Which to chop, when to chop?

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Alan_L
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Which to chop, when to chop?

Post by Alan_L »

How do you decide what plants need to be chopped down, and which don't? I have a small Fargesia robusta that looks topkilled, but not certain if there are some culms in the center that may be ok -- should I wait until after shooting to remove the dead culms in case some of the existing ones leaf out? Do they start leafing out before shooting or after? (or is it species dependent?)

What about plants that have some dead leaves, but some green ones (and I don't know if the culms are damaged)? For instance, I have a small Indocalamus longiauritus that looks pretty good, but has some dead leaves. I have a Sasaella bitchuensis and some Sasa vetchii in the same condition. Since these are small plants, I was going to just leave them alone this year and then remove any dead parts that remain after shooting and leafing out.

Another case: I have a small Sasaella masamuneana 'Albostriata' that has at least 75% green leaves -- cutting this one down is still recommended because the new leaves have better variegation, right? Does leaving some of the culms/leaves on this small plant make sense this year to give it more energy while shooting?

Also, do the dead leaves fall off on their own? Do I need to remove some myself? Is there a "wrong way" to remove leaves if needed?

(I know it's a lot of questions, but it's my first Spring as a semi-educated bamboo grower.)
DCBa
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RE: Which to chop, when to chop?

Post by DCBa »

My bamboos shoot before the new leaves on old culms come back. For our zone 6 area, bamboo is always a little out of synch with the local flora. They look great in the fall/early winter but look pretty ratty during the spring. The last of the dead leaves don't fall until mid-May. I trim out damaged branches/culms in early June.
dependable
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RE: Which to chop, when to chop?

Post by dependable »

I agree with DCBa, would wait till early summer to thin, esp with Fargesas, some, like Nitida, look bad in winter because they curl up. This is actually because they are very cold resistant, and go semidormant. F robusta does not do this, and often gets winter kill.
ghmerrill
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RE: Which to chop, when to chop?

Post by ghmerrill »

it depends on the age of the plants in the ground. on plants like your Sasaella m. A. I would leave the old leaves if it has not acheived the size you want. even though they dont have the pretty coloring, they are feeding the rhizomes and new shoots. if you cut off the older growth, then the underground portion of the plant has to take energy from storage to push above ground growth. once a plant has sized up a bit, then mowing, or thinning is an option if you want. I think that needmore is one who is close to you climate wise, and he has said several times that he waits 4 years before doing any thining on his plants. not sure if he does the same on mowing the groundcovers or not.
Alan_L
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RE: Which to chop, when to chop?

Post by Alan_L »

So far you've all confirmed what my gut feelings were -- Thanks!

So it sounds like all the dead leaves (that are attached to live culms) will eventually be shed by the plant. What about leaves that are not totally burned -- will the plant shed those too?
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