Before planting bamboo, it is advisable to install a root barrier, as otherwise it will later overgrow and crowd other plants.
Bamboo is becoming increasingly popular in our latitudes and is often planted in many gardens. Especially because it grows very high and very dense, it is ideal as a privacy screen. But the bamboo can also become a problem. Namely when it gets too big and presses other plants. This does not mean the plant itself, but its roots. These can appear several meters away from the mother plant. Plus, they stop at nothing. Neither in front of stone slabs, pond liner, drainage or neighbor's property. You should therefore take the necessary measures when planting.
How to control bamboo?
In order to keep the root suckers in check from the start, you should install a root barrier in the soil when planting. This can be made of concrete or stones, for example. But you can also use a root barrier from the garden store. It is introduced as a ring about 70 centimeters deep around the plant and limits the underground growth of the bamboo. This will prevent the roots from spreading.
Such a root barrier consists of high-density polyethylene, which cannot be penetrated by the roots of the plant. Such a root barrier is available e.g. at Amazon.
How to install the root barrier
❶ Dig the planting hole for the bamboo about 60 centimeters deep.
❷ Now take the root barrier and connect the two ends of the root barrier with the supplied aluminum rail.
❸ Insert the barrier into the ground. It should now protrude by about 10 centimetres. That's a good thing, because that way roots can't spread above ground either.
❹ Now fill in soil around the root barrier so that it sits firmly in the ground. Then plant the bamboo in the middle of the root barrier.
Separate roots with spade
If you have already put the bamboo in the garden and not built a barrier, you can also use a spade. To do this, cut out the size you want in a circle around the plant and as deep as possible. This will make theroot stolons severed. That's enough to keep the bamboo in check. However, you must repeat this procedure several times a year.
Root barrier can also be retrofitted
You can also install a root barrier afterwards. To do this, first cut off the roots, then dig a trench around the plant and use the root barrier. Then fill everything back up with soil and the problem should be solved.
Once the root barrier has been planted, you can plant plants around the bamboo without having to worry that the bamboo will compete with them for their living space. You can find out which plants go well with bamboo in our article Which plants go well with bamboo?
Video instructions for installing a root barrier
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