Have YOU had a similar experience? Email ryan.hooper@dailymail.co.ukIt was more than 15 years after moving into her new home that retired nurse Beverley Koonjul first noticed an issue with bamboo.
Beverley's experience represents one of a growing number of horror stories involving the invasive plant, which grows at astonishing speed and can cause damage quickly - often without the homeowner's knowledge. Specialists have had to be called in for cases where the bamboo invasion has caused major problems, in some cases costing tens of thousands of pounds to repair when it has found its way under a boundary wall and into a neighbouring garden
The landlord of the property next door treated the problem with weedkiller. But that only served to cause it to grow more vigorously into Ms Chetwood's garden instead, with new shoots popping up.She said: 'I think that's when he realised we needed professional help. It typically costs upwards of £3,500 to remove the bamboo from a residential property, although remedial work can run into tens of thousands of pounds
Read More 'Japanese knotweed 2.0' causes £10,000 damage to woman's home as warning is issued over invasive plant that can grow 5ft in a year 'I'd advise anyone thinking about planting bamboo to avoid it at all costs. It shouldn't be sold at garden centres at all in my opinion, or at least not without a clear warning.'
'Although it had been cut back, we could see it had spread and was growing right up against the house on both sides. 'As it was already encroaching into next door's garden, I was also worried about the risk of a legal case against me as the new homeowner. To me, this situation really highlights the lack of awareness around invasive bamboo, as even the seller's estate agent didn't seem to recognise the problem at first.
Runners - horizontal roots - can cause a major problem if they reach more than 25cm in length, including penetrating through brickwork and slabs 'Just the mention of Japanese knotweed strikes fear into people, whereas bamboo doesn't - people think of pandas, it doesn't have the same negative connotations.