An Uninvited Guest!

Hi there, all,

Posting these photos is inviting scorn but I hope there'll be some sympathy too.

How do you tell when it's been too long since you had any workshop time?

As they say 'Life happens!'.

Identification will be welcome.

Best regards,

Swarf, Mostly!

Looks like ivy to me.

It looks like an ivy to me and in all fairness it does grow very rapidly but not overnight. Seems you do need to spend some time out there if only to clear your visitor. Phil

From the leaf form, it could be Hedera Hibernica?. And to alleviate your guilt complex of neglect, it is considerably fast growing.

Could be black or white Bryony.

Rik

..or maybe even Schizophragma..

Myford Strangler Vine

I have a similar problem and a small length of ivy has just found its way into the shed. Unfortunately I cannot get to the main plant as it is on the corner of the wokshop within 12 inches of the boundaries of 2 other properties. The plant is right in the corner & is quite substantial. I can only get access from the top & it has already started to damage the gutter beneath my pitched roof. My roof is cementous corrigated pitched construction & balancing is difficult on crawling boards

Soooo!! Has anyone any ideas what is the best method of killing it off.. . I did try pouring dieisel down over the leaves with a spray can from above & I believe that slowed the growth. However, it has come back.

Any ideas welcome

Edited By Sam Longley 1 on 26/10/2021 15:41:23

Probably need a greater rate of cut and a better chip breaker if the swarf is coming off like that.

Going greener - very modern!

pgk

Bamboo is another invader to avoid. I had a shoot grow up inside the studwork framing of my workshop, first I knew of it was when it hit the roof turned and pierced the insulation growing back downwards.

It has taken several years to get rid of but I am winning.

Adrian.

Had a similar problem with the previous workshops. The problem was that the main stem was between the shop and the fence, so VERY difficult to cut off near the ground.

A saw blade fixed to a long pole did the trick, eventually.

Now the problem is one of SWMBOs plants that can cause heave depending on the weather, making the door stick sometimes. What started as a tiny stem is now nearly 100 mm diameter, but cannot be pruned other than gently.

Ivy seems to share some of the genes of Mile a Minute Russian Vine., and is very difficult to keep in check

SWMBO put some weedkiller on the grass,(Supposed to be safe for grass ) Killed the grass as well as the weed, A year on it still has not recovered, despite reseeding. This might be the stuff to put on the root, if you can dribble some down a tube into the area. "Weedol" perhaps?

Squirt from a water pistol may get the killer where it is needed.

Howard

SBK will do it

.

You seem to know your weedkillers, Dave

… is it any good on horsetails ?

We have some growing up through a rockery which appear to have re-grown from root-fragments in the clay, and probably date back 100 years or more

MichaelG.

Michael

I regret to say horsetail is notoriously difficult to eradicate. It dates back to the age of the dinosaurs and has learned some survival tricks. Fossils are frequently found in coal measures.

RHS Harlow Carr in Harrogate had it in their rockery, a very big rockery and the whole lot had to be dug up with excavators to a depth of maybe 20 feet to reach the base of the roots.

Selective weedkillers do not touch it either so I fear you have few options.

Best of luck Brian

.

Thanks for the empathy, Brian

Yes, I am unfortunately aware of all that … which is why I asked specifically about SBK

**LINK**

https://www.progreen.co.uk/sbk-brushwood-killer-1l-kplus-250ml-marestail-woody-weeds/

MichaelG.

You give the horsetail a good thrashing before applying SBK, Roundup and/or diesel.

It needs to be well bruised. Enjoying it, isn't compulsory.(The thrashing.)

Grizzly,

It is more blessed to give than to receive. Especially where this stuff is concerned

Howard

Never manage to totally wipe out Horsetail. weedkillers will knock it back, as will WD40 etc after a good bruising. It does come back, but i have it under control.

I believe that bamboo can be controlled by copious applications of seawater and paraffin guarantees death to virtually any vegetation. I once had a tree growing a thin trunk my side of my back garden wall and anoth on my neighbours side. I could foresee the eventual fate of my wall and the renter's next door would be unlikely to do anything. I dealt with both trunks by cutting to ground level and pouring a small quantity of paraffin on the stump. No regrowth after a decade or more, so can vouch for the paraffin,but be careful as I suspect it is a serious pollutant and nothing will grow if spilt in quantity on soil.