Posted on 08/23/2002 11:09:41 AM PDT by iav2
Edited on 04/13/2004 2:08:09 AM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
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.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
Import the entire ecosystem or nothing. Remember Australia!
The difference between the government using kudzu for erosion control and most government programs is that it stopped pouring money into increasing the program. If it had worked the same as most programs, they would be planting billions of more seedlings since the first 85 million didn't work right.
I traveled last weekend through part of the drought-stricken East ..... even the kudzu seemed to be stressed from the lack of water.
Excerpt: "Contrary to what may be told by the Extension Service, kudzu can profit from a good mulch. I have found that a heavy mulch for the young plants produces a hardier crop. For best results, as soon as the young shoots begin to appear, cover kudzu with concrete blocks. Although this causes a temporary setback, your kudzu will accept this mulch as a challenge and will reward you with redoubled determination in the long run."
LOL, we'll never get rid of it.
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Who you gonna call?
Why aren't they training in kudzu fields? That will just be better training for when our guys do it for real... in China!
Why do you have such a hatred for bamboo? There are two major 'types' of bamboo. Running and clumping. Most of the bamboo in the US is of the clumping variety. This includes the bamboo normally sold at commercial growers. Clumping bamboo is easily controllable since, as the name implies, grows by increasing the diameter of the grove. It can be controlled by simply cutting the new shoots as they show up around the perimeter of the grove. No different that pruning a tree.
Running bamboo sends out 'runners' away from the plant which pop out of the ground at different distances from the plant It can be a problem depending on species, but it is not commonly sold. Most of the people growing it and/or selling it know how to control it. It's spreading can easily be stopped through barriers which restrict the travel of the roots. Shoots that pop up can also easily be killed by simply cutting them.
Based off the Kudzu article, they are completely different animals.
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