Bamboo increasingly causing neighbourly disputes, experts claim

Damage to a patio caused by bamboo
Damage to a patio caused by bamboo Credit: The Knotweed Company Limited

Neighbours are increasingly at war over trendy bamboo plants in their gardens, experts have warned.

The plants are chosen by gardeners as an attractive, fast-growing addition to their flowerbeds, which have the added benefit of screening gardens from nosy neighbours.

However, bamboo spreads quickly via underground stems called rhizomes, which means shoots can pop up anywhere in your garden - or that of your neighbour. When not carefully kept under control, it can become a menace, and has been dubbed “the new Japanese knotweed”.

Despite this, the plant which destroys gardens and damages properties is being sold at increasing rates and advertised by garden centres, and TV personalities including Alan Titchmarsh.

Last night the Royal Horticultural Society issued a warning about bamboo, saying the plant can swiftly grow "out of control".

Jim Glaister, Regional Manager at The Knotweed Company, said he is increasingly being asked to remove bamboo from gardens and that it is becoming an urgent issue.

He told the Sunday Telegraph: “Bamboo is becoming a huge issue in many domestic gardens, especially where it has been planted as a screening hedge plant. 

“All bamboos are invasive (despite what many garden centres say) and some species are extremely invasive.”

Bamboo used by Alan Titchmarsh in his garden
Bamboo used by Alan Titchmarsh in his garden Credit: Andrew Crowley

Mr Glaister added that neighbours have faced nasty disputes after bamboo spread to a neighbouring garden.

He said he has had several clients who have taken legal action against their neighbour because of bamboo. In one case, a couple found that the pest plant had been deliberately planted by the previous owner to annoy the neighbour they didn’t like. 

Another case involved a gardener who bought a bamboo from a well-known and respected garden centre 15 years ago and planted it in their front garden, only to face a 15-year battle against bambooshoots.

Mr Glaister explained: “The entire front garden was a mass of bamboo rhizome and they had been fighting a constant battle to cut back the bamboo culms (stems) as they emerged throughout the garden. The bamboo had lifted paving slabs in their path and had even penetrated into the exterior wall of their house.”

A spokesperson for Wyevale Garden Centres said they have seen a “huge surge in sales” over the last year – particularly for the tall upright varieties which shield gardens from prying eyes.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) warned: “Bamboo shoots may pop up anywhere in the garden: neighbouring land or even through solid barriers, such as in patios and conservatory floors. Most weed-suppressant groundcover fabrics will not stop bamboo spreading. 

“The clump forming bamboos can also grow out of control, but do not tend to spread as much as the running bamboos”.

RHS qualified landscape designer Jack Wallington said that spreading bamboo has caused issues in many gardens he has designed.

He told the Sunday Telegraph:  “I’ve experienced spreading bamboo popping up in the borders and lawns of gardens I’ve designed from neighbouring plots a number of times and it is a problem.

“Controlling these bamboo shoots is fairly easy, simply by cutting out stems and digging out the roots but it’s an ongoing battle. You can bury a thick butyl rubber liner creating a vertical barrier but you need to go as deep as 1m and even then they can still sometimes go deeper.”

Bamboo is a growing problem, as it is not officially classed as an invasive species in the same way as Japanese knotweed, and sales are on the increase.

Although the plant can shade out the light in neighbouring properties, it is not illegal to do so because it is a grass and not covered by high hedges legislation.

And unlike knotweed, there are currently no restrictions on planting bamboo in gardens, or buying it, and garden centres are allowed to promote it for sale.

A Defra spokesperson said: “While bamboo is a vigorous and fast growing plant, it is not thought to pose a significant threat to wildlife or to socio-economic interests in Great Britain. For this reason it is not listed in the legislation that makes it an offence to cause certain plants to grow in the wild.

“However, we do appreciate that if left uncontrolled it could be a nuisance in individual circumstances. Where this occurs the first step that a person should take is to seek the cooperation of the landowner of the plant’s location.”

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