Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Turn and run... nothing can stop them...

It's either that or sir here letting dogs lick my face....

Well, I suspect that it's actually a combination of both. You drank so much tequila that the dogs are licking because they mistake you for an Australian Cane Toad and are probably enjoying the hallucinations.

I think I would just spray vegetation killer over the entire area when your neighbor isn't around.

Errr, good idea but I am trying to grow a bunch of new Blue Spruce trees in that area to replace the dying pine that used to divide our lots. If I can find a spray that kills bamboo but not trees, I'd at least do my side of the area. Where is a mad botanist-biochemical engineer when you need one. They are normally so commonplace.

"I'm not a quack, I'm a mad scientist! There is a difference, you know." - Dr. Cockroach, Monsters vs. Aliens

Ooh, I just found my new sig.

Looks like you need two things to get rid of running bamboo in your yard :

- an underground barrier (30" deep or more, angled "down and out") to stop new runners coming across from your neighbors yard

- a backhoe to dig out *all* the roots on your side

Seems like there are relatively simple ways to kill off the bamboo on your side but they seem to take a few years. Killing it over a few years involves "wearing it down", basically cutting off all the shoots so the plant doesn't have a chance to form leaves and feed the root systems. One article mentioned that the root system will put up one last burst of shoots that look more like grass just before it gives up and dies.

What I don't know is whether the bamboo root system will be able to tap into your blue spruce roots and keep going that way - if so then you'll probably need to completely kill the bamboo before planting the spruce.

Apparently "clumping" bamboo doesn't send out those runners, but it's more expensive so everyone buys the cheaper "running" kind that spreads like a weed.

Another pesky thing that has turned up in Ontario is Deer Ticks which carry tick-borne infectious disease - lyme disease. They have been found in parts of Ontario and have tested positive for the bacteria that is responsible.

I just finished cutting grass and was cutting along the border of the "wild" parts of the property and caught a tick crawling up my leg before it attached. Fortunately it was just a dog tick and not a deer tick.

With the hogweed and ticks investing your land you are not going to want to leave your house.

Bamboo can be used to hide other plants, too... If you really don't like your neighbors, there's always the boys in blue... just sayin'

And, even if it had attached, it usually takes a day or more for the disease to be transmitted, so catching attached ticks within a few hours almost certainly will take care of it.

Any tick bite not matter how long it has been attached you should keep an eye on it just for infection. People don't know how to remove ticks properly either which can increase chance of infection. It was a dog tick anyways (red legs). Just the thought of finding a deer tick is concerning. Its never pleasant pulling ticks off your body or even a dog especially after they have been attached for a few days.

I have Coyotes as well. The property is a ticking time bomb.