SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

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bbclimber
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SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by bbclimber »

I have a Phyllostachys nuda, Fargesia 'Rufa', and a small Pleioblastus and I am in south-eastern Idaho in zone 5. The soil is alkaline.

The P. nuda is supposed to be very cold hardy but I'm kinda disappointed with it. Most winters the canes die to the ground. Last winter was really mild and the canes survived but there is a lot of leaf damage. The canes grow 6 feet at the most. The F. 'Rufa' is less damaged but grows 1 - 2 feet upward at the most. The Pleioblastus isn't doing much this Spring, so far, and I'm not sure how much of it survived the Winter.

What else can I try growing? I am hoping to find a bamboo that will grow taller and be more tolerant of our Winter wind. I thought of Phyllostachys bissetii or maybe Fargesia sp. 'Jiuzhaigou I' but I don't know how tolerant of alkaline soil they are and not sure how much sun the Jiuzhaigou would tolerate. I have a few big trees for a bit of shade but don't really have a good place for another shade loving bamboo. The Rufa already has the most ideal spot.

Suggestions?
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by johnw »

Fargesia J#1 would be ideal as it loses its leaves in winter. However I have no idea if it would toleratre alkaline soil.

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dependable
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by dependable »

P nuda is pretty hardy, but much less so when immature. P bissetti is the hardiest runner that I know of. Good luck growing in zone 5, probably near the limit for bamboo, cold wise.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by wufeng »

In my garden is Fargesia sp. jiuzhaigou less hardy then rufa. I think íf you need the most hardy bamboo try F. nitida and murieliae. In Europe there are now available new hybrids F. nitida x murieliae. A few of them looks very promising. They are very hardy and finaly could be 4 meters hight.

From Phyllostachys genus Ph. bissetii and Phyllostachys aureosulcata spectabilis are very similar in hardines like Ph. nuda. Maybe are a little bit better.

Sasa kurilensis and oshidensis are realy very hardy bamboos. I have them after more 10 years about 2 meters hight.
I am engaged in pages about hardy bamboos in Czech language - http://bambusy.info/.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by thebambooguy »

Perhaps look into Phyllostachys rubromarginata. I don't have it but I'm looking to get some. It's supposed to be pretty wind resistant and quite cold hardy.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by dependable »

Rubromarginata is one of the 'boos that looks better than most after a long winter, and its tendency to shoot late would help in not getting a jump on spring.
wufeng
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by wufeng »

I had 2 rubromarginatas from different sources and both were less hardy then aureosulcatas, bissetii etc.
I am engaged in pages about hardy bamboos in Czech language - http://bambusy.info/.
Alan_L
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by Alan_L »

I can second this -- my rubro topkilled this past winter when nothing else in ground did. It could be somewhat attributed to drought though, at least as a contributing factor.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by thebambooguy »

Hmmm good to know, maybe I won't get it after all.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by Tarzanus »

The other side of the world, same issue with my moso and several fruit trees. Almost no damage on all my bamboos except two - Phyllostachys aurea and Moso seedling. Aurea lost leaves but remained alive, Moso got devastated and most of highly damaged culms died. We did not have temps low enough to kill it that way, so I'm trying to figure out what tiny detail managed to devastate it.

Apricots also froze and used backup buds to leaf-out. Fig trees were killed to the ground.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by wufeng »

Tarzanus wrote: Fig trees were killed to the ground.
If fig trees were killed to the ground, it is not surprise, that moso seedlings were damaget.
I am engaged in pages about hardy bamboos in Czech language - http://bambusy.info/.
Tarzanus
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by Tarzanus »

wufeng wrote:
If fig trees were killed to the ground, it is not surprise, that moso seedlings were damaget.
The thing is, temperatures were not low enough to do sedious damage this winter. Usually Pseudosasa japonica and Shiroshima get hit first, this year they only show minimal damage and Moso got almost completely fried above ground. This year it pushed out great number of small shoots, I guess it will recover soon.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by bbclimber »

Hey everyone,

Thanks for the replies. I've been reading them, Googling some, and thinking.

I was hesitant to get clumping Fargesia because of my soil pH. I've read somewhere those often grow in woodlands which have soil naturally amended by organic matter. The soil here is not like that. However, I found my 'Rufa' seems to tolerate it OK. I might give it some sulfur pellets once in a while but it doesn't seem to be in danger of perishing without the sulfur.

The Fargesia nitida x murieliae hybrids were interesting. I read some might be more tolerant of sunlight but I'm not sure that's true. That might be hype. Unfortunately I couldn't find anyone selling a hybrid in the USA. Actually, the different F. nitida and murieliae specie cultivars are very limited in the USA, too, compared to what is available in Europe.

I was curious about the 'Jiuzhaigou's mainly because of their color and a couple web sites for bamboo nurseries in the USA list them as hardy as F. nitida and murielia. However, I think web sites don't tell us everything. Interesting that wufeng rates them as less hardy than 'Rufa'. My 'Rufa' was taller when I originally bought it. It might grow to three feet this year. However, I didn't have high expectations when I bought it because this is zone 5.

I read about Phyllostachys rubromarginata's weather tolerance, too, but found it probably isn't the hardiest.

P. aureosulcata spectabilis is one I hadn't noticed before. I like its color.

P. bissetti seems to be highly recommended. Anyone know if the dwarf form is hardier than the regular form as some people say?

If I get more running bamboos then I need to be sure I put in a barrier. My P. nuda hasn't spread much in the ~10 years I've had it but it is starting to roam and I have no barrier for it. Fortunately it seems to not grow roots deeper than a foot, so far.
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by UPBooMatt »

For what it's worth, after much reading, searching, and downloading of every bamboo related pdf I could find...I am trying rubromarginata, spectabilis, and bissetii in ground here in my zone 5...it'll be a small patch (3x12), of whichever, if any survive.

The bissetii spent winter in its 4.5gal pot, buried up to the rim in the ground, then in leaves and several feet of snow. It only lost the top 12" on a culm I left exposed intentionally as a test. My remote temp probe buried with it at the base of the culms saw 31* once, mostly 33/34 all winter. We had a zone 5 low of -15 exactly, on Christmas, but January had 15 days with a low below 0. So it was cold. It's shooting now, no up size on any yet, but the 3 culms it started with last July have made another 7 so far. I'll take that especially since I can protect shorter culms easier for the first winters and hopefully establish a stout root mass to carry the plant through with energy to maintain decent shoots.

I am expecting to top out at 12-15 feet and maybe 3/4" with any of the three, and I'd be happy with 10 because it would shield the deck from the neighbors a bit. My wife thinks I'm nuts and is amazed by the fact that the bissetii is making shoots after spending winter in northern Michigan. I am please as well...lol
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dependable
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Re: SE Idaho, zone 5, what to grow?

Post by dependable »

bbclimber wrote:The Fargesia nitida x murieliae hybrids were interesting. I read some might be more tolerant of sunlight but I'm not sure that's true. That might be hype. Unfortunately I couldn't find anyone selling a hybrid in the USA. Actually, the different F. nitida and murieliae specie cultivars are very limited in the USA, too, compared to what is available in Europe.

I was curious about the 'Jiuzhaigou's mainly because of their color and a couple web sites for bamboo nurseries in the USA list them as hardy as F. nitida and murielia. However, I think web sites don't tell us everything. Interesting that wufeng rates them as less hardy than 'Rufa'. My 'Rufa' was taller when I originally bought it. It might grow to three feet this year. However, I didn't have high expectations when I bought it because this is zone 5.

P. bissetti seems to be highly recommended. Anyone know if the dwarf form is hardier than the regular form as some people say?

If I get more running bamboos then I need to be sure I put in a barrier. My P. nuda hasn't spread much in the ~10 years I've had it but it is starting to roam and I have no barrier for it. Fortunately it seems to not grow roots deeper than a foot, so far.
Nitida tolerates some sun, at our higher longitudes anyway, but the leaves will curl up & it does not look happy. Not sure about murieliae, mine got shredded by turkeys one year & I never replaced.

Jiuzaigou seems pretty hardy, it curls up & looks damaged in the cold, but un curls. The culm colors vary quite a bit with sub varieties & generations, from what I gather from previous thread about this here. Mine looks reddish purple, but not a vibrant looking as the websites often show.

Not sure about the drawrf bissetti hardiness, but I would not be surprised if regular bissetti did not grow more like dwarf in your climate, it does tend to run a long at sub ultimate size until it is in place a pretty long time and finds its ideal conditions.

P nuda is a pretty slow moving runner, I doubt you'll have a hard time keeping up with it.
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