofing plastic as a kind of Cowboy Rhizome Barrier, but Ned and Ric both warn that the pieces would have to be fastened together perfectly to prevent the rhizomes from sneaking through.

Eradicating running bamboo is tough.  Take a good look at that advancing grove—it’s actually one big plant, all growing out of one giant rhizome. The backhoe option is a good one; use it to remove every blessed piece of rhizome, which of course you won’t be able to do. But any new culms that sprout up from rhizome shreds will be individuals; you should be able to dig these little orphans up and be done. But be warned; if it’s coming over from a neighbor, you’ll still need a rhizome barrier to stop future incursions.

If you have the patience, Ric and many others report success starving the roots. Cut the entire grove to the ground, preferably beginning in the Spring, when the rhizome has the least inherent energy. Let it re-grow until leaves appear on the culms, then cut it again. And again…. Producing culms takes a lot of energy out of that big honkin’ rhizome underground, but the culms can’t collect solar energy to feed it—only leaves can. Ric says you’ll see each successive run getting weaker, until finally, what he calls ‘the last gasp’ will appear—a final desperate spurt of growth that looks more like zoysia grass than bamboo. That’s the time to soak the area with a 20% vinegar or other intense non-chemical herbicide (see last week’s Q of the Week for all the details) and finish it off.  Ric says he’s been able to eradicate groves this way in 3 or 4 years. If that’s too long for you, I got two words: “backhoe”. OK—its actually one word.

detailed directions on long-term grove eradication for the American Bamboo web site. Here’s the link: http://www.americanbamboo.org/GeneralInf...

Folks,

I have lived through the horror of bamboo growing out of control and got rid of it. First by doing all the wrong things, then by understanding how it grows and conquering it.

I panicked and tried Roundup, including cutting stalks and drilling down to the roots and pouring the concentrated roundup directly down to the roots. This took much time and didn't work, plus I broke a special 14 inch drill bit I had bought just for that purpose.

I tried digging it out, but there was so much, I couldn't go fast enough to get it all, and didn't have enough time or energy to spend on it.

Also, within 6 months all the roots that I had dug out were replaced by new roots put out by other stalks, and they grew in exactly the same place as the old roots, because I had loosened up the earth where I had dug them previously.

During all this, I noticed that every single one of the plants were connected together by the roots. No shoot was an island, it was connected to another underground, whether 5 inches, or 20 feet away. I also learned that if the roots come up out of the ground to jump over another root or obstruction near the surface of the ground, that exposed root was green. I learned that even these green roots were photosynthesizing and feeding the root. By the way, I had put a bunch of the roots with big clods of dirt still cling to them in a large Rubbermaid garbage can and put a top on it, sealing it. 6 months later, I opened the can, and found about 40 new shoots about a foot long growing inside the can - in complete darkness.

I used 2 combined methods to get rid of it, but one was labor intensive, and the easier way will work, though probably not quite as quickly.

They key is the root. It must be starved. That's the only way to kill it that I found.

First, I bought some little plastic flags like you see used to mark where electrical or phone lines are buried under ground. I marked where all the growing canes were. Next, I cut down every single solitary cane. I cut it at or slightly below ground level by using a set of large lopers. I don't mean some of the canes, or most of the canes, I mean every single one. This is very important. The mistake I had kept making was to try to kill one area of the cane, but other areas would feed that areas root, and it would keep sprouting or gro

Answer 2

Bamboo is a grass and multiplies very fast. You have to cut all of it, wait for the new shoots and spray it with a selective herbicide. We use Round-up or Clean-up here in the Philippines.