How do I kill the roots of a plant?

[BertRoot]

I took a plant apart in my front garden yesterday. It is one of those that is maly long spkiy leaves with no trunk. It grows massive long mini trunklike erectioin thingies with seeds on the end every year and has grown too big to manage. Took me a couple of hours to hack all the leaves off yesterday and I am left with a mass of potential leaves at the bottom.

I want it dead so I can get the damn roots out next. How do I kill it without knackering the rest of the stuff in my garden? People say use engine oil and shit like that but I know there will be some envioronmental impact if I go down that road.

[Over Carl]

I've found salt seems to be very good at dealing with small plants, and surprisingly the damage doesn't spread far at all, also ground is fine to use pretty soon afterwards.

[rmj2663]

Drill a hole down the middle of the stem(or whats left of it) & poor some systemic weed killer into the hole. The sort that becomes inactive on contact with soil & you should get a result. Leave for a couple of weeks before attacking again to make sure the roots are dead & easy to lift.

[Wizzo]

i've been told either hammer copper nails in the trunk or drill a hole and keep pouring milk in it.

[wizer]

more crazy ideas from DF.........

Have you got a pic of the plant? If it is a tree then you can buy weedkiller for tree roots. If it is just a shrub then buy a Glyphosate based weedkiller such as RoundUp. This is non-residual and will not effect anything around it or remain in the soil. Be patient tho, it takes 10-14 days to take effect.

[BertRoot]

Thats the fucker. No trunk just a mass of leaf bases now.

[beansontoast]

I killed off some russian vine by hammering some pieces of copper pipe down the little trunks (about as thick as a wrist) worked a treat but your plant sounds smaller...

[DJAd]

i've been told either hammer copper nails in the trunk or drill a hole and keep pouring milk in it.

Yeah, copper nails in the trunk / stem will kill the bastard, or some rope round the fucker and hook it to the back of your motor and rip the bastard out the ground.

[BertRoot]

It was fucking huge. Probably about 6-8 feet across and was blocing the light out from my cordeline which is why it had to go.

[Pongo]

Not the best of news Bert, sorry.

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/...4110331.html?9

[BertRoot]

Shite Pongo looks like I need a trident missile but am sure this isn't a yucca but just has that look.

[Pongo]

Shite Pongo looks like I need a trident missile but am sure this isn't a yucca but just has that look.

Are you sure M8 ?
It looks remarkably like Spanish Bayonet.

http://www.desert-tropicals.com/Plan...aloifolia.html

[muttleymacclad]

Hi bertroot

I think it's a phormium or New Zealand flax. As Wizer says your best bet would be to use Roundup. Usually works on most things but mat take one or two treatments.

MML

[BertRoot]

I think it's a phormium or New Zealand flax. As Wizer says your best bet would be to use Roundup. Usually works on most things but mat take one or two treatments.

I have a memory of that now and am pretty sure after a quick look at them on the net that it is a phormium. Nice one!!

[Fusen]

that is quite a front garden you have there o.0

[callo]

diesel.... kills owt

[Keva]

Seman.

[ffrr]

o well ..lol...rmj2663 and muttleymacclad both had the answers I was going to give... you can't go wrong following thier advice!

Roundup will take a while though to kick in unless you can get a higher percentage batch, and still it will take about 2 weeks to have any real beneficial effects.

I always get shit jobs like that at work..lol.. If I couldn't wait I'd just attack it with a nice sharp mattock ;)

[MercuryRises]

[Over Carl]

Salt works very quickly on most plants, if you lot don't believe me, try a little on some grass between paving slabs. Heres the theory, remember osmosis/diffusion at school. Now imagine a plant loaded with salt. It won't be able to regulate its water balance, water will go out of cells which will be flooded with salt.