It’s almost time to prepare for battle against dangerous intruders. These aggressive invaders are trying to destroy our way of life. They’re not the Viet Cong, the Taliban nor Al-Qaeda. They are bamboo stalks!
On our Cluster Springs property, my wife, Pickett, is the creator. She plants bulbs and seeds that lead to beautiful flowers. I am the destroyer, the marauder challenging overhanging branches and expanding bushes too big for their britches.
About 100 years ago, one of Pickett’s ancestors planted a small patch of bamboo, thinking it would be a pretty addition to the farm. It spread quickly, and now it takes up 5 of our 400 acres. I’ll admit it looks nice, but it would double or triple in size if we left for a year and never cut anything back.
So it is my task to take clippers and cut down every new stalk I see. Frequently I come back from the battle with war wounds: cuts from the thorns from other plants it hides behind.
Do my attacks kill the bamboo? No. I can’t cut that deep. It just keeps it from growing enough to spread further through an underground network of roots. If I keep the stalks from sprouting leaves, it drains them of energy.
The invasion is the worst in May, when bamboo pops up seemingly overnight. The ones I missed are the easiest to spot the next winter, when their leaves are the only green things amidst the bare trees.
Some years ago, a distant bamboo society came to inspect the huge strand, but they couldn’t take our bamboo with them. People have suggested getting pandas, but that’s quite impractical. They wouldn’t get along with our dogs anyway. Maybe there is a way to poison the bamboo, but Pickett is opposed to pesticides.
A few weeks ago she found someone who can eradicate the bamboo with a process called forestry mulching, but at a high cost. Then I thought, “What? A huge bare spot outside our kitchen window? It would take months, years, for trees to replace it. Leave it there!
So I guess I will lead an infantry attack on bamboo until I am no longer physically able. Here is a a secret that I will share with you: I actually enjoy it!
