Bamboo and Shoe…

First-time bamboo growers are always excited by the explosive growth of their baby ‘boos.  Many send photos to document the plant’s daily increase in size but customer Gary Davids, a wedding photographer in the Orlando area, came up with one of the most creative ways we’ve seen in a long time to measure the emerging bamboo “shoe-ts”…

“Hi Sherry, As promised here is an updated photo showing the Sea Breeze with many new shoots. The shoot on the left of the shoe is only 7 days old while the one on the right is only 3 days old.”

Our Homegrown Green Bamboo Poles Draw Attention at Convention Show

Bill Overland of Overland Designs recently purchased assorted lengths and diameters of our freshly cut homegrown bamboo poles to use in displays at an Orlando-based convention.  He sent us the following email: 

“Back from the show which was was very successful.  The client loved the bamboo creations and I've attached a picture of one of them for your website.”

Bill’s use of large diameter bamboo poles as a stand-alone decoration has become very popular in home decor.  Freshly cut bamboo stays green for several weeks before fading to a warm rice color.  Even as dried poles, the bamboo adds beauty and originality to any interior, whether residential or commercial.

A Kissimmee resident takes the first step in creating a living hedge

Jason, a customer from Kissimmee, wants to block the view of a two-story house from the home he's renovating in downtown Kissimmee.  He planted his first bamboo yesterday, a 3-gal Seabreeze, with the intention of adding more bamboos to the landscape as the weeks go by.  Below is a photo he sent with his comments:

"hey guys, thank you for all your help yesterday! im excited about my new seabreeze and cant wait to see it take off. here is a pic right after i planted it. thanks again!" 

If, like Jason, you're intention is to create a living hedge but time and budget restraints won't permit you to install all the bamboos at once, you can still plant individual plants without worrying that the hedge will look uneven.  Bamboo planted at different times will catch up to each other.  After three years in the ground, all clumping bamboos will have grown to close to their mature height.  New larger diameter canes will keep emerging each summer but after the third year, those new canes will only be a few inches taller than the previous year's growth. 

Hello Doli! - Before and After photos of Bambusa dolichomerithalla "Silverstripe"

These "Before and After" photos just arrived in my inbox from Orlando-area customer, Andy Roy.  

Hi, Sherry,

I thought I'd share a couple of pics on the 1-year anniversary of our first bamboo planting.  I put these 3 gallon bambusa dolichomerithalla "Silverstripe" in the ground last May.  They put up shoots through November, but didn't manage to fill out with leaves until the last month or so.  Amazing transformation!  If they were just a touch taller, we'd already have all the shade we are looking for.  By next year, it will be mission accomplished for sure. So far, no new shoots this spring. 

Below: May 2009 from the deck

Below: May 2010 from the deck

 

Above: May 2009 from the yard

Below: May 2010 from the yard 

The bamboo Andy planted, Bambusa dolichomerithalla "Silverstripe", is a clumping variety that we have since phased out of production.  Although it forms a lovely stand and is cold hardy, this particular bamboo looks very similar to several of our other cold-hardy clumpers.  In our effort to make the selection process simpler for customers, we chose to discontinue propagating this particular cultivar.  We still have a limited number of 7-gal and 15-gal "Doli's" available at half their regular price.  If you are interested, call or email for more information.  Sherry@beautifulbamboo.com

 

What can you build out of bamboo? How about a beautiful wet bar!

Beautiful Bamboo customer and local craftsman, Teron June, used our Domestically Grown, Designer Quality Bamboo Poles to construct a wet bar for a client and sent along the following photos of the finished project.

Elephant Leg Bamboo Poles

The two poles on the right are freshly cut Moso poles that have not been kiln dried or hand torched like the four poles on the left.  Green poles are available by special order only.

Notice how the space between the nodes changes from bottom to top.  Toward the base, the space between the nodes is only a couple inches wide but toward the top the space is a half-a-foot or more.

Go Wild over our Spotted Leopard Bamboo Poles

If you are looking for a bamboo pole that's not like most poles, take a peek at what we call Spotted Leopard  Bamboo Poles.  Culled from our own groves of Vivax Running Bamboo, The canes of Spotted Leopard Bamboo Poles are light colored - almost white - with black spots spaced irregularly throughout their length.   These poles make an interesting addition to displays of bamboo canes in large vases or urns.  They work well as windchimes or for interior or exterior decoration.  Because the poles tend to bend or arch slightly, they are best reserved for projects that don't require straight or uniform poles.

Spotted Leopard Bamboo Poles vary in diameter from about 1" to 2". 

'Chunky Monkey' - Bamboo poles with character

Amazing 'Before and After' photos

I just received this email from customers in the Orlando area who bought Seabreeze and Graceful clumping bamboos from us in 2008 to shield their backyard from a neighbor's home that was being built right along their fence line.

Sherry,

We are happy with how much our bamboo has grown these past 2 years.  It gives us the privacy, beauty and serenity we were looking for.

Attached is a recent photo and another photo from planting 2 years ago along with a photo prior to planting.  Such an improvement!  Sorry it took so long to send - 3 kids will keep you busy.

We are really enjoying the pool and our view. It is really relaxing and we now spend lots of time outside.  

Hope all is well.  Happy Mother's Day! 

Lisa and Wes

Above:  Before planting - a new house is being built next door

Below:  Right after planting - the new house is looming larger but the bamboo is in the ground right along the fence line.

Below:  Two Years Later - you can't even tell that the neighbor's house is there.  The bamboo hedge completely hides the neighboring building while adding beauty and a tropical feel to the backyard.

The excitement of watching bamboo grow!

I just received this email and photo from Gary, a customer who is growing clumping bamboo for the first time:

Hi Sherry,

We purchased 6 pots of bamboo from you and planted them on 4/1/10. Yesterday morning they looked the same as the day we planted them. Just like you said, here is the first shoot to appear in one day. 6 to 8 inches tall. Thanks.-Gary

Bamboo is an exciting plant to grow, especially if you've never grown it before.  When the new shoots begin to emerge in May, they develop so quickly.  Just as Gary said, one day you look outside and see no new shoots and the next day a bamboo shoot has popped out of the ground and is already several inches tall.  By the end of the week that baby 'boo will be several feet tall and in less than two months it will have reached its full height. 

How long do I have to keep watering my bamboo?

On May 4th I received an email from a customer in Orlando who bought bamboo from us over a year ago: 

My neighbor asked if my bamboo will always need to be watered. (The sprinkler is on as I write this.) I told him that when the rainy season has arrived, then I needn’t water, but that during the dry season – even after the bamboo is established – I’ll need to water twice a day. Am I correct?

By the way, the bamboo is finally becoming truly a privacy wall, though, surprisingly, I’ve not yet had any new canes this year. I did fertilize two weeks ago.

My response:

New canes will be appearing soon.  May - November is the time to see above-ground growth.  About the watering, after a year you can stop watering your plants entirely if you wish but they will grow bigger faster if given regular water as you've been doing.  Once the bamboos fill in to a point where you are happy with their look, you can cut back severely on irrigating.  We have mature clumps of bamboo all around our property that we never water and they are doing just fine. 

In this picture our son Toby (how little he was in 2004!) is standing next to a 10-year-old stand of Bambusa multiplex silverstripe (Green Hedge Clumping Bamboo).  We gave the hedge regular water for the first couple years but since then it hasn't been irrigated at all.