Most gardeners are aware of the problems caused by weeds, but there are garden plants - readily available to buy - that pose just as much of a threat. Gardeners may buy these 'thug' plants unaware that, once established, they can run amok.
What are garden 'thug' plants?
Invasive plants are those that can quickly get out of hand in the garden, even though they are not regarded as weeds and are commonly sold in garden centres.
Think carefully about introducing these plants to your garden, and be prepared to carry out judicious pruning and digging or thinning out as required.
Examples of such plants include:
Trees and shrubs
Climbers
Bamboos, sedges, reeds and grasses
Herbaceous perennials
Crevice plants
Edible crops
Ground cover plants
Bulbous plants
Pond plants
There are a number of aquatic plants that can easily get out of hand in a garden pond and are considered true weeds. Ideally these should never be introduced to the pond, though they sometimes come unwittingly with other pond plants.
The problems
Trees like the Leyland cypress and climbers such as Russian vine can grow so quickly that they are soon much too big for the garden.
Trees such as poplar and sumach have a tendency to sucker, sending up shoots all over the garden and even in neighbours’ properties.
Many ground cover shrubs like the snowberry or Hypericum calycinum spread via underground stems (rhizomes), sending up new plants and gradually taking over the border. Some bamboos also behave in this way, becoming a constant source of regret for the gardener.
Potentially invasive herbaceous plants and grasses, such as Japanese anemones and Phalaris arundinacea, form ever-enlarging clumps that require frequent division. Others, such as golden rod or weeping sedge also spread by seed, with seedlings popping-up in unexpected places where they are not wanted.
Bulbous plants such as Oxalis can produce tiny new bulbs, or offsets, which are scattered every time a clump is dug up, spreading the problem rather than controlling it.
Control
Digging out unwanted plants may work for a while, but is only likely to be a temporary solution. Judicious use of weedkillers may be necessary.
For herbaceous weeds, try a programme of spraying using a systemic herbicide containing glyphosate – Roundup and Tumbleweed are common brand names of such products. For woodier plants, choose a stump or brushwood killer such as ‘Bramble Killer Ultra’ or ‘Deep Root Ultra Tree Stump & Weedkiller’.
Beware putting invasive plants on the domestic compost heap, as this is unlikely to reach a high enough temperature to kill off tough roots or underground stems (it is all right if they have already been killed off with weedkiller). Instead, place them in the municipal green waste, as this is composted on an industrial scale, where tough weeds should be killed off. Burning may also be appropriate, but check your local Council guidelines.
Download
Weedkillers for gardeners (Adobe Acrobat pdf document outlining weedkillers available to gardeners; see sections 4 and 5)
Links
Chemicals: using spot and broad-scale weedkillers
Chemicals: using a sprayer
Chemicals: using safely and effectively