How Much Does Bamboo Removal Cost?

The average cost for bamboo removal is around $875, with most homeowners paying between $450 to $1,300 to rid their yards of bamboo. Most landscapers and removal experts charge per bamboo plant. The going rate is between $100 and $200 for each plant that needs removal. "Baby" bamboo plants may cost as little as $50 each. Factors like the number of bamboo plants, digging conditions, bamboo density, bamboo height, and where your bamboo is on the property can have a big impact on the overall costs.

Bamboo Removal Costs Overview

Most landscapers charge between $50 and $200 per bush.

A bamboo removal project in a typical residential property can take anywhere from a few hours to four days based on the number of plants removed from your yard.

Some contractors prefer to charge by the hour instead of by plant. Costs per hour for bamboo removal range from $25 to $80. An hourly rate should factor in driving time, travel expenses, materials, and contractor insurance.

While some contractors bundle hauling fees into your hourly rate, others may charge extra. Hauling and dumping fees typically total between $25 and $100.

Cost Factors for Bamboo Removal

Several factors will determine how much you can expect to pay for bamboo removal. First, an initial site visit by a local landscaper or tree removal pro in your area will give you an idea of the intricacy and cost of your project. 

Other factors include location, bamboo type, size, removal method, accessibility, and the estimated completion time. You should budget anywhere from $400 to $2,400 for this project.

Digging Conditions

The price you’ll pay will partly depend on your soil’s hardness—silty soil is soft and easy to dig up, whereas clay soil is difficult to dig up.

Costs will depend on these digging conditions:

• Prices will rise if your bamboo roots have grown under concrete, fencing, wood, or other materials that require excavation.

• If your soil has good drainage, digging out bamboo roots will be easier.

• Your cost will vary depending on whether you use hand tools (more time, more expensive) or heavy machinery (less time, less money).

To effectively remove bamboo plants, you must remove the rhizomes (the roots). Removing roots is most effectively done by digging up the area being careful to remove all roots.

You should expect to dig down at least 1 to 3 feet below ground to grind up the rhizomes. With more complex soil, this dig will be more challenging, and you can expect to pay more for the process.

Property Size/Scope

The size of your property will determine how much time and labor it will take to remove your bamboo. Another factor to consider is the scope of your project—how much bamboo has overtaken your yard and how invasive it has become.

For a half-day of bamboo removal, you can expect to spend $400; a full day averages $800.

Bamboo Height

The higher your bamboo plant, the longer it will take to remove, especially if your rapidly growing bamboo extends into a neighbor’s yard. 

Also, bamboo spreads as it grows, so you’ll have to account for removing the height and all of the sprouted underground rhizomes that accompany that growth.

Taller bamboo plants are more challenging and time-consuming to remove, so you’ll want to budget for additional removal days along with yearly removals to prevent regrowth.

Bamboo Density

Bamboo grows fast and wide—especially if you don’t prune or thin the stalks once a year. Bamboo density depends on: 

• Bamboo planted 3–5 ft. apart forms a more dense screen than those planted 5–20 ft. apart. 

• Clumping bamboo grows 1–2 ft. per year, and running bamboo grows 3–5 ft. per year, on average.

• With at least 5 hours of direct sunlight, watering, and fertilizing, a bamboo plant’s underground rhizomes can spread rapidly without annual root pruning.

So, if your bamboo plant has robust growth, dense spacing, and deep rhizomes, you can expect to pay more for removal.

Time Involved

After a pro performs a site visit, you’ll better understand the total cost for your bamboo removal project. 

If you remove bamboo shoots before they overgrow, you’ll save money on time and labor. If you have overgrown bamboo, you can expect to pay more for removal due to the challenges associated with rapidly spreading bamboo plants. 

These challenges include:

• Type: Between running and clumping bamboo, running is the hardest to tame and remove because it spreads faster and wider than clumping. You can tack on additional time for removing running bamboo.

• Grow back: It can take years with diligent pruning, containing, and pesticides to fully remove bamboo plants.

• Sturdiness: Bamboo plants are naturally sturdy, making them more difficult to cut down.

• Deep roots: If your project requires hand tools to chop the rhizomes instead of excavation, the process will take longer due to bamboo roots growing horizontally and downward by 1–3 ft.

• Accessibility: If your bamboo plants are in an area that’s difficult to reach, you’ll pay more for the time and labor costs.

For a multi-day, labor-intensive bamboo removal, you can expect to pay up to $2,400.

Bamboo Removal Costs Near You

Costs for bamboo removal services around the country typically follow the same price patterns for general landscaping. Here's a look at some average costs for bamboo removal around the country.

Why You Should Hire a Bamboo Removal Pro

While it’s not necessarily difficult to remove bamboo yourself, completely eradicating it from your property will be next to impossible without help from a landscaping expert. We also suggest hiring a junk removal service to carry the bamboo away, ensuring it doesn’t sprout new roots and start growing all over again while you wait to dispose of it. Because of the extensive process required to completely get rid of bamboo, you should always leave this job to an expert.

Here’s why it’s ideal to hire a bamboo removal pro

Working with a pro to remove bamboo from your property has a few key benefits, such as:

• Ensuring the complete removal of bamboo from the property

• Complete the bamboo removal much more quickly

• Get access to long-term guarantees to remove any future bamboo growth

• Ensure safety when working with heavy machinery and other equipment

• Guarantee the bamboo is disposed of responsibly

Additional Bamboo Removal Methods 

Digging up the rhizomes is the most effective way to remove bamboo, but there are a couple of alternatives that work on their own or in conjunction with digging to get bamboo out of your yard.

Herbicides

Spraying bamboo with certain herbicides can weaken and kill the plant over time. The most common one to use is glyphosate, which is a key ingredient in Roundup. Make sure to spray the bamboo directly, either on the chute, stump, or leaves, as spraying it into the soil can poison nearby plants.

Vinegar

The acetic acid in vinegar can successfully eradicate bamboo, but it’s a long process that requires routine spraying over a few years. Some homeowners prefer this route because vinegar, particularly white distilled vinegar, is a natural herbicide as opposed to one with synthetic chemicals.

Boiling Water

One more surprising—but long-term—removal tactic is to cut bamboo down to stumps, dig up the roots, and pour boiling water onto them. The heat should make it easier to remove the plants, also over a period of years.

Elisa Greenberg contributed to this article.