Bamboo in Llandovery & How It Can Take Over

Bamboo has been gradually growing in appeal for a few UK homeowners within the last ten years, nonetheless, unknown to many it is an active and fast-growing plant that is really very difficult to contain and also control. If anyone has or believes you have Bamboo in Llandovery at that point you should get advice from an expert such as South Wales Knotweed who may suggest you your best course of action in order to make sure that it will not grow out of control.

Bamboo is known and liked for its attractive appearance and frequently its fast growth which offers personal privacy in overlooked gardens in cities, towns and suburban areas numerous house owners plant it without realising its speedy growth and capacity to spread and take control of other vegetation. You need to be very wary of planting it or taking on a building where it exists as it is now understood that many varieties of bamboo are extremely invasive and extremely tough to manage.

The UK Invasive Weed Control Industry is being called on increasingly more to remove and manage bamboo where it has been planted at a residential or commercial property without knowing the way it will quite likely take control of, or perhaps where it has actually extended from a neighbouring property. They have pointed out, that intrusive bamboo is really coming to be a major predicament for British homeowners who may not have understood its growth rate and its invasiveness if not thoroughly controlled. In many cases, the ‘running’ bamboo varieties can extend up to 30ft underground in addition to their substantial above-ground growth.

A number of mortgage lenders in the UK and The RICS (The Royal Insitute Of Chartered Surveyors) are actually remarkably averse to lending on a property where Japanese Knotweed is present or has been present, and more and more, are now becoming aware that bamboo is also a huge problem however is still unrecognised by numerous homeowners as an invasive weed that may grow out of control if not planted correctly and managed.

Bamboo seeds can still easily be bought on the internet or from garden centres throughout the UK and this is actually contributing to the problem that property owners are still uninformed regarding the consequences of planting and not managing it. This frequently leads to it growing out of control and consuming the other plants and vegetation in a garden and perhaps even spreading to other homeowners’ gardens and land.

Green Leaf Remediation have seen a significant surge in the number of enquiries being received from apprehensive property owners who have sown bamboo and by mistake made it possible for the plant to grow out of control. Our UK weed experts will assess the growth and inform you of our ideal management and eradication solutions giving you the assurance that it will not take over your garden. Get in touch with us on 01269 591651 right away and our team can easily arrange a totally free, and no-obligation site survey.

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Bamboo Questions & Answers

Is Bamboo a prohibited plant in the UK?

Bamboo isn’t currently classified as an invasive plant in the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and there are absolutely no restrictions when growing it, however, the weed control industry is advising that bamboo can be as unpredictable as Japanese Knotweed with the same potential to disperse, quickly grow and infest huge areas of soil.

Certainly, there have been increasingly more recent claims from homeowners that have taken legal action against neighbours and properties about them where their bamboo has been permitted to disperse onto their residential properties and turn into a major concern for them. There are actually various varieties of the bamboo plant and some are much more intrusive and harmful than others.

What types of Bamboo exist?

Both the clumping and running types, possess substantial underground root and rhizome systems, making them exceptionally very difficult to control and extract without making use of an invasive plant specialist like South Wales Japanese Knotweed.

Running Bamboo is the type that extends rapidly over as well as underground. It disperses long, lateral rhizomes (root system), which are able to often reach up to 30ft from the primary plant. This results in the plant quickly spreading with new shoots and growth developing in new locations or onto other land or property causing disruption everywhere.

Because of the distance running bamboo can spread out, it has been said that it can have the potential to become more destructive than Japanese knotweed and it has quite similar abilities in order to exploit and push through broken or cracked masonry, drains pipes, walls and patio areas causing more damage as it flourishes.

Clumping Bamboo is known as being a lot less intrusive than running bamboo, nonetheless, if it is left uncontrolled and unmanaged it can spread and fairly quickly grow out of control.

If sowing bamboo you should always check with an expert about the variety you use, together with planting it in containers or with strong root barrier systems in place so as to contain it to the spot you want it for, which will help prevent the likelihood of it spreading.

What is the big difference between clump-forming and running bamboo?

Running Bamboo – A running bamboo spreads by its horizontal below-ground stems from which overground canes then develop. This underground stem stretches and shoots up another cane 60-80cm away from the first planting site enabling it to quickly spread.

Clump-Forming Bamboo – This particular type of bamboo has a root mass similar to normal ornamental grasses, spreading from the centre and never sprouting canes greater than 5-10cm from the existing plant.

This is why a bamboo’s roots must be contained by a root barrier system or in an appropriate container to prevent it from spreading aggressively and colonising sections of the soil you do not want them in.

There are many varieties of Bamboo including;

Varieties Of Clump-Forming Bamboo

Fargesia murielae ‘Simba’
Fargesia murielae ‘Volacno’
Fargesia murieliae ‘Winter Joy’
Fargesia murieliae ‘Rufa’
Fargesia nitide

Varieties Of Running Bamboo

Phyllostachys aurea
Phyllostachys aureosulcata f. spectabilis
Phyllostachys Nigra
Pleioblastus pygmaeus Distichus
Pleioblastus variegatus
Pleioblastus viridistriatus
Sasa tsuboiana
Sasa veitchi

How fast does Bamboo in Llandovery grow?

This all depends upon the variety of bamboo as well as the environmental elements of the location, soil, air, water and typical ground conditions. Bamboo is understood to be a very unpredictable plant which means you should take extreme care and recommendations from a specialist if planting it or buying a residential or commercial property where it is present.

In General:
Running Bamboo usually tends to grow to its full-grown height exceptionally quickly and spread aggressively. Some can grow up to 8 metres while others just achieve 1 metre, turning it into a huge unknown when planting it, or even if you already have it on your property. Their roots need to be contained to prevent them from spreading as their new canes can grow 90cm to 1.5 metres taller every year up until they get to their highest growing height.

Clump-forming bamboo tends to develop to less than 5 metres high due to its modest culms but they can grow equally as wide over time if not effectively controlled. The new canes of clump-forming bamboo can easily grow up to 30-45cm taller annually up until it reaches its maximum height.

The bamboo culm is used to describe the bamboo shoot itself. The culms are mainly hollow, having said that, a number of varieties have solid culms. There is a solid joint at the beginning and end of every culm segment, called a node and the internodes are the segments between the nodes.

Is Bamboo in Llandovery invasive?

Bamboo is incredibly invasive and like Japanese Knotweed, it spreads using its root system and will definitely be invasive unless controlled by a specialist like South Wales Knotweed. Bamboo is extremely durable meaning it will grow in most soils and in harsh climate conditions.

Bamboo has now earned its negative reputation for irresponsible planting, however, if planted with the correct control methods in place, it can be manageable and a good addition to your garden.

Bamboo spreads from its fast-growing roots that push horizontally through the soil with its lateral buds which then steer up to develop the canes. Running bamboo will cover ground faster than a clump-forming bamboo type and often takes homeowners by surprise at precisely how rapidly it expands.

What types of soil does Bamboo in Llandovery do well in?

Bamboo is extremely hardy and not at all fussy when it comes to soil type. This can be a benefit if planted for the correct reasons and effectively regulated.

Is Bamboo a wood, a grass plant or a tree?

Very few individuals know that bamboo is grass, nonetheless, most of the fast-growing invasive bamboo types have an extremely tree-like appearance thus are frequently talked about as bamboo trees. Their stems may be just about anything from a few centimetres in height and as much as 8 metres in just a few years, with their stem diameters ranging anything from 1 mm to 30 cm.

Can you grow Bamboo in pots?

If you wish to grow Bamboo in Llandovery at your home, it can be grown in sturdy pots or containers depending on which type they are. Growing them in a pot or container will most likely avoid them from spreading and cultivating your property.

Can Bamboo in Llandovery. decrease the value of a property?

Bamboo in Llandovery is becoming a lot more known in the property, mortgage and the UK invasive weed industry as a plant that can decrease the value of a residential or commercial property due to its particularly invasive and unpredictable characteristics. Increasingly more mortgage companies are now asking if bamboo exists at a property and some may possibly not lend on it and so always do your research prior to giving on a property and applying for a mortgage.

Is Bamboo stronger than wood?

Bamboo is understood to be 2-3 times harder than most hardwoods from the Janka Hardness Test which is employed for categorising timber by its hardness. The universal Janka hardness test determines the resistance of a sample of wood to denting and wear.

Is Bamboo green in winter?

Most varieties of bamboo are evergreen therefore they continue to be green and vibrant throughout the winter months when most other plants have died back and this has helped to make them remarkably appealing to house owners that don’t realise their invasive growth. They may shed a few leaves during the course of the year but it will not be a significant amount.

Property Care Association – Bamboo

Dr Peter Fitzsimons of the Property Care Association, a trade body representing invasive weed control contractors and consultants, said bamboos are “woody” grass that has commercial importance in their native home.

However, he said that in the UK the plant has characteristics similar to those of an “alien invasive species”.

A few of those characteristics consist of being fast-spreading, dominating indigenous vegetation and being resistant to natural predators, for example, insects or fungi.

He added: “We have been calling for some time for the many species of bamboo to be added to Schedule 9 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act to enable effective regulation.”.
What is the Property Care Association?

The Property Care Association (PCA) is the UK’s leading trade association that represents professionals who can be depended address issues having an effect on buildings and residential or commercial property in general.

PCA Members:

• • Professional trustworthy site surveys and investigations that deliver peace of mind through detailed investigation and correct diagnosis for homeowners and businesses.
    Services are provided by trained, experienced, vetted and qualified surveyors and inspectors
  • Contractor members are able to complete highly specialised repairs and treatments, effectively, efficiently and safely, using skilled experienced site operatives
  • PCA members are required to meet and maintain robust membership criteria. This covers aspects of services including professional qualifications, technical competence, service delivery & financial stability

About Our Bamboo Management & Control Services

Bamboo makes a favourable contribution to the natural environment in addition to it being visually pleasing and is a terrific plant to apply if you are looking for privacy in a location. Nonetheless, our experts recommend extraordinary caution and our team would definitely certainly not advise growing Bamboo in Llandovery in an ordinary domestic garden due to its invasive root growth. It will spread below ground and grow very quickly above ground, taking over the other plants and vegetation in a garden.

Sowing Bamboo is quite similar to planting Japanese Knotweed in your back garden, nonetheless, it isn’t yet illegal to do so. Japanese Knotweed is well known by homeowners as being an invasive weed and its seeds and plants are still extensively sold across the UK but possess the same invasive characteristics as Knotweed and will quickly take over an area if not managed correctly.

South Wales Knotweed have seen how invasive Bamboo in Llandovery is and our company have helped numerous homeowners who were initially not aware of its damaging and unpredictable attributes when they first planted it, or whenever they initially brought their house to get rid of and control their bamboo infestation.

Bamboo in Llandovery can typically be seen growing along boundaries in or around a structure to provide privacy to a property. Throughout the last few years, our team have indeed seen exactly how this has led to numerous awkward as well as preventable disagreements with neighbours whenever the bamboo has spread out of control onto their land.

Our view is that while bamboo is not yet certified as an invasive weed as Japanese Knotweed is, better understanding and concern for this plant is called for. There are more than 100 varieties of bamboo, with in excess of 30 or so varying varieties commonly found in the UK.

The general guide to the different bamboo rhizomes (roots) is:

Runners – these will ‘run’, meaning, spread laterally and quickly.
Clumpers – these will continue to grow if not correctly managed and managed, however, they won’t colonise as much soil as the running species do.

Bamboo is one of the fastest-growing plants on the planet and will quickly colonise new soil, and in doing so, will quickly consume open spaces and can cause substantial damage to many solid structures.

The rhizomes aren’t as brittle as their Japanese Knotweed equivalent, making them a challenge to remove if you are not a professional. Once a bamboo rhizome has developed itself within the ground or between a solid construction, removing it is the same as trying to remove a rope from a solid slab of concrete.

South Wales Knotweed offer different removal and control solutions when it pertains to bamboo. Each and every infestation will have its own hurdles and our experts are going to work out the most effective eradication and control methods depending on your property and site. In most circumstances, our team work with an excavator to take out the majority of the bamboo’s rhizome. Our experts can also put in an appropriate ‘root barrier that prevents the rhizome from continuing to spread out within your own and neighbouring properties. If you would like some of the bamboo to stay then our specialists will offer you a control and management solution so it can remain without spreading into areas you don’t want it to.

If you have an invasion of bamboo or are worried you have Bamboo in Llandovery contact us today on 01269 591651 to arrange your no-obligation site survey. Our bamboo specialists will assess and supply you with different solutions dependent on your property and needs.