Hi All.

So I am thinking of adding a few bamboos to add some winter proctection and shelter to my garden.

I am in a Zone 7.
The last 2 winters have been quite cold. This winter we got down to -9*c for a few nights. And the winter before down
to -14*c on a few nights.
The garden is medium/small.

Any suggestions of a few species to go against the various fences. I like the idea of some of the thicker culmed species.

Something with height, upright and doesnt spread too much.
Would any of the Phyllostachys be suitable?
Or maybe Chusquea?

Any suggestions?

Thanks
Sirius

Depends on how high you want to go ,space available and if you want to deal with running Bamboo. If your near Markj near Gloucester I'd ask if it's ok to have a look at his place. He knows more about Bamboo than just about anyone.
The more details there are on your garden and what effect you would like the better.
All the Best
Steve

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Always experimenting to get Timber Bamboos Timber size

Height - I would say 4-5 meters would be sufficient to give me some protection in winter?
Maybe a few meters higher?

Definately not a running bamboo - something that forms a tightish clump

I am not near Gloucester unfortunately.

How warm do your summers get?

In places where it never gets warm enough, some species of running bamboo may spread slower than some clumping bambooshttp://www.bambooweb.info/bb/vie ... f=4&t=5106, but the drawback is that their size is also limited as well. I think it is best to wait for someone from the UK to make a recommendation because the UK climate with cold winters and very cool summers can cause bamboos to grow way differently than anywhere else.

I think many of the phyllostachys may be limited to 1/3 or 1/2 their potential size depending on the species, but fargesias can grow to their full potential in the UK, but people that grow bamboo in the UK would know much better.

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/31489820@N02/

http://stevespeonygarden.blogspot.com/

Mark has one very fast tall clumper and for the life of me I cannot remember which one it is.
If he is looking in perhaps he can say. I don't think it was Cangshan 3 but it could be .
Sorry
Steve

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Always experimenting to get Timber Bamboos Timber size

Well I went to a specialist bamboo nursery on Monday.
Was fantastic to see such a huge collection of plants. The owner had a good few planted in the ground, including some species new to cultivation.

After a lot of discussion and with his advice, this is what I came away with:

Chusqea gigantea
Phyllo aureosulcata auriocaulis
Phyllo vivax auriocaulis
Semiarundiaria fastuosa

The were quite expensive, so I went for small pot sizes.

But I will be planting them soon and hopefully it won't be long before they start growing.

All good Bamboos , my small fastuosa ran about 3 m in the first year. Tall and a great windbreak
Aureosulcata aureocaulis also runs like mad and puts up many shoots in a couple of seasons. Can snap new culms in high wind
The Vivax will need the most space to look it's best and size up, I think Markj has 3 inch thick culms on that one in the Uk .
I know nothing about Chusqea, don't grow them
All the Best
Steve

_________________
Always experimenting to get Timber Bamboos Timber size

Steve, yup, I am looking forward to getting them in the ground and seeing how they do.

When I was at the nursery, I spoke to the person about the Chusquea. He had both gigantea and culeou.
The gigantea lives up to its name, he had a big one! But apparently it is more hardy than the culeou. So on balance I went with that one.