Yes I know just what you mean. Our neighbour's garden presents a wall of bindweed when I look over the fence. Very tricky. I like your nod to special branch. Nice to think that one of them is reading gardener's world forum.
It's such a shame that your neighbours are not helpful. When I had the same problem 20 years ago, I did just pull up the fronds in my garden, and my neighbours did the spraying, as the bulk of the plant was on their grounds. It meant that they were able to finish off the plant in one shot without affecting bought plants. Might be a thought to contact the council noxious weeds dept just in case they can help.
The idea of the paintbrush is nice, for not getting the stuff on your hands, though perhaps a paintroller would be more the thing. The problem is that the fronds are so whippy, that you really need to grasp them to cost the surface with liquid.
Good luck anyway, Please do let us know how you get on.
I was thinking a bit more about this. I remembered that when our neighbour had bracken, though it crossed the fence into our herbaceous border, it didn't cross into our other neighbour's lawn. I don't know if it would be possible in your garden but if you could have lawn against the fence and your herbaceous border away from the fence, then it's possible that the bracken would not cross the mowed area.
Would you mind my asking what became of your bracken? I'm interested to know what you did and whether it worked.I have a similar problem just now with perennial rye grass that I need to get rid of in my garden. I don't like to use glyphosate, as it would need a lot to do the job, but I think it may come to that.
Put a plastic bottle with the bottom cut off over the bracken plant and spray into the bottle. If you can cover adjacent precious plants with flowerpots or dustbins they will be protected from any accidental drips and spray.
I haven't been well so the bracken has taken a back seat, so to speak. Nothing more has happened about it and of course now it's hard to see where it's been as I did pull up each frond as soon as I saw it.
It's not an option to move lawn or borders but next spring I will try the idea of the plastic bottle - provided there aren't too many coming through! I don't like the idea of glyphosate but I think that next season I will definitely have to do that, or it's just going to spread and I can't dig up the whole garden - it's too big as it is! I will start saving plastic bottles ready for action. Not sure how you get rid of rye grass - that isn' t the same as couch grass, is it?
Sorry to hear you haven't been well.I hop things look up for you. Pulling the fronds up is probably good scheme to just keep the annoyance at bay. You don't really need to finish it off, if you just want to be free of the above ground structures.
I think it will be glyphosate for the rye grass too.I've tried all the organic options and the rotten stuff refuses to go. I have to choose between creating an entirely grass-free garden design, or glyphosating the lot. Tricky business.
I'm reading this and thinking about the large clump of bracken in my tiny garden and, yes, it butts up against lawn and goes no further. One side is up against the garage base, the other against several inches of slaye and the back against the fence so all in all it appears to be contained. Glad I read this though as I was planning to extend the border upto the fern which I now won't do.
Sorry people. I looked at this site for help because my late parents' lawn is being invaded by bracken from the neighbouring How. So, grass is not impervious to the hateful stuff. Am I right in thinking the glyphosate will polish off the lawn too if I'm not careful?
Glyphosate will polish off almost anything I think, and you might like to read this thread before using it in any quantity.
Bracken is a real problem, I'm afraid, in farmland as well as gardens. On a more positive note, if the neighbour's not interested in his garden, how about volunteering to take it over, get rid of the bracken and double your cultivated area at a stroke? Double the work as well though
Posts
lol use a paint brush then
Hi wisehedgecrone,
Yes I know just what you mean. Our neighbour's garden presents a wall of bindweed when I look over the fence. Very tricky. I like your nod to special branch.
Nice to think that one of them is reading gardener's world forum. 
It's such a shame that your neighbours are not helpful. When I had the same problem 20 years ago, I did just pull up the fronds in my garden, and my neighbours did the spraying, as the bulk of the plant was on their grounds. It meant that they were able to finish off the plant in one shot without affecting bought plants. Might be a thought to contact the council noxious weeds dept just in case they can help.
The idea of the paintbrush is nice, for not getting the stuff on your hands, though perhaps a paintroller would be more the thing.
The problem is that the fronds are so whippy, that you really need to grasp them to cost the surface with liquid.
Good luck anyway, Please do let us know how you get on.
Hi,
I was thinking a bit more about this. I remembered that when our neighbour had bracken, though it crossed the fence into our herbaceous border, it didn't cross into our other neighbour's lawn. I don't know if it would be possible in your garden but if you could have lawn against the fence and your herbaceous border away from the fence, then it's possible that the bracken would not cross the mowed area.
Jen
Hi,
Would you mind my asking what became of your bracken? I'm interested to know what you did and whether it worked.I have a similar problem just now with perennial rye grass that I need to get rid of in my garden. I don't like to use glyphosate, as it would need a lot to do the job, but I think it may come to that.
Jen
Put a plastic bottle with the bottom cut off over the bracken plant and spray into the bottle. If you can cover adjacent precious plants with flowerpots or dustbins they will be protected from any accidental drips and spray.
Hi all
I haven't been well so the bracken has taken a back seat, so to speak. Nothing more has happened about it and of course now it's hard to see where it's been as I did pull up each frond as soon as I saw it.
It's not an option to move lawn or borders but next spring I will try the idea of the plastic bottle - provided there aren't too many coming through! I don't like the idea of glyphosate but I think that next season I will definitely have to do that, or it's just going to spread and I can't dig up the whole garden - it's too big as it is! I will start saving plastic bottles ready for action. Not sure how you get rid of rye grass - that isn' t the same as couch grass, is it?
Sorry to hear you haven't been well.I hop things look up for you. Pulling the fronds up is probably good scheme to just keep the annoyance at bay. You don't really need to finish it off, if you just want to be free of the above ground structures.
I think it will be glyphosate for the rye grass too.I've tried all the organic options and the rotten stuff refuses to go. I have to choose between creating an entirely grass-free garden design, or glyphosating the lot. Tricky business.
Jen
I'm reading this and thinking about the large clump of bracken in my tiny garden and, yes, it butts up against lawn and goes no further. One side is up against the garage base, the other against several inches of slaye and the back against the fence so all in all it appears to be contained. Glad I read this though as I was planning to extend the border upto the fern which I now won't do.
Sorry people. I looked at this site for help because my late parents' lawn is being invaded by bracken from the neighbouring How. So, grass is not impervious to the hateful stuff. Am I right in thinking the glyphosate will polish off the lawn too if I'm not careful?
Glyphosate will polish off almost anything I think, and you might like to read this thread before using it in any quantity.
Bracken is a real problem, I'm afraid, in farmland as well as gardens. On a more positive note, if the neighbour's not interested in his garden, how about volunteering to take it over, get rid of the bracken and double your cultivated area at a stroke? Double the work as well though