# Adding and Removing Items

## Adding Menu Items

In order to add top level "main" menu items use the RadMenu.**Items** collection and the RadMenuItem.**Items** collection for sub menu items. Here are a few examples using overloads of the **RadMenuItem**. The first uses a parameter-less constructor, assigns the RadMenuItem.**Text** property and finally adds the menu item to the RadMenu.**Items** collection. The second example uses the easiest way to include and add menu items all at one time where a constructor that has a single string **Text** parameter. The last example uses a constructor with a second object **Tag** parameter that you can store any arbitrary data in.

> caption Figure 1: Adding Menu Items

![WinForms RadMenus Adding Menu Items](https://www.telerik.com/products/winforms/documentation/assets/61e2e9fcb58db22187797781d0b815c4/menus-menu-working-with-radmenu-items-adding-and-removing-items001.png)

#### Constructing and adding menu items

```C#
RadMenuItem cdItem = new RadMenuItem();
cdItem.Text = "CDs";
radMenu1.Items.Add(cdItem);
radMenu1.Items.Add(new RadMenuItem("Books"));
int someData = 123;
RadMenuItem dvdItem = new RadMenuItem("DVDs", someData);
radMenu1.Items.Add(dvdItem);
```

```VB.NET
Dim cdItem As New RadMenuItem()
cdItem.Text = "CDs"
RadMenu1.Items.Add(cdItem)
RadMenu1.Items.Add(New RadMenuItem("Books"))
Dim someData As Integer = 123
Dim dvdItem As New RadMenuItem("DVDs", someData)
RadMenu1.Items.Add(dvdItem)
```

## Adding Sub Menu Items

Adding sub menu items plays by the same rules as adding items to the RadMenu.**Items** collection except here we use the **Items** collection of another **RadMenuItem**. In the code example below a reference to the first menu item *Books* is retrieved and several **RadMenuItems** are added to the *Books* menu **Items** collection. Also notice that a **Click** event handler is attached to the last *Bargains* menu item.

> caption Figure 2: Adding Sub Menu Items

![WinForms RadMenus Adding Sub Menu Items](https://www.telerik.com/products/winforms/documentation/assets/997947301edf1e77c5fbc6c6f3324ddd/menus-menu-working-with-radmenu-items-adding-and-removing-items002.png)

```C#
void Form1_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    radMenu1.Items.Add(new RadMenuItem("Books"));
    RadMenuItem item = radMenu1.Items[0] as RadMenuItem;
    item.Items.Add(new RadMenuItem("Best Sellers"));
    item.Items.Add(new RadMenuItem("Reference Books"));
    RadMenuItem bargainItem = new RadMenuItem("Bargains");
    bargainItem.Click += new EventHandler(menuItem_Click);
    item.Items.Add(bargainItem);
}

void menuItem_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    RadMenuItem item = (sender as RadMenuItem);
    MessageBox.Show(item.Text + " was clicked.");
}
```

```VB.NET
Private Sub Form1_Load(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs)
    RadMenu1.Items.Add(New RadMenuItem("Books"))
    Dim item As RadMenuItem = TryCast(RadMenu1.Items(0), RadMenuItem)
    item.Items.Add(New RadMenuItem("Best Sellers"))
    item.Items.Add(New RadMenuItem("Reference Books"))
    Dim bargainItem As New RadMenuItem("Bargains")
    AddHandler bargainItem.Click, AddressOf menuItem_Click
    item.Items.Add(bargainItem)
End Sub

Private Sub menuItem_Click(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs)
    Dim item As RadMenuItem = (TryCast(sender, RadMenuItem))
    MessageBox.Show(item.Text & " was clicked.")
End Sub
```

## Adding a RadMenuComboItem

**RadMenuComboItems** are constructed with no parameters and then the ComboBoxElement.**Items** collection is used to populate the drop-down list.

> caption Figure 3: Adding Combo Item

![WinForms RadMenus Adding Combo Item](https://www.telerik.com/products/winforms/documentation/assets/47fd18f19383c9b7b6d5bac7966c3399/menus-menu-working-with-radmenu-items-adding-and-removing-items003.png)

#### Adding Combo Sub Item

```C#
RadMenuItem bargainItem = new RadMenuItem("Bargains");
RadMenuComboItem comboItem = new RadMenuComboItem();
comboItem.ComboBoxElement.Items.Add(new RadListDataItem("$5 - $10"));
comboItem.ComboBoxElement.Items.Add(new RadListDataItem("$10 - $20"));
comboItem.ComboBoxElement.Items.Add(new RadListDataItem("$20 - $50"));
bargainItem.Items.Add(comboItem);
radMenu1.Items.Add(bargainItem);
```

```VB.NET
Dim bargainItem As New RadMenuItem("Bargains")
Dim comboItem As New RadMenuComboItem()
comboItem.ComboBoxElement.Items.Add(New RadListDataItem("$5 - $10"))
comboItem.ComboBoxElement.Items.Add(New RadListDataItem("$10 - $20"))
comboItem.ComboBoxElement.Items.Add(New RadListDataItem("$20 - $50"))
bargainItem.Items.Add(comboItem)
RadMenu1.Items.Add(bargainItem)
```

## Performance

For best performance when performing long running operations, such as loading a number of menu items from a database, call the **BeginInit()** and **EndInit()** methods to suspend layout of the menu.

#### Suspending the layout

```C#
radMenu1.BeginInit();
// ... perform operations
radMenu1.EndInit();
```

```VB.NET
RadMenu1.BeginInit()
' ... perform operations
RadMenu1.EndInit()
```

## Removing Menu Items

Remove items from the items collection using **Remove()** or **RemoveAt()** methods. **RemoveAt()** takes integer position of the item in the collection, **Remove()** takes a reference to the menu item to be removed.

#### Removing items

```C#
// remove second item in collection
radMenu1.Items.RemoveAt(1);
// Remove the zero-ith ite
radMenu1.Items.Remove(radMenu1.Items[0]);
```

```VB.NET
' remove second item in collection
RadMenu1.Items.RemoveAt(1)
' Remove the zero-ith ite
RadMenu1.Items.Remove(RadMenu1.Items(0))
```

## See Also

* [RadMenuItem](https://www.telerik.com/products/winforms/documentation/controls/menus/menu/working-with-radmenu-items/radmenuitem)
* [Nesting Controls in Menu Items](https://www.telerik.com/products/winforms/documentation/controls/menus/menu/working-with-radmenu-items/nesting-controls-in-menu-items)