elephant grass I think

[unknownjulie]

I have huge mounds of grass where ever I put cinder and soil. They seem to grow 4 feet in a week. I knew about albezias but this grass looks like it might be even worse then them. Pulling it out or using poison isnt really practical. I was thinking of just keeping it trimmed down somehow.

[kalakoa]

I've heard it called "cane-grass". This is probably the same stuff. It's all bad. If nothing else, control the spread by keeping it from going to seed.

[unknownjulie]

Yeah, I'm bringing out my clippers the next time I go out there. I'm not sure it's the same stuff as "cane grass". It appears to be some kind of decrative clumping grass, gone wild. It has very pretty tufts of seeds on the tops that wave gracefully in the wind.

[fishnchamp1]

Grows 4 feet in a week? Sounds like Megathyrsus maximus... up to 9000 seeds per plant! That stuff can spread like wildfire. Get a goat to maintain it cause not even a blowtorch will kill it..

William DeBoe
Boca Raton, FL
Honomu, HI sometime 2015
Moe'uhane Oihana mahi ai

[unknownjulie]

Yep, it was only a week, or maybe a little more and whammo! I had clumps of 4 foot tall grass taking over. NUts. I need to go out there again and reassess, and maybe I'll do that today, because it's going to kill everything I've planted. LUckily, I have very little cinder or soil that I put down, and a good portion of my lot is still undisturbed jungle.

[unknownjulie]

thankyou fishnchamp. I just went to look a the photos. I think that is exactly what the grass is. EVidently, it's in Orchidland.

[csgray]

If this is the non native grass that is all over the Kona side it loves fire, so a blowtorch would just encourage it!

Carol

[unknownjulie]

I chopped some down with an ax. Let's see how long it takes to regrow. I got it away from my fruit trees at least (sort of)

[rainyjim]

Hi Julie,

This elephant grass will be a constant issue until you dig it up and eradicate by making sure you've removed the entire root-ball. It is very difficult work to remove requiring a mattocks or pick - I wouldn't bother with a shovel. I recommend removing and replacing with a sort of ground cover that you would be happy looking at. I recommend sweet potato and perennial peanut as ground covers.

I know goats will eat this elephant grass so you could try an alternative approach.

It's probably an issue to get all that work done (it's hard manual labor to remove) with how busy you probably are, but I really urge you to deal with the issue now before it gets any worse...that grass is hard to control!

Aloha mai kakou

[unknownjulie]

The grass grew in where I had a good cover of perrenial peanut already established. Yep, will keep working at controlling the grass. It will not be easy. I am just glad I only really have a few areas where it appears to be growing happily. I left enough of the lot undisturbed, or without cinder- luckily. But, this is still a PIA.