Is it normal for bamboo leaves to turn brown?

A customer who bought bamboo from us before the recent cold snap wrote to ask: 

Is it normal for the bamboo to brown in the winter?  All but the Golden Hedge now have brown leaves, following some rather bitterly cold nights we had last week and the week before.  The stalks still look basically the same.

 

Just wanted to see if something’s gone wrong.  I did avoid watering before the coldest nights for fear of freezing the roots, but otherwise they should have received plentiful water.

 

I replied:

You haven't done anything wrong.  The unusually cold weather has "burned" the leaves on many of the bamboos.  Those leaves will be falling off in the coming weeks and new leaves will form to take their place.  For information on which bamboos are most vulnerable to winter temperatures, please click on this post. 

Will the cold snap kill my bamboos?

Dwarf Buddha Belly leaves are beginning to die after being nipped by last week's freezing temperatures

Many people are worried about their bamboos.  People have been calling to ask what they should do to protect their bamboos during tonight's expected freeze.  Fortunately, most of the bamboos are going to be fine even if they are not protected at all.  All the running bamboos and most of the clumping bamboos can handle chilly weather - even when it dips into the mid to high 20s.  Certain ones are vulnerable but even those will rebound when the weather warms back up.  It is important to remember that even if the cold weather kills the above ground portions of the plant, it won't kill the roots.  The roots will remain viable and will send up new shoots again in the summer.

Here's a list of which plants are vulnerable:  all the Textilis bamboos like Emerald and Graceful are extremely hardy and won't be damaged unless temperatures dip into the mid to low teens.  That's also true for all the Multiplex bamboos like Golden Hedge, Green Hedge and Golden Goddess and also for Buddha Belly (Bambusa ventricosa).  Almost as hardy are Blue Timber, Baby Blue, Seabreeze and Yin Yang - those bamboos might suffer some leaf damage when temperatures dip into the low 20s. 

The ones to be concerned about in the current freeze are Dwarf Buddha, Hawaiian Gold, Angel Mist and Black bamboo.  To a slightly lesser degree, Ladyfinger, Asian Lemon, Giant Timber and Sunburst are also vulnerable.

A hand built black bamboo bicycle

Joel, a customer from Knoxville, Tennessee, sent pictures of his hand built bamboo bicycle using our Domestically Grown Designer Quality Polished Bamboo Poles. 

Joel's project required poles of very specific diameters : 1", 1 3/8", 1 3/4" and 1 1/4"

Building a bamboo bicycle requires poles of very specific diameters.  For most out-of-state customers we select the poles according to their specifications, package them up and ship by FedEx but it is always best if a customer can select the poles in person.  That's what Joel chose to do.  He drove to our nursery from Tennessee in order to hand-pick the black bamboo poles he wanted. He even brought along a cordless jigsaw and lots of blades to cut the poles down so they'd fit in the trunk of his car.

"I've finished the bamboo bike from the poles I picked out at your wonderful farm," Joel wrote in an email accompanying his photos.

When is the best time to plant bamboo?

Bamboo can be planted year round

 
People often ask when they should plant bamboo.  An email in today's inbox is typical:

I have a small area where I would like to plant bamboo for privacy purposes...the space is about 20 feet.  What is the best time to plant?

My response is that bamboo can be planted year round. 

Spring or summer is an immediate-gratification time to plant because you see above-ground growth soon, shortly after installation.

If planted in the fall/winter, you have to wait longer to see above-ground growth because new shoots emerge in the warm summer months.  But planting in the fall/winter also has its advantages.  It gives the roots a longer time to get established.

With bamboo, it's all about the roots.  Well established roots produce taller, larger diameter more plentiful shoots in the summer growing season.

Another Beautiful Bamboo wedding arbor

I recently received these pictures of an arbor built by one of our customers for their beach wedding:

A long view of the wedding arbor on the beach before the ceremony

Four upright poles, four cross poles plus two additional poles for added support in the back

Plenty of room underneath the arbor for everyone to fit