For what it's worth, I saved some Japonica that had been abandoned and neglected(never watered for 10+ years) from a friends field. It was overgrown with weeds and briars and hadn't grown more than 6' tall x 3' wide. After transplanting into prepared beds and watering prodigeously, it's doubled in h...

While I agree about the neglect of the boo growing between the doors, I disagree about the invasive nature of bamboo rhizome growth under a concrete slab. I agree bamboo can infiltrate, I have juvenile 3 yr. rubro twice the size of that clump of arrow that's sent runners 10 ft. in every direction. ...

A couple points on that picture of the "invasive" arrow clump. First that's a weak clump of arrow that should be easily managed with a minimum of attention. It's clear that door is not being used to allow shoots between doors. Second, a dwelling on a pad at ground level is more easily infi...

The question of when to rhizome prune depends on whether you want more plants or just contain what you have. To contain I prune October/November when temps hit the 40's. To acquire plants I let them run and shoot in the Spring then dig and pot everything out of bounds after they leaf out.

Thanks Brad, I potted 6 dozen 5-7 gal. crookstem, arrow and fishpole about a month ago and they're shooting now and I'm weighing overwintering them in a protected area or getting them in the ground for the winter. If I do put them in the ground I'd like to give them time to leaf out but time is grow...

I was wondering if anyone can advise what is the coolest climate zone in which it's safe to over winter pots outside without the luxury of a greenhouse and what precautions should be taken. Thanks.

I can see where this yellow Groove is going to be fast growing and hardy. I grow Spectabilis and Aureocaulis, the green stripe and golden form of yellow groove and they have been a source of much satisfaction since acquiring in '07. Two years/3 growing seasons later and each root bound 1 gallon pla...

I transplanted my rubro to a better location and in the process ended up with a wheelbarrow of excess rhizomes which I then put in a prepared bed and 90% shot. I imagine 1 gal. pots would lend themselves to rhizome planting as anything in the ground becomes too large to put in a 1 gal. quickly.

For those not wanting 50 pots upsizing to 7 gal. lets you buy 10 at A.M. Leonard.

All I want is 4 or 5 different bamboos.

A man can retire content with a half dozen faves. Give me 2 aureo sulcatas, aureocaulis and spectabilis, 2 bambusoides, allgold and Marliac, and 2 timber, robert young and aureocaulis and I'm good. Which boo will you grow, boonut?

I received my 7 gal. containers yesterday and potted up my ph. aurea true gold and ph. aureosucata aureocaulis. For the past 2 years all my plants have been in the ground but after potting up some of my gold boos and moving them to take advantage of morning sun now and afternoon sun when it cools a ...

Thank you Kudzu that's what I was wanting to hear. My hope is that not watering or fertilizing regularly and harvesting culms and rhizome pruning will go a long way to taming their vigor and keep the groves in check.

For those of you that have been growing bamboo for a while, once plants reach the size to perform the function you have planted them for, be it screening or wind break, will they still require the amount of attention it took to get them to size to keep them looking well or can they be hardened off w...

Also, I was told my the bamboo grower out here in NJ (6a) where I purchased them from, to water the new boo every day for the first week. And then alternate every other day after that. Improper watering has probably been the death of more plants than any other cause. I don't use many hard fixed rul...

Hi Firemountain, I'm confused about why you need to control rhizomes with a sawzall if you have a rhizome barrier. As far as the leaf drop goes, that's a sign of stress and how the plant reacts to inadequate moisture. Are your beds mulched and do you water daily?