People who buy them do not realized they take over and interfere with bird and animal habitat. They are beautiful in yards, but they don't stay there. I designed a garden for a television studio and planted a pampas grass plant that grew so big the fronds covered half a parking space. At maturity the fronds were like razors and actually scratched the paint on cars. Eventually no one could use that parking space. I was called to remove it. We tried cutting it down with a chain saw and it bucked the chain saw away and snarled the chain. We then cut the fronds with pruning shears and poisoned it down through the root ball which is huge, over two feet in circumference, and fibrous. It took several applications. In the end, we still had to get a backhoe to dig it out. What a nightmare. I just took a trip on the coastal route from Washington State to California's Big Sur, the first time in 20 years. I was shocked at the plantations of growth of both Australian pampas grass and scotch broom. It is relentless. Worse in Washington and Oregon than California. I've seen where business owners in parking lots have tried to eliminate the stuff, by cutting it back when still young with moderate success. It will seed under and between established shrubs and can overtake them making it an expensive decision, dig up both old and new to get rid of the invader. Yet, nurseries sell these invaders and people keep planting them. Someday, the expense to get rid of them will be necessary. Its time to do something now before it gets worse. Mary Matzek