I’ve actually had better luck with the heavy-duty root barrier fabrics than I expected. HDPE is solid, but it’s a pain to install if you’ve got a lot of curves or weird angles in your yard. The fabric’s easier to work with, and as long as you overlap and secure it well, it holds up pretty decent. Bamboo’s a beast, though—sometimes I wonder if anything really stops it for good...
Tried that fabric stuff last year and honestly, I was skeptical at first. It’s definitely easier to wrangle than those stiff plastic panels, especially around my janky fence line. Still, I keep checking for shoots popping up—bamboo’s relentless. Nothing’s truly permanent, I guess.
Still, I keep checking for shoots popping up—bamboo’s relentless. Nothing’s truly permanent, I guess.
That’s the thing with bamboo, right? You think you’ve got it beat, and then a month later there’s a new shoot poking up in the weirdest spot. I tried the heavy-duty landscape fabric too—definitely easier to cut and tuck around obstacles than those rigid barriers. But I swear, bamboo roots are like escape artists. Once found a shoot coming up through a crack in my driveway, nowhere near where I’d laid the barrier. Makes you wonder if anything short of concrete really works long-term...
You’re not wrong about bamboo being relentless. I’ve dealt with it on a couple properties, and honestly, even concrete isn’t a sure thing—roots find the tiniest gap. Still, hats off for sticking with it. Even if it’s not “won” forever, keeping it under control is no small feat. Sometimes I think the best you can hope for is just staying one step ahead of it.
Concrete really does seem like it should be the end-all solution, but I’ve seen bamboo push right through hairline cracks. It’s almost impressive, if it wasn’t so frustrating. I’ve tried root barriers and regular cutting, but honestly, it’s more about persistence than any one “fix.” If you let your guard down for a season, it’s back at full force. I wouldn’t call it a win—more like a truce you have to keep renegotiating.
