What to do when canes overhang a neighbor's yard

A customer who planted a hedge of Graceful Clumping Bamboo along his property line several years ago recently wrote with the following question:  

Our clumping bamboo is growing really well, but starting to hang into our neighbors yard,  should I cut the offending canes in the middle or at the ground level to prevent this in the future?

My response:
You can cut the overhanging canes anywhere but I usually like to cut them off at the base for aesthetic reasons.  However, trimming existing canes won't stop new shoots which come up around the base to grow tall and eventually do the same thing - overhanging the neighbor's yard.  The only way to prevent that is to knock over the new shoots coming up on your neighbor's side so they won't grow tall.  When bamboo gets to the stage your has, it needs maintenance once a year.  Remember that the growing season continues through November so new canes will keep coming up.  We suggest doing a pruning once in the late winter before the growing season begins and then knocking over unwanted new shoots as they appear during the spring-summer-fall.

Bamboo leafs out from top to bottom

Gerry, a customer from Islamorada, FL wrote to say:
The hedge bamboo we bought from you is doing great.  There are lots of new shoots coming out of the ground and it's getting tall with a lot of full growth on the upper third of the stem. Is it OK to "top off" the tallest ones in order to encourage new leaves near the bottom, or should we wait for it to fill in on its own?

My response:
I would suggest waiting a little while longer, Gerry.  New bamboo shoot grow tall quickly then take their time leafing out beginning at the top and working their way down to the bottom.  Keep in mind that the above-ground growing season continues until November so you can expect many, many more new shoots to emerge before then.  Your clumps will be full and leafy by the end of the year.  At that point, if there are any canes that are bare at the bottom but leafy at the top, you can top them to encourage new lower leaf growth.  Keep in mind though that once a bamboo cane is topped, that cane will never grow any taller. 

New shoots begin to leaf out from the top and work their way down toward the bottom, a process that takes several months to complete.

Peak into the "office" at Beautiful Bamboo

The bamboo gazebo at Beautiful Bamboo

After greeting customers who come to Beautiful Bamboo nursery, the first thing we do is head to our outdoor office - a beautiful bamboo gazebo made out of the bamboo poles sold here at the nursery.  While sitting beneath the gazebo's thatched roof listening to the music of bamboo wind chimes, we take a few minutes to find out about each customer's individual landscape needs.  

Are the customers seeking privacy from obtrusive neighbors or trying to block unsightly objects or buildings?  Are they are in the market for ornamental plantings or looking to create a hedge?  If they are seeking a living fence, how long an area are they trying to cover and how wide a space can the bamboo fill?  Are there any overhead wires we need to know about?  Is irrigation in place?  The answers to these and other questions help us determine which of the many different varieties of bamboo will work best in their particular situation.  

In many ways my son, husband and I are not just bamboo growers but matchmakers trying to put together the perfect union of plant and people.  Marriage is for the long term and so are bamboos.  It is essential, right from the start, to select the correct bamboos.  That's why we start each visit with a free consultation in our lovely outdoor office. 

What kind of running bamboo will grow in NY?

Running bamboos like cold climates.  They will grow taller and have larger diameter canes if grown in cold climates instead of warm ones.  Although this stand of Vivax running bamboo is covered in icicles during the winter of 2009, it wasn't damaged at all. 

A visitor to our website from NY wrote to ask:

Hi. Do you have bamboos that will withstand NY winters? How many plants do you recommend to start? Thank you.

My response:
All of our running bamboos will grow in your area.  Look at the pictures and descriptions on our running bamboo page to find the ones you like best.  It is not a problem to plant several types together and let them run into each other.

How many you begin with depends on how quickly you want to form a hedge. We began most of our long hedgerows of running bamboo with one plant but we were willing to wait several years for them to expand sufficiently to form a hedge.  

This double hedge of our Green Hedge Running bamboo (Semiarundinaria fastuosa viridis) was initially established on only one side of the path.  We started with 3-gal size plants spaced 10 feet apart.  It took several years, but eventually the space between the plants filled in and not too long after, shoots began traveling across the path.  Today we have a lovely hedge on both sides of a path that we keep clear by mowing.

Running bamboos are easy to divide once the initial plant starts sending out shoots.  Once the shoots have grown up and leafed out they can be dug up and relocated into the hedge line.  I'd suggest starting with 4-6 plants spaced 5' apart to form a hedge a bit quicker. 

These connected young shoots of Red Running Bamboo (Semiarudinaria fastuosa) are ready to be divided and transplanted.

We ship 3-gal plants, 2 plants per 48" x 12" x 12" box.  In order to provide you with an accurate quote, we need to how many plants and which varieties you wish to order, your address w/zip code, phone # and whether the parcel will be delivered to a home or business location (it is slightly less expensive to ship to commercial locations).  Once we have that information we can send you a quote including shipping.  If you decide to go ahead with the order we accept payment by credit card. When the bamboo is shipped we email you a tracking number. 

How do I know if I'm watering too much?

Bamboo leaves that are receiving adequate water are flat and open

While the leaves of the same type of bamboo (in this case, yellow groove running bamboo) getting insufficient water curl inward

I received this email today:

We have had our bamboo in the ground for about 3 weeks now, Seabreeze and Vivax.  I have the spray emitters I purchased from you on the 12 Seabreeze and have been watering the Vivax by hand.  After reading the internet and your blog I am finding conflicting information on watering.  In one of your recent posts it said water as much as possible during daylight hours.  Another spot on your site I read 30 min twice daily when new.  

Other places on the net vary from every other day to once a week after established. Due to our current schedule, I have been watering with the spray emitters for about an hour a day, sometimes longer in the afternoon and then a good soaking with the hose on the Vivax.  I have mulched the plants with leaves and the soil remains damp until the next watering.  I am seeing a lot of new growth on the current canes so I assume I am giving enough water. 

I think my main concern is over watering since I know they are not getting dried out between waterings.  I planted with your bamboo booster as directed and have typical very sandy soil outside of where we replaced with the bamboo booster.  Is there much risk of over watering?  Is there any harm in watering in the evening or possibly after dark?  I know I need to buy a timer, but I am in manual mode for now.  Any tips are appreciated.

My response:
Sorry for the confusing information.  The bottom line with bamboo in FL is that it is almost impossible to give them too much water.  If the bamboo are standing in water that doesn't drain away for more than two weeks, that would be a problem, but that isn't likely to happen in FL.  It might happen if you lived in an area where soil drainage is poor with, for instance, pockets of heavy clay.  In that case, over-watering would be a concern.

The post where I mentioned watering the bamboo as much as possible refers to recently transplanted large clumps of bamboo like the one pictured in that post.  The watering you are doing to your smaller plants is perfectly adequate.  The thing to understand with bamboo is that it likes water and sends out more shoots when grown in moist conditions. 

That's not to say bamboo won't grow well with less water.  It will, just not as vigorously.  We tell people to water frequently in the beginning to both help the plants adjust to transplanting and also to encourage growth.  After two or three years, your bamboos will have met or exceeded your initial size/height/width expectations.  (For examples of bamboo growth, see the 'Before and After' pictures sent by our customers.)  At that point you might want to back off watering.  You can even stop irrigating completely after a couple years and the bamboo will still do just fine. 

The thing to remember is you can slow down or increase the size of your clump by adjusting TWO THINGS:  The amount of water the bamboo receives and the frequency of soil amendments in the form of fertilizer and/or top dressings of organic matter like leaves, grass clippings, compost, manure, etc.  

More of both = More prolific growth.

Regarding the time of day to water, it is not important when you water.  Do it whenever it is convenient for you.  The main thing, when your plants are young, is to water them regularly.  We recommend using a programmable timer but even if you rely on hand-watering, use the bamboo leaves as indicators of your watering needs.  If you see leaves beginning to curl, then you know they need more water.  Turn on the sprinklers, the leaves will uncurl and the bamboos will be happy.

It doesn't matter if you use overhead sprinkers, spot spitters or hand-water, the important thing is to water your newly transplanted and young plants regularly

 

Not sure if a bamboo is a runner or clumper? Exercise caution.

A customer who bought bamboo from us in January recently went to a local flea market where she purchased a container of bamboo from someone who couldn't say what kind of bamboo it was.  The customer then sent us the following picture of the bamboo along with an email asking us to identify the plant for her:

Buying bamboo from someone who isn't certain what kind of bamboo they are selling is risky

Hi, I went to a flea market and stumbled upon a bamboo that almost has a resemblances of a golden goddess, but I am not sure. She didn't even know what it was either. It was claimed as an clumper. Do you think you could identify it? I have the picture.

My response:
It is definitely not Golden Goddess and there's a good chance it is not a clumping bamboo at all.  When you buy bamboo from someone who has no idea what plant they are selling - especially if that bamboo is tantalizing inexpensive - you are very likely to be purchasing one of the many varieties of running bamboo, all of which are much easier to propagate than clumping varieties.  

Running bamboos are invasive and once established, they are very difficult to remove. 

Instead of planting in the ground what might turn out to be an unwanted running bamboo, you might try growing it in a large pot for one growing season.  After a year, you will be able to tell by its growth patterns whether it is a clumping or running bamboo.

Should bamboo watering schedule change with the seasons?

A customer from Winter Park, FL wrote to ask about winter watering needs for bamboo:

Now that winter is still with us, yet changing into something like Spring over the next few days, should we adjust our winter watering schedule? We have restrictions at this time of year: once a week is the city limit. Yet I could go out and give each bamboo clump, say, a gallon or two a day if you advised. Most of the bambusa chungii still have green leaves, but on a number of these leaves the tips are brown. I'm thinking that is a seasonal thing, but maybe you will say more water is needed. I'm also planning to put Black Kow around each clump later this week.

My response:
Soil conditions, fertilizer and water are the 3 key ingredients needed to make large, healthy bamboo plants.  

Clumping bamboos send up new shoots during the warm months and those shoots will be a larger diameter and taller if they are growing in rich, well-irrigated soil.  Adding compost, manure, grass clippings or any other organic matter as a top dressing around existing plants is always beneficial in any season.  As it rains or when the bamboos are watered, the nutrients from the top dressing leaches into the subsoil to be absorbed by the roots.  

If water restrictions limits watering to once a week any additional hand watering will help.  The more you water, the sooner new shoots will emerge.  But don't worry if you can't do that.  Bamboos can handle minimal watering, they just grow faster and get bigger sooner if they are more frequently irrigated.  

The browning on the tips of the Bambusa chungii (Blue Timber) is, as you suspected, just a natural part of the winter season.  Bamboo leaves die and fall to the ground all year long but it seems to happen more so in the winter.  The brown tips are not a sign that your plants are lacking in water or are nutrient deficient.  It just signals a transition time from one season to the next.  


Keep your eyes open for new shoots on the Bambusa chungii.  Just within the last few days I've noticed new shoots emerge on the Blue Timber bamboos that we planted last year.

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.

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.

Bamboo Question: Sun or shade?

Customers often ask if bamboo needs a sunny location or can it grow in shady conditions.  We explain that it doesn't make that much difference if the location is sunny or shady.  What is important are the soil and water conditions.  Bamboos grow best in rich, well-irrigated soil, regardless of whether the location gets a lot of sun or very little. 

Below are a couple pictures of some Bambusa textilis growing very nicely in the shade of some tall pine trees.

The pine tree sends shade down while the bamboo grows up...

...right through the pine tree branches!

Is bamboo an option for me? Not always...

If you want to grow a living fence that will quickly provide a beautiful barrier, bamboo is usually the perfect choice.  But not always.  There are some situations where it simply won't work.  The following email from a person in Missouri describes one such situation:

I am getting ready to move into a mobile home park after living on nearly a 1/4 acre with a huge yard for 15 years.  It is a nice mobile home park but I would like to block the sun on the one side of the home and the view of my neighbors as well.  I want to plant a hedge of bamboo, we are not allowed to have fences but we can plant trees.

I live in Missouri and I want to cover a length of about 30-40 feet only.  I want it to be at least 12-15 feet tall but not 50 to 60, would prefer the height to be no more than 25 or so.  We do get cold winters here hitting zero (occasionally below zero) and sometimes the wind chill factor goes below.

I noticed that some of the bamboo survived while being in containers.  Can they grow indoors?  Will the container bamboo survive cold winters?  I definitely do not want to worry about the bamboo overtaking my neighbors or spreading where I do not want it to go.

Is bamboo an option for me?

My response:
I'm sorry, but bamboo really isn't an option for you.  It is too cold in Missouri for clumping bamboos, which is non-invasive.  The only types of bamboo that will survive your temperatures are the running bamboos and running bamboos are invasive plants.  If you plant them in the ground, they will spread throughout the neighborhood.  They would not be an appropriate choice for your situation.

What about growing them in pots?  Since you are wanting to cover a 30' to 40' span and have plants 15' tall, you would need 5 to 10 plants.  If you were to put those bamboo in pots, they'd be cumbersome to move every year from indoors to outdoors.  That doesn't seem like a practical solution to your problem either.

I wish I could offer more encouragement but bamboo is not the right choice for every situation.  In most of the country, running bamboos are all that grows but because it is invasive, it doesn't work everywhere.  Clumping bamboos are non-invasive and grow quickly to form a solid hedge but they only do well in areas where the winter temperature doesn't fall below 15 degrees.

The canes on this stand of Vivax Running Bamboo were bent by a covering of icicles in the winter of 2009 but because it is a running bamboo, the canes were undamaged.  As soon as the ice melted, they straightened up and remained green and leafy.   Running bamboos like cold weather but because they are invasive plants, they are not appropriate for every situation.

How to care for established bamboo plants

A customer from Riverview, Florida who purchased several Green Hedge clumping bamboos (Bambusa multiplex 'Silverstripe') emailed to say:

About 4 years ago I bought some bamboo from your lovely property. We love it and it did everything you said it would. It blocked a two story house that had been built behind us and provided a beautiful screen for our viewing pleasure. My question has to do with keeping the bamboo as a smaller clump to fit the area it is in. When new stalks come up do I dig it up or just cut it at ground level? Can I thin it a little from the middle by cutting stalks shorter or will they get new growth on the cut stalk like some plants do? And lastly, since this is such a prolific grower is it really necessary to feed the bamboo or does it need it to keep a green color? And what do you think is the best food for it?

By the way, this bamboo went through those horrible freezes we have had for the last two winters with flying colors. I couldn't be happier. When the rest of my plants and bushes were devastated the bamboo was our shining star.

A 6-year-old clump of Green Hedge bamboo

My response:
The best way to maintain a clumping bamboo once it has reached the size you want is to knock over new shoots when they appear around the perimeter of the clump.  Kicking or knocking over the young shoots stops that shoot from growing.  During the summer above-ground growing season, other new shoots may still appear but when they do, they can be knocked over as well. 

Another way to control the size of a clump is to cut back on watering and fertilizing once the circle of bamboo has gotten as big as you want it to be.  A mature clump of bamboo does well even without extra water and fertilizer. 

New shoots cannot be dug up and transplanted.  First of all, digging through a mature clump of bamboo is extremely difficult since the root system is so dense.  If you do manage to cut through with a reciprocal saw, ax or specially designed shovel, you would only want to cut out mature, fully leafed canes.  New shoots would have to grow up and leaf out before they can be divided off.

Any time a bamboo culm/cane is topped, it will not grow any taller.  It will, however, get leafier below where it has been cut.  Cutting out canes from the center of a clump provides a more open appearance.  Although new shoots sometimes come up in the middle, their tendency is to appear around the perimeter.

The fertilizer we like best is a 6-month time-release formula (18-6-8) high in nitrogen, which is what bamboos need for optimal growth.  We can send you a 1#, 3# or 6# package of fertilizer if you are interested.

Should I support bamboo canes that lean?

 New shoots of Yin Yang clumping bamboo

A customer writes:
My wife and I visited your farm and bought a stand of yin-yang bamboo back in mid-May. We planted it according to your directions and it seems to be doing well. We've just had 2 strong shoots pop up and they are growing phenomenally. In the last few days, though, one of the mature canes is falling over. As I said, it looks very healthy, maybe too full and healthy! Anyway, I tied the canes together-there are maybe 3 or 4 total mature ones-to keep the one from falling over, but I wonder if by doing that I am jeopardizing the others that have remained upright. The one leaning over is kind of heavy. Any advice?

My response:
I'm glad to hear about all the new shoots!  Concerning the leaning mature cane.  You have 3 options:  

1) you can tie that cane to a stake to help keep it upright 
2) you can do as you've done and loosely tie the top heavy cane to other mature canes to keep it from bending over or 
3) you can trim the top part of the leaning cane off, which will prevent it from being so top heavy.

If you continue with option 2, you are not hurting the bamboo as long as you don't have the canes tied together too tightly.  Within a couple months when the new shoots now emerging grow tall, they (and other yet to emerge new shoots) will support the leaning cane.

If you opt for #3, you don't have to worry that topping the tall shoot will do any damage.  That cane will not grow more once it is topped but all the new shoots will grow taller. 

YinYang has a "weepy" profile, which means that leaning over canes are part of the plant's natural look.  With any bamboo you can modify the look of that clump by selective pruning.  

How to control weeds in the bamboo

A customer wrote: 

We bought a Vivax and a Blue from you last fall. Both came through the winter with no damage and have already sent up bunches of new canes this spring. They are so pretty and so much fun. Every day, we go look just to see what's new!

 

What do you recommend for weed control around the bases of bamboo?

 

I recall that you planted ground cover plants around some of your clumps. What plants work well?

 

But I think most of your clumps were weed-free without a ground cover. Do you use a herbicide?

 

Would a 0.5-1% glyphosate spray hurt them if I removed the leaves that might get spray on them first? I would have guessed that, being grasses, they'd be sensitive but I gather from reading on the web that it's actually pretty hard to kill them with glyphosate.

 

I've looked around on your web site but didn't find any discussion of weed control. If it's there, please just point me to it.

 

My response:

I'm glad to hear that your plants are doing so well.  If you have time, email me some pictures.  I'd love to see them.

For weed control we recommend a heavy mulch.  Weed by hand any obvious weeds then apply as deep a mulch as you can around the bamboo.  You can use any type of natural mulch - leaves, wood bark, etc.  To make the mulch extra impervious to weeds, you can apply a thick layer of newspaper first and then mulch on top of them.  Unlike with trees, mulches can go right up around the base of the canes without worry or harm to the plants.

We don't use any herbicides at the nursery and don't recommend using them at home.  Bamboo is just a giant grass and although herbicides won't kill the bamboo, it won't do them any good either.  If you want to use a ground cover, I've found the following plants work well:  wedelia, ruellia and wandering jew.  Any other shade-loving ground cover would work as well.

Wedelia growing as a ground cover beneath a grove of Vivax running bamboo

Bamboo Q & A

A customer from the Orlando area who recently purchased and installed several Blue Timber (Bambusa chungii) clumping bamboos wrote with a few questions:

Hi Sherry,  How are you?  I hope this finds you doing well.  I am writing to ask some specific questions about our Bambusa chungii that arose after reading your wonderful blog. I find myself going back to your blog almost daily to look up something or read what you’ve written about a particular topic. 

OK.  First off, irrigation.  As you may recall, we purchased 5 Bambusa chungii from you. They are now integrated into our driveway landscape, placed about 10’ apart.  I have redone the irrigation system for this area, using a drip line with two dedicated lines for each plant (well, one has a line and a nearby spray head).  I have placed two of these micro-bubbler irrigation heads about an inch from the vertical culm of each bamboo: http://www.amazon.com/Orbit-Irrigation-67110-Micro-Bubbler-Stake/dp/B002R9O4OK.  This way when I turn on the sprinkler system, each plant gets a dedicated shower with a specific radius range of about a foot from the base of the vertical culm.  I have also added mulch around each plant.  We have a lot of oak trees here, so we have leaves galore.

OK, on your blog I read a comment from someone asking about newly planted bamboos and this person mentioned watering each bamboo for 2 hours.  Wow, that seems like a lot.  I turn on the bamboo zone for 10-12 minutes twice a day, then twice a week in addition that zone is part of our overall watering schedule (in Winter Park you can water two days a week) and the bamboo zone goes on for 25 minutes.  All the bambusa chungii now have leaves sprouting from the joints of each culm.  On all but one plant the leaves have no yellow; one of the tallest bamboos has some yellow leaves.  There are no curling leaves (indicating lack of water).  Yet, still I wonder … am I under-watering?  Do they need more than this?  Please advise.

Next, fertilizing.  As you may recall, we got both soil and Dynamite from you which were put into the planting as you direct in your planting instructions sheet.  Some bamboos have been in the ground for 3 weeks now, some about a week.  So soon (the one-month mark) I was going to add fertilizer.  My local hardware store has been having trouble getting Ironite http://www.ironite.com/.  They told me that Ironite has re-formulated the mix and it is now hard to get.  Not sure when they will have the Ironite.  So … I can use something like this:  http://www.seedland.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=Seedland&Product_Code=FERT-423403-15&Category_Code=FERT-453284.

Should I use both, assuming that Ironite becomes available soon?  Can I start fertilizing after the 4-week mark?

Thanks again for all your good information.  It’s fun to check in with Beautiful Bamboo by listening to other people’s questions and thoughts.  Thanks too for your excellent comments on Metalifestream. 

My response:

Hi Barry - I'm glad you are finding my blog helpful.  Have you used the "Search this Blog" feature yet?  If not, you might find that useful when seeking out information on specific topics.  Concerning your questions, let's start with irrigation.  From your description of the plants' new leaves, it sounds like you are giving them adequate water.  Bamboos like water and it is difficult to give them too much but the amount you are doing seems perfectly fine for plants in a shady, well-mulched location like you've given them.  Especially during this year's rather moist springtime.

Concerning the fertilizer, you already applied sufficient fertilizer to last 6 months when you planted the bamboo and used Dynamite, a 6-mo. time release fertilizer that we sell at the nursery.  The fertilizer you linked to would be a good choice for the future but not necessary for immediate use.  If you use the one you linked to in the future, you can apply it every month since it is not a time release formula but be sure to follow the application directions since regular non-time release formulas do have the potential to "burn" plants if applied incorrectly.  What you can always do however, is apply organic material around the existing bamboos.  Just like with water, bamboos thrive when given an abundance of organic material such as compost, manure, grass clippings, leaves, etc.  So right now, don't apply additional chemical fertilizers but do pile on the organic matter.

Ironite is usually available at Lowes, although I haven't checked recently.  Newly planted bamboos usually don't require Ironite applications.  Some browning of the leaves is normal, especially following transplanting, and as long as new leaves are forming, don't worry about others leaves that fall off.  Focus instead on all the new growth that's just beginning to happen now and will continue to happen through November.

Bamboo: The fastest growing plant on earth!

Ralph is standing next to a young shoot of Vivax running bamboo.  The picture was taken on March 29th when the new shoot was less than a week old.  Pay special attention to the smaller yellow-colored cane in the foreground (next to Ralph's left foot) and the white-colored bending cane behind the new shoot.  Both of those canes will help you locate the "baby" Ralph was holding in the next picture, below, which was taken on April 8th.  In that photo you can see how much the "baby" shoot grew in just 10 days.  Not only that, but during those 10 days, another new shoot popped out of the ground right where Ralph was standing.  Actually, many more new shoots popped out of the ground during the early days of April and all rapidly grew far taller than Ralph, who is 5' 10".

People often ask, "Does bamboo really grow as fast as I've heard it does?"  The answer is "Yes!"  Bamboo is truly the fastest growing plant on earth.  During the spring, running bamboos like Vivax send out their new shoots and in the summer all the clumping bamboos do the same.  It doesn't matter what variety or type of bamboo you are talking about, all bamboo grow from the tiniest new shoot into tall beautiful canes in less than 2 months.  It's an amazing and exciting process to watch.

Some bamboo questions

A visitor to Beautiful Bamboo's Facebook page asked:

I have some bamboo questions. I live in New Jersey. I would like to purchase some bamboo plants to hide my fence. I would like it to be tall about 8 to 10ft. I need to know the best place to purchase and the going prices. They seem expensive $25 a plant. If I purchase the small plants how long will it take for them to grow to my 8 to 10ft height?

My response - Our nursery ships bamboo across the country but in NJ you are limited to running bamboos since all clumping varieties except Fargesia (a clumping bamboo that we can't grow in Florida because it requires a mountainous climate) are tropical plants and cannot tolerate temperatures below 15 degrees.

However, any of the running varieties will work fine in your area.  But keep in mind that runners are invasive and you have to be able to control their growth by either mowing a 20' to 30' swath around them or putting into place a bamboo barrier.  To learn more, read Clumpers or Runners - Which is best for you?

Concerning the cost, keep in mind that you don't need many plants to form a hedge.  It's far less expensive and better for the environment to create a living hedge than to build a wall or install a fence.  Bamboo will also grow taller and thicker than any fence or wall. 

About height, all bamboos grow very quickly from bottom to top.  As long as you give your plants rich soil, water and fertilizer, they will grow from nothing to their full height within a couple months.  You can expect an 8'-10' hedge within one season even from small 1-gal to 3-gal container plants.

To learn more, please take some time to read the information on our website and blog.  Bamboo is different from other plants in so many ways.  It helps to educate yourself as much as possible before planting.

What kind of bugs are on my bamboo?

A Florida-based customer wrote:

I bought several bamboo's from you a couple months ago -3 graceful's and an Asian lemon. They are all doing well and already growing like crazy. However, the Asian lemon had a new shoot on it when we got it (of course now it is getting very tall), but I noticed in the last week or so that under the leaf that hugs the stalk, there are white web-like insect egg casings and when you peel it back, there are small oval shaped insects (kind of pinkish color) about 200 microns across or the thickness of 2 hairs (very small). Is this something I should be concerned about? So far, I've only noticed it in a couple areas.  I have Sevin insecticide that I've used to kill aphids and caterpillars. Should I use this or do you have a better solution?

My response:

The bug you've noticed is called mealy bug and it likes to suck the juices from tender new shoots. It may look nasty but on bamboo it seldom does any permanent damage. Mealy bugs only like the young shoots and bamboo grows so fast that it outgrows the bugs before they can do any damage. If it really bothers you, you can spray the shoots with a formula called Bayer Tree and Shrub found at most garden centers. On our property we try to minimize chemical use so we usually just let the bamboo do its thing - quickly outgrow the bugs.

Mealy bugs attack a young Bambusa oldhamii shoot that will soon outgrow the pests.

The customer wrote back to say:

Yes yes...I pulled up a picture of a mealy bug and that is exactly what it is!!

Thank you sooo much.  We love our bamboo!!

Is it okay to plant a ground cover under my bamboos?

A customer from the Tampa area recently wrote:
Sherry, my wife and I recently (June) made the drive from Tampa and purchased 18 Asian Lemon bamboo from your farm. We have been EXTREMELY pleased. We started off with a total of 20 shoots in each of the 18 3-gal containers. We now have over 90 shoots in the entire planting. Absolutely love it!

We are now looking to add some ground cover for weed control. I do not want to smother out new shoots or plant anything the will "compete" with the bamboo. Our planting beds are approx 4 feet wide by 60 feet long. We were thinking about lantana. do you have any thoughts or opinions or recommendations?

My response:
I'm glad to hear the bamboos are doing so well. Lantana would work fine as a ground cover. At the nursery we've used three different plants as ground covers around the bamboos - Wandering Jew, Ruella and Wedelia - but other plants will work fine too. You don't have to worry that the ground covers will smother or compete with the bamboos. New shoots will have no difficulty growing up through them. I'm sure Lantana in any of its many colors will look lovely again the yellow with green-striped canes of Asian Lemon.


Ruella coexisting happily beneath a grove of Vivax running bamboo.


Wandering Jew beneath a clump of Angel Mist