Get bloomin' great results
Our product tests & advice help you get the garden you want. Subscribe for only £4.99 a month or £49 a year.
Join Which? GardeningCancel anytime
By clicking a retailer link you consent to third-party cookies that track your onward journey. This enables W? to receive an affiliate commission if you make a purchase, which supports our mission to be the UK's consumer champion.
How to get rid of bindweed
This fast-growing weed is tricky to remove, thanks to its thick white roots
which resprout if not killed
Ceri studied horticulture at the University of Reading and RHS Wisley. She edits Which? Gardening magazine and our online gardening content.
Bindweed’s strong stems rapidlyscramble into any nearby plant and can smother weaker specimens. Like many troublesome weeds, it develops storage roots, which form thick tangles of fat white threads just below the surface, but possibly up to a metre down. If exposed to light, the roots turn green and develop into stems, and the smallest piece can create a whole plant.
The white-flowered hedge bindweed scrabbles up border plants and overwhelmed border plants. Pink-flowered field bindweed is more of a problem in grass or bare soil.
Breathe new life into your outside spaces. Sign up for our Gardening newsletter, it's free monthly
What is the best method for controlling bindweed?
When Which? Gardening magazine trialled methods of controlling bindweed, we found that there are no easy wins, as bindweed grows so intimately with other plants that it’s almost impossible to eradicate without causing collateral damage. We suggest a three-pronged approach based on a combination of our most successful results. Firstly, dig out all the roots you can easily reach; this significantly reduced the number of stems we treated and cut the amount of bindweed the following spring. Encourage the bindweed stems you can’t dig out to grow up canes, away from the foliage of other plants so you can kill off the weed entirely by applying glyphosate. Glyphosate gel is the best choice here; it was the only weedkiller that didn’t splash onto ornamental plants and cause damage in our trial.
Are there concerns about glyphosate use?
The main concern is that glyphosate can cause cancer. A second concern is the negative effect glyphosate use has on bee health. However it is legal to use.
What is the best organic control for bindweed?
Dig out as much bindweed as you can and keep digging up the bits that sprout from the roots you’ll inevitably leave behind.
Can a heavy-duty weedkiller kill bindweed?
Avoid using a heavy-duty weedkiller, such as Vitax SBK, which caused substantial damage to nearby ornamental plants from accidental splashes.
Try a weed supressing membrane