Invasive bamboo: bugaboo, boon or blight? | Suffolk Times

Invasive bamboo: bugaboo, boon or blight? | Suffolk Times: "Bamboo was once only found in the jungles of Southeast Asia, but the hollow-tubed exotic plant has begun a suburban creep out to eastern Long Island.

There are hundreds of varieties of bamboo, some of which are more invasive than others, and several towns on Long Island, including Smithtown and Babylon, are considering restricting whether property owners can plant bamboo.

Here on the North Fork, land managers are strongly urging residents to keep bamboo off of their property, though no legislation outlawing bamboo has been proposed.

“It’s a horrible problem,” said Laura Klahre, who worked in invasive species management for The Nature Conservancy before she began drafting Southold Town’s management plans for preserved land this year. “On Long Island, there is not a native bamboo. The ones I know act invasively.”"