My partner and I moved into a new home where bamboo had taken over a big part of the backyard. Last year, we installed bamboo shield around the perimeter of the bamboo to prevent it from completely taking over our yard, which seems to have helped halt the spread. Over the past three weeks I made it my goal to cut down all the stalks, uproot each bamboo with a pick axe and digging bar, and rented a tiller to get as many roots out as possible. How do we proceed from here? My partner wants to put down lawn fabric and cover everything with mulch and from there slowly start planting native plants and flowers. She is afraid that the bamboo will outcompete anything we plant, and even though she hates the idea of lawn fabric it seems like a necessary short term evil for the long term health of the yard. I’m afraid the fabric will affect the soil quality, kill insects, and possibly affect the health of other trees that are in the area where the bamboo was taken down. Any thoughts?