Help with my "minature" Moso

[sunkejie]

wow. I'm a beginner and folks I've talked to around here (in NC) have said bamboo is a very hearty plant. I just set 57 moso seeds and now I'm wondering if I should've started with something else. I got my seeds from ebay too.

I know some kind of yellow bamboo grows well around here in zone 5/6 but I wanted to have something nobody else had.

I also chose Moso because I wanted something special. I planted about 70 moso seeds last August and had 15 germinate. I started too late. Then, with the help of my cat and other natural disasters 12 of them died. So, I have three left and one of them doesn't look like it will survive to see the summer.

I'd agree that you should have started with something more forgiving. But keep going and see if you get any of them to grow. Moso thrives in areas where it is plenty warm and humid with plenty of rain all summer. In NC you'll want to water it a couple times a week all summer whenever it isn't raining. It doesn't like to be over-watered, so make sure that the soil drains well. But Moso really likes plenty of water and heat.

No one in dry-summer places are likely to have happy Moso. That includes you and me.

The places outside of China that seem to have the happiest Moso are the south of France and Florida. I have heard that Louisiana along the Mississippi River would likely be good, too. Most people in the USA don't have great success with Moso. But it is the most successful bamboo in all of China: about 2/3 of all the bamboo there is Moso. That is a lot of bamboo. So, Moso is a real champion.

I'll take care of my surviving Moso, but I'm looking elsewhere for my next bamboo.

[Roy]

......
The places outside of China that seem to have the happiest Moso are the south of France and Florida. .

I haven't seen any successful groves of moso in Florida. I know Epcot Center at Disney tried growing some moso and were unsuccessful. In some parts of South Carolina, moso tends to grow to a decent stature.

And it definitely is one of the superior bamboos.

[foxd]

I suspect there is a lot of genetic variability in MOSO. Genetically different plants will survive or thrive in different areas.

Hopefully the plants and rhizomes I brought back from Anderson will survive so I can test to see how they do in Southern Indiana.

[sunkejie]

I suspect there is a lot of genetic variability in MOSO. Genetically different plants will survive or thrive in different areas.

Hopefully the plants and rhizomes I brought back from Anderson will survive so I can test to see how they do in Southern Indiana.

Foxd: I expect you are right that Moso has a lot of genetic variability, at least in China. It is their biggest bamboo "crop" and covers more area (both in the wild and in plantations) than all the other bamboos combined. In the USA, however, I don't know how much variety there is. I'd guess a fair amount. That is because Moso flowers every year in China and doesn't die. So there is a constant supply of seed. The Ebay Moso seed comes from all over the place. And seed produced bamboo will not be as true as a clone will be. To that extent, I agree with you.

And I also agree that genetically different plants will survive or thrive in different areas. But that is a very general statement and doesn't provide us with much guidance of any sort.

My own experience with Moso is very limited. But I have been listening to others with more experience. There are many experienced bamboo people that have had hard times with trying to grow Moso. Many nurserymen have found it hard. Many with large collections of bamboo have found that it simply doesn't thrive in many places in the USA. I expect that most bamboo people have simple left Moso alone. It has that sort of reputation.

When I have searched for pictures of big Moso growing in the States, I found very few. None of them were in the north or west or NE or central. No one in OR or north of there can do it. Most in WA don't even try. I don't know about CA. Seems like the few growing big Moso were in the SE. SC was mentioned. I thought I may have seen someone in GA, but I'm not certain. I wonder who has heard of Moso thriving anywhere in the US? I'd be glad to know.

What I'm trying to say is: I wish you well in your attempt with Moso, but be warned that it won't likely work well. I'm sure you really don't need the warning, since you have tried with many other bamboo already. If you turn out to have thriving Moso in Indiana, I will be thrilled.

I too am trying to raise Moso in a hard place: Poulsbo, WA. Twelve died, three are surviving. But they are all tiny seedlings. Half a year old and 3" high. They survived our mild winter, but most didn't survive the predations of one of our cats. The dreaded Bamboo Panther. We'll see what we will see.


Second: I like your personal "bamboo list" with a lot more detail. Where did you get that? I might like to use one too.

[needmore]

Moso is in the 4 inch diameter range I believe in coastal OR; 6-7+ inches in AL, LA, SC,GA, MS. Check out the photos at Lewis Bamboo in AL. Moso can thrive in the SE US.

[foxd]

The reason that there is a constant supply of seed from China is that it is such a big country that there is usually MOSO in flower in some part of it. Unfortunately we don't know what part of the country the seed comes from that is bought on Ebay. If we could find seed that came from the same climate as what we have then I would expect the seedlings to also do well.

At present I think there are only a couple of genetically different clones. The Anderson Clone is reputed to be cold hardy to -6°F which just might do it for my area. Anderson is in South Carolina and has a rather famous MOSO grove in Silverbrook Cemetery.

I do have a couple of small MOSO plants that have survived one winter outside and several that are experiencing their first winter. I am anxious to see which ones survived.

The attrition rate on MOSO seedlings does appear to be rather high, especially when cats are involved. I would suggest anti-critter cages until the seedlings are large enough that they can spare a few leaves. Also a sacrificial bamboo for the cats to nosh on might be a good idea, it certainly has worked here. (Bamboo brings out a cat's inner Panda.)

As a side note, cats also eat Gojiberry leaves and were suggested as one critter that might be eating the leaves off the plants. (Due to a wrongly-placed chair, one of the cats climbed into the minigreenhouse in the living room and chowed down on the Raddia bamboo and Gojiberry plant at the back, ignoring the Catnip in front of them.)

My personal bamboo list is done through google documents. If you have a Gmail account, click on "Documents" and go from there. If you don't have a Gmail account then an invite for one could be sent to you from someone who has a Gmail account.

[GrowingHabit]

No one in OR or north of there can do it. Most in WA don't even try. I don't know about CA. Seems like the few growing big Moso were in the SE. SC was mentioned. I thought I may have seen someone in GA, but I'm not certain. I wonder who has heard of Moso thriving anywhere in the US? I'd be glad to know.

For encouragement- there's a thriving grove, upsizing beautifully, in SW Oregon. I believe its less than 10 years old, and last spring's shoots were gigantic. I haven't been out to see it this year yet, but expect great things.

[ghmerrill]

Bamboo Garden nursery also has a very nice, good size, thriving grove of it. I would say that it would be larger with more constant heat in the summer, and a longer growing season, but Moso does grow well in Oregon.

Marci- where is the mystery moso grove around here????

[GrowingHabit]

Grassworks! (between the Vivax and the Spectabilis, I believe)

So- when do we go see the Bambusoides from Hell?

[ghmerrill]

HA! I should have figured it would be at Gaylin and Rosemarys!

on the P. bambusoides cv. 'From Hell'....

I figured since I did not get a call from you, you didnt want any!

Im trying to work out a schedule where I can get there when they are home.... They own a window washing company, so if its daylight, and the sun is out, they are out working.

[GrowingHabit]

I figured since I did not get a call from you, you didnt want any!

Have you seen the weather? I'm in the garden, baby, and my phone is too purdy to get mud on!

The day I don't want more bamboo..... well, sad day indeed.

[ghmerrill]

to make you drrrrooooooolllllllll.... imagine a P. bambusoides grove the size of the Henon grove........