Asian (Asiatic) Jasmine

If you've lived in, or even visited, DFW for any real length of time, you've seen asian jasmine.  It's everywhere.  Any place someone doesn't want to maintain very well and is all by itself in a boxed area or even lining sidewalks, this stuff is used like a cure all.  But it's far from it.

Asian jasmine will take over areas before you know what happened.  Sure you think it's nicely isolated by a five foot sidewalk, but no....  It will send roots under and vines over that sidewalk to reach the other side.  And then it will just keep on growing.  It's not as fast or invasive as kudzu or as entrenching as some bamboo but it's doing its best considering its size.

So is it always a bad idea to grow asian jasmine?  No, but you have to keep in mind what it is and the time it will take to keep it under control.  I've seen it used very well around trees where grass won't grow and kept there with a beautiful lawn surrounding it.  You just have to keep at it.

That being said, if you do have lots of it growing and you want to replace it with say, a little garden.  You have to more or less cut down a ways and pull up the roots, sifting the dirt as best as you can to make sure it doesn't pop up and choke out a once thriving tomato plant.

Out of Control Plants

Three plants come to mind when people talk about a plant going out of control.
The first one is bamboo which really depends on the variety of bamboo and who you ask. Some people claim you can just kick over the new sprouts when you see them and it keeps it in check. I don't think I want to find out the hard way.
The second is kudzu. A very green and fast growing vine that has taken over many highways in Louisiana and is listed as an invasive plant in many of the southern states. It just doesn't get cold enough to keep it in check.
Asian jasmine though has to make the list as well. Although easy enough to pull up and get out of the pond when it creeps in, it's hard to get rid of every root if you are trying to get rid of it completely. It will come back with only one root and fill a bed in a season if you let it.

Of these I only grow a little bamboo in a pot since it won't try climbing over the edge and trail across the yard or up a tree or through the holes in my fence.