Is Winter a Good Time to Plant Bamboo?

A perspective customer from Orlando, FL writes:
I am considering getting my partner a bamboo plant for Christmas. Is this a good time to plant or should I wait until spring?

My response:
Bamboos can be planted year round. Each season has its own advantage. Bamboos planted in the winter have more time to develop strong root systems in their new location and a well-established root system is one of the most important factors in determining how many new shoots will appear in the summer growth season.

If you wait until spring or summer, you will see new growth almost immediately. That can be very gratifying especially for first-time bamboo growers who are not yet familiar with bamboo growth patterns. But it is also important to note that a bamboo planted in the spring will usually produce smaller and fewer canes during that first growing season than a bamboo planted in the winter, which would have had several months to develop a strong root system.