Senate Bill 1016, An Act Regulating the Planting and Sale of Running Bamboo, was passed by the Connecticut Legislature in June to regulate certain bamboo species that spread by long, running, underground rhizomes. When established without appropriate buffers or barriers, these species have the potential to encroach onto neighboring properties, where they may become difficult to remove.
The bill, which went into effect in October, mandates proper plant maintenance without restricting its sale. It states that anyone who allows running bamboo to grow beyond the boundaries of his or her property is liable for the damages caused to any neighboring property by the bamboo, including, but not limited to, the cost of removal of any running bamboo that grew beyond the boundaries of his or her property. It also states that bamboo must not be planted at a location that is one hundred feet or less from any abutting property or public right-of-way unless such planting is contained by a barrier system or planted above ground in a container or planter. Any person who violates the provisions of this subsection shall be fined one hundred dollars.
The bill also requires each retail seller or installer of running bamboo shall provide to each customer who purchases running bamboo a statement that discloses that running bamboo is a fast growing plant that may spread if not properly contained.
The Connecticut Invasive Plant Council recommended the bill to the legislature. According to the IPC, yellow groove bamboo (Phyllostachys aureosulcata), a species of running bamboo, does not meet the criteria for listing as an invasive or potentially invasive plant. A key point in the IPC's testimony was that running bamboo appears to establish only in areas adjacent to intentional plantings, and does not appear to spread unaided.
Although running bamboo may not meet the criteria for inclusion on the invasive plant list, the Connecticut Invasive Plant Council acknowledged that it may grow aggressively and spread from its point of origin, sometimes crossing property boundaries and est ablishing in abutting parcels. Once established, these populations frequently cause property damage and can be difficult and costly to control or remove.
The IPC, the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the Invasive Plant Coordinator, and the University of Connecticut Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture have all received letters and phone calls from concerned home owners regarding control and removal
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