Help Rid Arcanthus.

Okay, I know the spelling maybe wrong. Will Bears Britches do. I have arcanthus coming up all though the garden, I tried to dig it out but that is not an option anymore. It was after digging it that it has run amok. I have sprayed it with roundup but the leaves went pale and that was all nothing died. I need to get rid of it before I can plant any shrubs in the area. A tried and proved recipe please...
Lesley.

Hello Leslie.Acanthus is very hardy and can take a lot of punishment. If you use the glycosphate (roundup) straight. Cut the top off each plant just above ground level and use this undiluted on a small artists paint brush. Put it on the cut surface before the sap can run or set. It must be done one plant at a time so they don,t dry before poisoning. I have found this will kill most plants that show resistance to the poison sprayed on the foliage.

Thankyou Species Nut, I will be out in the garden tomorrow and painting away. Will try it on a few other persistant blighters as well. I hadn't realised it could be such a pest..
Lesley

Lesley , that advice is good re, the glyphosate and I too use it on everything nasty. I have found though that the Acanthus is very stubborn. I planted some about 7 years ago. Didn't I think it was lovely and green ? A nice fill in. Ha. I dug it all out and thought I had gotten all but it kept coming back , so glyphosate. Next year more tiny leaves coming up, glyphosate again. I think it may be gone now after a few years of no leaves coming up. I have just used the glyphosate straight onto the leaves of another patch. I have found that the actual growing habit of the plant sometimes defeats the poison . If you dig a plant up you will see that it almost immediately has started to reproduce new plants from the roots, so as you spray one, the others may still survive.
After yours dies, I would carefully dig the area to check for any roots that look like they may still grow. It is a hardy plant in the right place as the roots do go very deep. I have mine now under the williow tree in the paddock, where it dies down every year and seems to be happy there. Jean

In one area it is under the house, that may prove more difficult as I can't get under there. If a root comes out I could put it in a flask with some w/killer in it , that may work. Worth a try eh.
Lesley.

Go to it Lesley. We have to be more stubborn than the plants sometimes, to get rid of the pests. I have seen the Acanthus growing in the centre of Melbourne in the brick planter areas out in front of buildings. It seems the perfect place as it can't go anywhere and thrives , making a nice little green oasis. There is also a great lot of it around the big sinkhole gardens in Mt Gambier. Looks great there too and can do its own thing. Jean