Bamboo - can we just hack it back/down?

[Tinker]

We've inherited loads of it in our front garden. It's started to go a bit wild. Can we just be brutal? Don't care for it much so I suppose I won't be too upset if it died but am too lazy to tend to a new garden.

Depends what type it is - some are invasive and spread very quickly so you may need to dig out the roots to keep it in check.

How would I know what type? It's just in front garden, can't spread beyond that really

Probably the best way is to trawl around sites like this to work out what you've got, or take a bit into a garden centre for identification. If it's one of the running varieties, you may need to take drastic action before it fills next door's garden too. Other varieties are more manageable, as the website explains.

God, that's made me a bit nervous now. Some is in pots and previous owners were obviously gardeners but. Gulp.

Sorry. Didn't mean to alarm you!

If the previous owners were serious gardeners they probably picked the bamboo with care and didn't plant one that is likely to send thick shoots up in the middle of your garden path. But a few varieties of bamboo can be thugs so it may be worth spending a few minutes looking at one of the websites - I'm sure there are others but I'm cross-eyed with tiredness and can't find one now - to check exactly what you've got.

Bamboo doesn't (I think) need regular cutting down but, again, this is something you can check when you know what variety you have. Bamboo in pots is easy to manage.

Don't lose heart!

You can chop off as much as you like to tidy it up. If you want to cut it right back, do it next spring just before it starts to put on new growth.

Definitely check to see which variety you've got, and dig down around it to see whether previous owners have planted in submerged containers, this could be an indicator that they are the 'thug' variety and this is a good way of keeping their wandering roots in check!

Thank you both. I'll get hacking asap