Bamboo a Bad Reputation
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bamboo a bad reputation. This type of canes. The canes bamboo spreads by running rhizomes have a powdery and can send new shoots many feet white material away from the main clump. These that gives it a pale BAMBOO kinds of bamboo spread rapidly and can blue coloring. It become a real nuisance. is native to Bamboo is very easy to grow. Most southern China. Bamboo is a highly diverse group of prefer full sun or light shade. Some of B. lako, Timor woody-stemmed grasses. They are the smaller growing species need a shaded Black Bamboo, members of the Poaceae or Gramineae location. Most bamboo are not very grows 50 to 70' Family. This is the Grass Family and drought tolerant. They like an evenly tall with 4" Bamboo belongs to the subfamily moist soil that is well drained. They are diameter canes. Bambusoideae. There are over 100 species also heavy feeders and can be fertilized The canes are of bamboo ranging in size from dwarf several times a year. They are not picky purple-black with light green stripes. It is specimens growing only a few inches about fertilizers; a good general fertilizer native to Timor, Indonesia. This bamboo tall to giants that reach over 100 feet will suffice, like a 6-6-6 or an 8-8-8 mix. is tender to cold and better suited to the tall and have canes over 12 warmer sections of Central Florida. B. inches in diameter. Bamboos malingensis, Maling Bamboo, grows 35' also inhabit a wide range of tall with 2"-3" diameter canes. It forms climates ranging from lowland thick, tight clumps and produces many tropical rainforests, to cold canes each year. This is also one of the mountainsides. Bamboo is few bamboos that has salt tolerance and native to every continent grows well near the coast. It is native to except Europe and Antarctica. southern China. B. mutabilis grows 20- There is even one species 25 feet tall and has 2" diameter canes. native to the United States. The canes are very straight and upright. Switchcane, Arundinaria It is native to Hainan Island, China. B. gigantea, is native to a wide oldhamii can grow 50'-60' tall with 4" region of the eastern U.S., from diameter canes. It is a large, spectacular southern Ohio to Maryland bamboo with erect, straight canes and to eastern Texas. In Florida, it few side branches. The leaves are quite can be found wild as far south large. It is native to southern China and as Osceola County. It is a Taiwan. B. textilis, Weaver’s Bamboo, reedy bamboo growing 4 to 6 grows to 40' tall with 2" diameter canes. feet tall on a slender cane. This bamboo has very straight canes In Central Florida, there that arch at the very top and is native to are many bamboos that can southern China.. B. textilis var. gracilis be used in the landscape. is a smaller variety only growing 20-30' 1 Bamboo can be used for tall and the canes are only 1 /2" in screening, informal hedges, diameter. The leaves are also much groundcovers, or as a specimen. Citrus limon ‘Variegated Pink Eureka’ - Pink Lemon smaller in size. B. ventricosa, Buddha’s Typically, there are two types of bamboo; Belly Bamboo, grows 60-70' tall with clumpers and runners. Clumping Since bamboo is a type of grass you can 2"-3" diameter canes. This is a very bamboo is the most desired type for the also use a turf fertilizer with a higher common bamboo in Florida. If this garden. It forms behaved clumps that nitrogen content. Just make sure not to bamboo is kept in a container, it do not rapidly spread out and take over. use a turf fertilizer with an herbicide becomes dwarf and the internodes are New culms are produced only several included in it. swollen, thus its’ common name. It is inches away from the old culms. A There are many species of the genus widely used as a bonsai subject. If planted majority of the clumping type bamboos Bambusa that grow well in Central in the ground, the new canes will are subtropical and tropical and are the Florida. All species of Bambusa are eventually lose the swollen internodes desired specimens for Central Florida. clumping. B. chungii, Tropical Blue and it becomes a large, thick clump The runners are the type that has given Bamboo, grows 30' tall with 2" diameter with zig-zag branches and canes. It is native to greenish-yellow. ‘Riviereorum’, often canes. This small bamboo forms running southern called Chinese Goddess Bamboo, only clumps. It prefers a shaded location in China. B. grows 5-6' tall with 1/2" canes. ‘Silverstripe’ Central Florida. It has the largest leaves vulgaris, grows 20-25' tall and often has silver of all bamboos, up to 2' long and 4" Common stripes on the leaves. ‘Tiny Fern’ only wide. It is native to western and central Timber grows 2-3' tall. China. Phyllostachys nigra, Black Bamboo, Bamboo, The genus Dendrocalamus contains grows 20 to 30" tall with 3" diameter grows 50' mostly larger growing timber bamboos. canes. The canes turn from green to tall with 4" Most are only slightly cold hardy and black after a year or so. This bamboo diameter are more suited the warmer regions of does best in some shade species. It is canes. This central Florida. D. asper Grows to 100' native to eastern China. Pleioblastus is a very tall with 8" diameter canes. This is one of pygmaeus, Pygmy Bamboo, is the smallest common the largest bamboo species in cultivation. of all bamboos. It only grows 1 to 2 bamboo in central and southern Florida It forms large and impresive clumps. inches tall and makes a thick groundcover. and throughout the tropics. This large The new canes are covered with soft gray It resembles a lawn grass more than a timber bamboo forms open clumps hairs that are soft to the touch. It is bamboo. Pygmy Bamboo needs a shady with the canes sometimes being spaced native to southeastern Asia. D. giganteus location to look its best. It is native to up to a foot apart. It is most likely is the largest species of bamboo. It can Japan. Pseudosasa japonica, Arrow Bamboo, native to southeastern Asia but is found grow to 120' tall and has canes that can grows to about 10' tall. The slender stems only in cultivation. It is tender to cold reach over 12" in diameter. It is native are very straight and dense growing. It and better suited to the warmer regions to southeastern Asia. D. minor ‘Amoenus’ is native to Japan and Korea. The cultivar of central Florida. This bamboo has two is a smaller species only growing 25' tall ‘Tsutsumiana’, Green Onion Bamboo, ornamental cultivars. The cultivar with 2" canes. The canes are green with has swollen internodes. ‘Vittata’ has golden yellow canes with dark green stripes and it is native to – Eric Schmidt green stripes. The cultivar ‘Wamin’ only southeastern Asia. grows 10'-15' tall with 3" diameter canes. Mexican Weeping Bamboo, Otatea FLOWERING IN BAMBOO This bamboo has swollen internodes on acuminata ssp. aztecorum is one of the Flowering in most bamboo species is a the lower half of the canes. best bamboos for Florida. It grows 10 rare but fatal event. A majority of bamboo Bambusa multiplex, Hedge Bamboo, to 20' tall and has a graceful weeping lives 40 to 100 years before it begins the is very well suited to Central Florida. It habit. It also has soft, narrow leaves. flowering cycle. The inflorescences of grows 20 to 25' tall and has 1-2" diameter The canes grow 1-2" in diameter. This bamboo are not very showy. Once the canes. It forms a dense clump and bamboo is also fairly drought tolerant plant flowers it often sets seed. A single makes an excellent and is native to FOR MORE INFORMATION: clump of bamboo can produce thousands screen. It is native to eastern Mexico. of seeds. After the seed is produced, the southern China. Books Thyrsostachys plant usually dies. Hedge Bamboo is Bamboo for Gardens by Ted Jordan siamensis, Here at Leu Gardens we currently very common in Meredith, 2001, Timber Press Monastery have a clump of Bambusa ventricosa, Florida. There are Bamboo, also has Bamboo World by Victor Cusak, Buddha’s Belly Bamboo that is flowering. several cultivars with soft, graceful 2001, Kangaroo Press This is the large clump of bamboo that differing characteristics foliage. It grows is next to the Landing near the Floral that make excellent Internet 30-40' tall and has Clock. No one really knows what triggers landscape specimens. American Bamboo Society: 2-3" diameter the flowering in bamboo. Perhaps it was ‘Alphonse Karr’ has www.americanbamboo.org/ canes. It is native stressed from the three hurricanes that yellow stems with Florida/Caribbean Chapter of ABS: to Thailand. passed in 2004. Stop by and observe a green stripes. www.tropicalbamboo.org/ There are several rare event of nature. ‘Fernleaf’ is a smaller running type form growing 10-15' tall. The leaves are bamboos that grow well here and are not small and fern-like with thin, green stems. as aggressive. These are easily controlled. ‘Fernleaf Stripestem’ is similar except Several of these are smaller and make the thin stems are yellow with green good groundcovers or erosion control. stripes. ‘Golden Goddess’ grows to about Indocalamus tessellatus is a hardy 10' tall with 1/2" diameter canes that are bamboo that grows 4'-5' tall with 1/2".