EXPERTS have issued a warning over a noughties gardening trend that’s destroying people’s homes and can cost up to £100,000 of damage. Bamboo is an increasingly popular plant to grow as it takes little effort to look after, but left to its own devices it can soon overgrow, destroying other plants and even your home. Emily Grant, director of operations at UK-based invasive plant specialist Environet, said: “This is Japanese knotweed 2.
0. “I think 15 years ago, every week gardening programmes were showing people putting bamboo in, it was literally everywhere. “The extent of its popularity is very evident now.
It was the 'thing' 15 years ago. But it can quickly get out of control.” One homeowner who knows this all too well is Isobel Chetwood, who claims her neighbour's bamboo has ruined her garden and the damages will cost £10,000 to fix.
Isobel hadn't realised the property next door to her in Cheshire had planted the bamboo. Known for being the fastest growing plant, it wildly sprouted and took over several nearby gardens. Shoots started appearing in flower beds Isobel had created for strawberry planting.
Starting to deal with the problem by hacking away at the shoots, the pensioner soon found she was fighting a losing battle. And when she told the landlord of the neighbouring home, he treated the bamboo with weed killer in a bid to stop it from being out of control. However, the product actually triggered the bamboo and made it grow quicker.
Isobel then had no ot.
