[bobbiehpvb]

Help! We just built a new house in northeast Florida that had air potatoes in some shrubs on the side of the property. (It's an invasive vine that grows faster than Kudzu from little potato-looking spheres that range in size from a large orange to a marble.) We thought we had got rid of them all, but obviously not, because when the builder graded the property, they got pulled out into the yard and were buried. They are now coming up from under the sod. Short of digging every one out by hand (there are hundreds), does anyone know of a spray or other method that can be used to kill them?

[tallrick]

You won't kill the air potatoes with a herbicide without killing the sod. As long as the vines can't climb up anything, you can just mow them down and in a year they will be gone. There are two types of air potatoes, the round style and the turd style. The round ones are the most difficult to get rid of.

[Prichard]

Oh ya, I know that vine! I had a problem with it in a previous house I lived in. Between those darned "potatos" and another very invasive vine that looked like poison ivy, it took me several years to completely eradicate both.

They were very thick in a particular part of my yard. I would spray "Brush Begone" on them in the summer and spring; and then in the winter time, I'd pull them up when they were dormant. They had root systems that ran across my entire yard, it was unbelievable how invasive they were.

Between pulling and spraying Brush Begone on them, I finally eradicated them 100%. Brush Begone will kill anything it touches, including small trees. I remember having to make sure that I got all of those potatos when they sprouted, otherwise they would just plant themselves and grow another system.

I'm afraid that if someone dug up a bunch of those potato vines, burried them and then planted good sod over them, you are in for a heck of time with this. If you know that those potatos are burried all under your yard, you are probably going to have to dig them up by hand as they sprout, or dig up your whole yard, remove the noxious root systems and treat the entire area before putting down new sod. Check with a profiessional on this, maybe there's a better way that I don't know about.

[TriMT7]

Well, if you can't get rid of the problem, learn to enjoy it by asking one of the more rowdy neighborhood teenage boys who've lived in Florida for a while what a "potato gun" is!!

[tallrick]

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/lands/invaspec/2ndlevpgs/pdfs/airpotato-ifas.pdf (broken link)

There is also a native variety, They exist at my parent's home and cause no harm. I am glad you reminded me of this plant, as I had some here that had come from my parent's home and a search this morning revealed none of them left.

I like the idea of the spud launcher, get a 2 or 3 inch pipe, some propane, two fence clamps and wood for a handle...and a BBQ piezo igniter and have fun! Bad thing, the Government may prosecute you for spreading an invasive plant...LOL! Oh and having fun is illegal in Florida unless you do Government approved and taxed activities.

Trust me, I have a lot of experience with this plant and it will die out of your lawn. Just keep it from going vertical and your problem will resolve itself.

[Suncoaster]

I hate this noxious thing. It's quite invasive, but Tallrick is right - if it has nothing to climb up, and if you can simply mow over it, that will take care of the problem.

Roundup does kill air potato, but it will kill any part of your sod that it touches.

We have this nasty stuff here. It grows up the power poles, up the trees and fences and can't be gotten rid of. I had a little garden in the back yard which was constantly infested with this vine. I got tired of pulling it repeatedly, only to have it reappear. So I got rid of the garden, put in sod and just mow it. It still climbs the fence however.

[tallrick]

http://www.fleppc.org/ID_book/Dioscorea%20alata.pdf

This is the "native" type. It exists at my parents home and also planted at my home. Beautiful vine and nowhere near as bad as the bulbous air potato. In my parents yard it has lived on only one tree for 20 years.

[bobbiehpvb]

Thanks to all for the replies and advice. I have tried the Brush B Gone on them in the unplanted future flower bed areas and we will see what happens. I talked to the guy who mows the grass and he said the same thing -- keep mowing them down and they should die out because the leaves can't absorb nutrients, which is a good thing because the sod is so thick, I can't dig through it.

I was born and raised in Florida and had three brothers, so I am familiar with potato guns. Hmmmmm. We live next to a preserve, marsh-type area so I am trying to make sure they don't make it into the water. Otherwise we are liable to end up with another water hyacinth debacle, choking all the waterways.

I don't remember these being here when I was growing up in northeast Florida.

[Suncoaster]

I think the vines started getting more established in the 80s (?) - we didn't notice them here until the very early 90's, now I'm seeing more and more of this pest vine. Down in Coral Gables, I even noticed it growing in some trees at Fairchild (the big tropical garden), sad to say.

And it's great that you're concerned about preventing this stuff from escaping into the preserve. It's terrible for native vegetation - it can even smother trees.

[bbshif]

We live in South Miami, and as much as I try getting rid of any potatoe vine I see growing on our fence, it comes from our neighbors side and they don't do anything about it. Is there a local government organization I could contact that would send them a letter regarding this problem.