I live in Zone 8 on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington. I have neighbors who have a massive amount of bamboo that grows right up against the fence between us. They refuse to put a barrier under the fence. I have hydrangeas that grow along my side of the fence. Their bamboo shoots grow under the fence and into my hydrangeas. Until I can get some kind of a barrier under that fence, how can I get those bamboo shoots out from inside of my beautiful hydrangeas?

winni - check out bamboogarden.com for ways to contain bamboo.

Once you cut off a bamboo shoot it is done, just cut them as soon as you see them.

That works for some types of bamboo, but if it is a type that spreads by underground runners, new shoots will continue to popup until you can either figure out a barricade, or kill it with RoundUp or brush killer. That would probably not be a good option if you want to get along with your neighbors.

Or keep your Hydrangeas.

Daisyl, I don't understand your reply. That is what I'm trying to do...keep my hydrangeas and get their bamboo out of them without damaging them. I don't know how to get all the roots and runners out without hurting the hydrangeas though. That's the advice I'm looking for.

And, YES, the problem is that they HAVE RUNNERS!!! Lots and lots of them.

I think porkpal's advice is your only option, really. Just cut off every shoot at ground level as soon as you see it. Keep a pair of loppers handy and go by there every few days to nip them as they emerge.

You're going to need to pour a cement barrier underground all along that fence line to keep it out of your flower beds, I'm afraid. It's going to have to go at least 18in. deep, too. That runner bamboo is really persistent.

Oh, forgot to say, Daisy's answer confused me for a minute too, but I think she means you can't spray the bamboo with Roundup if you want to keep your hydrangeas.

You could paint it on the fresh cuts ( concentrate, not ready to use) as you go though....depending on how you feel about the neighbors. It could do some damage on their side of the fence.

Yes, those are your two options:

1. cut the bamboo at just barely above ground level and paint the cuts with full strength brush killer. If you get ANY on the ground, it may kill your Hydrangeas.

2. Dig a trrench at the fence line (It will have to be 18 inches deep) and fill it with concrete.

#1 is easier but you may kill parts of your neighbors bamboo on their side of the fence. #2 is harder but will be safer for your Hydrangeas and their bamboo.

Running Bamboo is incredibly invasive and impossible to maintain. Have you considered moving? Just kidding.... But you have a fight on your hands.

At my house, simply severing the new sprouts with a shovel is enough.
They send up shoots for a month or so in the spring... And stop.
Really not that much trouble.
And... Then I use the pieces as mulch, or add to compost... Nothing but grass, you know.

Roundup has a new product available, I think it's called "precision" or something. It's in a container that looks like a giant deodorant stick and you do literally "paint" it just on the leaves of the plant you want to kill. That might be worth a try.

What we are doing thanks to all of your suggestions:

- Cut down the existing shoots.
- Painting the remaining ends with Round-up.
- Planning on burying some kind of barrier below the fence. Still determining what that will be.

Thank you for all your help and suggestions!

With that plan of attack, you should win the Bamboo Wars. Keep us posted!

Well, we have finally come to at least a temporary conclusion to this problem. I took the bamboo bull by the horns one day and talked to the neighbors. At first it was a total fail and they would have nothing to do with taking care of the problem. "Not my problem."

They must have had second thoughts, however, as one day out of the blue they asked to bring a "specialist" over to see our yard. As it so happened, there were a bunch of shoots I had not yet cut down that week and a giant one making its way horizontialy across the ground.

Success! They admitted it was a bigger problem than they realized and said they would do something about it (even if it was not exactly the solution I was hoping for). This "specialist" came in and took out the shoots on our side, some of the bamboo on their side, and dug a trench about 8 inches wide on their side of the fence. They said they would see that no shoots went through the trench.

Well, we will see what happens. I don't think I'll really know until next Spring. I have found a few small shoots on my side, but since they at least made an attempt at fixing the problem, I'm not going to say anything for now. Our growing season is winding down here anyway. For now, as you can see in the photo, I was at least able to yield some pretty nice hydrangeas after all and even this late in the season. However, I am guessing this story will be continued some time in the future. Thank you to all who gave their advice to help me here!