Botanical Beast Kudzu A Force To Be Reckoned At U.S. Army Posts

AP/Boston Globe ^ | 8/23/2002 | Bill Baskervill

[iav2]

FORT PICKETT, Va. (AP) In little more than 100 years in the United States, kudzu has marched across farm fields, shoved aside native plants and disrupted ecosystems with its smothering blanket of green leaves.

Now, the nearly indestructible vine is taking on the Army.

[redhead]

"Oh my god! It's the predecessor to Little Shop of Horrors!!"

Sounds like "Day of the Triffids" to me...

[Iowa Granny]

bump for a later read

[okie01]

"Doesn't the Army have any Agent Orange left?"

You can buy some yourself at any ag supply place. The trade name is Paraquat.

It's really not much of a herbicide, though, since it just burns the exposed surfaces and leaves the roots alive and untouched. It's usually used to suppress grasses, not kill them.

[tsomer]

Kudzu hay is perfect for goats and cows.
The Koreans make fabric out of the fibers. The leaves are boiled to make a tea with purported nutritional and medicinal value. The roots can be ground for starch, and are nitrogen fixing.

An amazing plant.

[KayEyeDoubleDee]

I have lots of firsthand experience with bamboo. Your description of controlling it is much easier said than done. Cutting the initial soft, thick shoots results in a harder thinner one taking its place. Even if you cut this as close to the root as possivle, it still leaves a very hard rootsystem poking out and/or running along the ground/yard which makes it impossible to go barefoot.

Bamboo will grow into the densiest hardware forest. It will run under roads. I don't think it spreads as fast as kudzu (which I don't have any real experience with), but it is still a nightmare and anyone who grows it should plan to spend quite a big of time maintaining it.

[killjoy]

What species of bamboo were you having problems with and what zone was it growing in? Have you tried installing rhizome barriers? When installed properly to a depth of about 2 feet with a few inches sticking above the surface, they are very effective at controlling spreading.

[Fire_on_High]

Feed me, Seymour!

[KayEyeDoubleDee]

I don' know the species, because I didn't plant it. I've suspected that there may be at least two varieties, but I don't know specifically.

Installation of barries and cutting shoots may work great when starting from scratch. I suspect the same could be said of managing kudzu.

[Axenolith]

Kudzu is something like 20% protein too, GREAT for goats!