3 years ago I dug several divisions of this boo from an area that was destined to become a sub division. To my eye, it looks to be some type of Semiarundinaria, but it could be an arundinaria, or something else...

Deep rhizomes, short branches, multiple branches per node. Max size in the parent grove, which was about an acre in size, was maybe 1.5" diameter.
The shoots have very distinct zig zag stripes, and the culm sheaths loosen from the edges and hang from the middle before falling. They have a distinct purple coloring near where they attatch, on the inside of the sheath. The sheaths on the branches are persistant, as you can see from one of the photos.
there were some culms that had turned red in the sun, like S. fastuosa, but it fades away. This plant also looks nothing like my fastuosa....
My thoughts are S. fastuosa Viridis, A. gigantea, or, if I could get real lucky, Ps. amabilis....

Brad- this is the one I sent you a couple years back to see if you had an idea.

The culm sheaths hanging on by the middle sounds like the description in one of the bamboo books of fastuosa... "Taming the dragon" maybe? Dang, I just cooled off and you're going to make me go back out again and look at my fastuosa 'Viridis'... maybe I'll wait until that area is in shade.

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Alan.
My blog: It's not work, it's gardening!

F.viridis is not one I have in my collection, (unless this is it), so I don't have one here to compare it to.

Most of my semiarundinarias have the center hanging sheath, and the bands on the edges of the culm sheaths that you see in the photo, but this is unlike any of the semiarundinaria I have, and the only ones I'm missing in that genus are fastuosa Viridis, and kagamiana.

It doesn't look like my f. 'viridis'. The culm sheaths on mine show no purple, plus mine is much less "branchy" than yours -- maybe that comes with age though. I don't remember the shoots getting the dry/tan margins on them either.

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Alan.
My blog: It's not work, it's gardening!

If your only missing those, thats a serious collection

Cause theirs quite a few....




Semiarundinaria farinosa 245
Semiarundinaria f astuosa 238
f. viridis 238
vat. kagamiana 239
var. viridis 238
vat. yashadake 240
Semiarundinaria f ortis 239
'Madaranarihira' 239
f. nebulosa 239
Semiarundinaria gracilipes 52
Semiarundinaria henryi 246
Semiarundinaria kagamiana 239
Semiarundinaria lima 52
Semiarundinaria lubrica 52
Semiarundinaria makinoi 240
Semiarundinaria maruyamana 240
Semiarundinaria narihira
var. yashadake 241
Semiarundinaria nishigoriana 240
Semiarundinarianitida 140
Semiarundinaria nuspicula 52
Semiarundinaria okuboi 240
Semiarundinaria pantlingii 163
Semiarundinaria pubens 240
Semiarundinaria sat 247
Semiarundinaria scabriflora 53
Semiarundinaria scopula 53
Semiarundinaria shapoensis 240
Semiarundinaria sinica 240
Semiarundinaria tatebeana 240
Semiarundinaria tenuifolia 248
Semiarundinaria tootsik 247
Semiarundinaria tranquillans 188
Semiarundinaria vamadori see S. yamadorii
Semiarundinaria venusta 35
Semiarundinaria villosa 240
Semiarundinaria viridis 238
Semiarundinaria yahadake see S. yashadake
Semiarundinaria yamadora 240
Semiarundinaria yamadoriana 240
Semiarundinaria yamadorii 240
Semiarundinaria yashadake 240
'Gimmei' 241
~.hnmei' 241
f. kimmei 241
Semiarundinaria yoshi-matsumurae 241
Semiarundinaria yoshi-matumurae see S. yoshimatsumurae

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Bamboo...Please note... This plant is seriously addictive and you may lose interest in other, less rewarding plants!

I checked my regular form of fastuosa, and it had the purple inside the sheaths. I wonder why your viridis does not- if that's an aspect of the form, or if the color it environmental, since two semiarundinaria forms show it here.

Mark-

Perhaps I should say "of the forms available in the USA!

I don't see purple here. Are the sheaths "fuzzy" at the nodes? (first photo)

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Alan.
My blog: It's not work, it's gardening!

Sorry about the delay in response, too many irons in the fire! In the midst of the remodel project from hell (60 year old house), then by dumb luck, ended up getting some hoofstock that I have been wanting, but not ready for, so had to do some fencing- nothing like having animals wander around eating your boo as you frantically try to get fencing up!

anyhow, I checked the mystery boo, and compared it to the regular form that I have of fastuosa, and the fuzz at the ring is the same, but the mystery boo has a different "look" to it, if that makes sense...do you have both forms Alan, or just the Viridis?

Just 'viridis'. I found one shoot photo, which looks pretty close to yours, plus another shot of the fuzz on a new culm sheath.

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Alan.
My blog: It's not work, it's gardening!

Hmmmmm.....

Don't remember that much fuzz, but those shoot photos are darn close....

Probably the best guess I'm going to be able to get on this one is that it is the Viridis form.
Thanks for the help Alan!