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Q – My husband loves bamboo and plants it everywhere how can I stop it growing up paths and lawns and pond liners?

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Anne – You can buy special bags and barriers that they are not supposed to penetrate.

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Bunny – You will need to cut it down so it will re-sprout and you can then get masses of foliage. Plant them in those engineering bags that only let certain sized roots go through. Even plant them in their pots and take the bottom off because they are shallow rooting.

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Q – My husband thinks the ivy growing in and over our conifer hedge is killing the hedge. He wants to pull the ivy out whereas I want to keep it as a screen for when the conifers become more skeletal.

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Matt – Carry on with the ivy.

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Pippa – I do think it causes a bit of distress. I would go for bit of thinning but then you also have some of the benefit of the ivy which Is huge.

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Bunny – Generally I think ivy is a good thing in trees. Ivy only really starts to take hold when the trees are fairly mature. And the ivy does so much better for the wildlife than the conifers.

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Anne – I think the ivy will wreck the hedge. Maintain the hedge by trimming the ivy and perhaps let the ivy grow somewhere else.

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Q – We have recently brought a small equestrian facility which is about an acre and a half (6070m2) We are not going to put horses or livestock on it. What should do we do with an acre of largely flat well drained grassland.

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Bunny – Clumps of lovely trees and lead it on to the countryside

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Matthew – First thing to think about is trees and think carefully about where to plant them. You can create a fairly wild effect quite easily just by mowing some areas and leaving some unmown and leaving grass uncut. Start introducing yellow rattle (Rhinanthus minor) to introduce wildflowers.

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Q – What can I grow successfully on a 6th floor balcony south-facing 12 -15 foot (3.6 – 4.5m) long and 4ft (1.2m) wide and fairly sheltered.

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Pippa – Bigger containers will make the whole thing a lot easier but find out the weight limit. With really good quality compost.

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Bunny – Huge containers as big as you can. Something like apple trees with mistletoe (Viscum album)

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Anne - I would go for Mediterranean type shrubs because of the sunny south facing position round the outside for shade. Then I would grow edible flowers that have petals such as Roses (Rosa), Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), Violets (Viola), Nasturtium (Tropaeolum) that you can put on your salads.

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