Bamboo From Hell Turned Garden Helper

Strawberry patch with watermelon mounds in the back

When we first moved in to our new house last year I made an attempt at the kitchen garden of my dreams.  Just steps away from the back door, easy access to the shed and the hose. On the farm the garden was several yards away, the hose even further and garden shed that was as useful as a toddler in a crystal boutique. To my dismay this was an epic fail.

Unbeknownst to me and my dear husband there had been bamboo planted where I had staked out my plot. I could plainly see the bamboo border that divided our yard from our neighbors, but I didn't know that the previous owner had been simply mowing down this ruthless greedy plant.

For those of you that do not know bamboo is not simply a grass with roots. In fact it is a rhizome. Rhizomes are thick wood-like roots that spread under the soil in an attempt to keep itself alive and flourish. When we tilled my spot last year we found out the hard way that it is not easy to get rid of. My dream garden ended up being a tiny plot that I ended up spacing by hand between those wretched bamboo rhizomes. I got a few successful tomato plants out of it, a few cucumbers and one or two watermelons that I picked either too early or too late to profit from.

This year I decided to fight the good fight one more time. After we tilled my garden in a safer spot at the back of our yard I took that mighty tiller back to the bamboo spot, and worked it, and worked it, and worked the hell out of that plot until I fought back all the rhizomes that I could.

As you can see from the picture above I was pretty successful. There are still a few feisty rhizomes left but the ground was worked up good enough for me to plant a few rows of strawberries with enough room for four watermelon mounds in the back.

The day after planting my strawberries are standing tall

I have spent the winter chopping the bamboo away from my yard and shed, and pretty much making it my B*#ch. The stakes for my garden fence are from that very same bamboo that I struggled with last year and I will continue to use it in my garden. So far I have used it along with Jute twine to create a fence to stop the dogs and kids from stepping on my plants and seeds.

As I move along in the season I will use it as tomato cages and vertical gardening for my cucumbers, squash, and watermelons. I will keep you updated on how successful I have been at making that bamboo submit to my will. ha ha ha!

 A panoramic view of how I am using bamboo in my garden. Left, I have used it to stake out where I have put my veggie rows. Right, I have used it with jute twine to keep kids and dogs out of my tomato, cucumber, and squash patch