Knowledgebase
Yucca Roots In Garden Bed #742207
Asked April 02, 2021, 5:30 PM EDT
Hi, I had landscapers remove a bunch of yucca plants in a bed alongside my house last year (see attached picture to see a portion of that bed before the landscaping work). A few weeks ago I noticed some sprouts poking through the dirt. I tried to dig out what I could but it looks like there is still an extensive root network deep under the soil (second attached picture shows what I managed to dig up, I dug about 8"-12" deep).
How do you recommend I handle this situation? I assume I will see new yucca sprouts each year from those deep roots - am I ok to just dig the sprouts out before the turn into big plants? Or will this bed eventually get overwhelmed unless I dig out a couple feet of soil to remove everything that's left? Could there be a risk to the foundation of my house? Will there be a problem trying to plant ground cover plants in this bed?
Thank you!
Wayne County Michigan
Expert Response
Hello Rebecca
Cut the yucca leaves off at ground level and paint with the active ingredient glyphosate or the active ingredient triclopyr ( often marketed as a brush killer, many brands) on the cut stem as soon as you make the cut. Do not wait more than 2 minutes before painting or spraying on the chemical herbicide, or you will have to make a fresh cut and treat that cut.
As always, please read the label of any garden product you use, and follow all precautions. Remember to protect skin and eyes when using chemicals.
Persistence will be required. As soon as you see the first indications of growth, re-treat them. This helps the herbicide get into the roots as much as possible. Roots cannot survive without leafy top growth. But these thick roots do have stored up energy. That means they will continue to resprout for awhile, so you will need to monitor and treat.
As long as you are willing to cut and treat the sprouts while your ground cover is nearby, you can plant your ground cover. It may take 2-3 seasons to kill all the yucca roots.
An alternative idea is to mulch the space while monitoring and killing yucca sprouts, and place a line of decorative containers with plants in the space. If you do something like this, remember to look under the containers for sprouting yucca. Once the sprouts stop you can then plant the ground cover.
Thank you so much, that's super helpful information!
Glad to help, and good luck
