differences in re-leafing

[Alan_L]

From those of you with more than a couple of Winters of experience, is there any correlation between the time that a species starts re-leafing and it's hardiness in general? For instance, in my garden Phy. glauca, Semi. fastuosa 'Viridis', and Semi. okuboi are all starting to re-leaf already. All three of my Phy. aureosulcata forms and my Phy. bissetii show no signs of leaf bud swelling yet, but they are the most cold-hardy.

So it seems to follow that the less hardy releaf earier, while more hardy releaf later. Is this true in general? If so, is the early re-leafing just a result of being less cold-hardy (the most leaves killed, so needs to grow more sooner)?

[foxd]

I've noticed that the ones that re-leaf early seem to be the ones that shoot early or vice versa. Not sure how hardiness would fit into this.

[Alan_L]

I'm not sure how leafing and shooting relates either... probably no relation. Bissetii shoots first, then leafs for me, while Phy. glauca 'Yunzhu' leafs way before it shoots. Could be that my plants haven't hit their regular rhythm though.

[ocimum_nate]

My T. tessalatus is just beginning to re leaf

[needmore]

I was taught by an experienced and smart bamboo guy that leaf bud elongation initiates prior to shoots breaking ground so I've watched it for years and have observed that bamboo often does not realize that it is supposed to act in this manner. Perhaps it is mature groves that have shed their youthful exuberance and then exhibit this.

Right now I have some Phyllostachys species with advanced new leaf development that are not shooting and I would not suspect them of doing so this early, while my Harbin Inversa is shooting and the buds are only slightly elongating; I do notice that the Sasa's pretty reliably push leaves first. Spectabilis & Praecox should be shooting in the next week and they do not have much going on with the buds.

[gaz rogers]

I was also under the impression that blade and bud growth in the spring was a pre-cursor to shooting. I'm sure I've both read and heard this before. It makes sense but I suspect bud and shoots never come together.
Phy. praecox is just pushing through but I think these are stalled late shoots from the autumn. These tend to have a coarse appearance not fresh looking like new shoots which follow later.

Cheers,

Gaz.

[firemountain]

The Fargesia species usually re-leaf and shoot much earlier in the season than the Phy. species. My Jaizoughou and Scabrida are already shooting and re-leafing. Today I just saw a Scabrida shoot that is already 2ft. tall. My Phy. Bissetti dwarf are just starting to show signs at the leaves, but my Phy. Spectabilis is still dormant.

With the warm up weather we have been having here in the NE, I will probably feed them with a soluble miracle grow in the next week to get them going.

[ocimum_nate]

Fargesia rufa

Fargesia denuata 'xian 2'

Fargesia nitida 'Jiuzhaigou'

[movenosound]

In the 'test' that I started last year, to see which species can hack it in this area ( central Washington State, on the Columbia River, before the dramatic 'gorge' area with it's intense winds), I am happy to say that all of the species have come through alive, and without any topkill. Atrovaginata, Aurea, Dulcis, Nuda, Spectablis, and Vivax Aureocaulis are all showing signs of life in the swelling of leaf-buds. The Aurea, Spectablis, and Vivax A. have all begun to leaf out, while the Atro has just begun to initiate action in the leaf-buds. The others are somewhere between. None of the species have begun shooting, however. I look at this as a little extra time to add nitrogen in the form of high grade worm castings and some very high grade bat guano (high nitrogen type) mixed with a small amount of composted chicken and steer manure and a small amount of a soil/compost mix, spread fairly thin around the base and within two to three feet of the initial planting. Hopefully this will give them an extra dose of energy for shooting and not impede the increase in soil temp that appears to be so important in the quality of the shooting season. Though I am glad that all of the species made it through in such good shape, it was a very mild winter for this region, so, I am still waiting to see what species can make it through a truly cold Wenatchee winter. As for the leaf behavior, it looks like all of these plants are going be the rule of starting the new leaf growth prior to shooting.