I am wondering if anyone could help me find out if this is clumping or running bamboo. I have dug some of it up and it seems to have traits of both. I have dug up many patches/shoots that have multiple culms growing out of the patch and then turning directly upward, which makes me think clumping. However, I have also seen some shoots that have grown radially outward from the main patch that have one culm every 6-10" along its growth. This makes me think it is a running type. A lot of these shoots appear to have been culms that have come up out of the ground and then turned downward back into the ground and continued growing as a shoot.
Most of the clumps/shoots I have dug up are less than 6" underground. Most the the shoots I can pull straight up out of the ground as they are less than 3" deep.
My neighbor has lived in the house next door since she was a kid and now owns it and is currently in her late 40s. She also has some on her property. She said her mother, and the lady that used to own our house planted it (~5-8ft around at the time) about 20-25 years ago, and the lady that owned my property never really trimmed it, just let it grow.
I am not sure what the deal is. To me, it almost seems like it is a clumping bamboo that "runs" until it finds enough daylight and then it forms a clump. Because this grove is so old, the overhang and shadow of the mature stalks tilts outward many feet from the center, causing the surrounding ground to be in shade a few feet from the edge of the grove. My neighbors bamboo is even more tightly packed then mine, but she has trimmed over the years so it is much smaller grove with less "overhang".
Clumping, running? A running bamboo that doesn't run very far/fast since it is a temperate climate? What do you think?
