Hardy Tropicals UK

I want the end of the garden to look like this other Yorkshire garden....

Kris, that pic is the double of a side angle shot in my garden!, everyone who plants large boo's into the ground must expect to maintain them otherwise they will get out of hand, I go round everyone at least once a year & scrape away a few inches of soil to detect any runner's , I then give them the chop although them will alway's be a few escape artist's!, in my opinion large stripped bamboo's are a must in any authentic tropical garden as most smaller fargesia take an age to grow large & even then you can't expose the cane's with the same effect.

The video dosen't look like its in the uk anyway, chances are bamboo won't behave like that here anyway.
The is only one bamboo I own that I am afraid to plant and it's a tuminissinoda, anyone else got one.
Neil

Neil Ziemski wrote:The video dosen't look like its in the uk anyway, chances are bamboo won't behave like that here anyway.
The is only one bamboo I own that I am afraid to plant and it's a tuminissinoda, anyone else got one.
Neil

It's a US video. tuminissinoda is planted in Simon Olpins garden Sheffield (photo in previous post) and has gone bit rampant...

http://www.hardytropicals.co.uk/forum/v ... =sheffield

I don't understand the problem everyone has with the runners. I let them go wild and free. an unwanted cane pops up I just cut it down. keep an eye out for strangers here and there or step on them when there small shoots to keep them under control

I have seen Phyllos Nigra take over a garden and go next door in the New Forest. I think nigra was looking for light .Also Phyllo green gone AWOL in full sun in winchester.I planted arrow bamboo for a short time that went next door and was hell to dig up.

Runners are well behaved up here.

If anything it is the Fargesia that do really well and keep expanding a little bit too much.

I remember a garden I went to in 2012 to dig up some bamboo. The guy had planted loads of running types years before and he said it behaved for about 5 years and then started poping up everywhere, and I mean everywhere. It was quite scary tbh his black bamboo had traveled the length and width of his garden and was appearing in his patio.

My neighbour has a massive clump of black bamboo in the corner of his garden, so far it doesnt appear to be running but im sure I will eventually get it over here.

to anyone foolish enough to believe you can control Bamboo

I planted Phylostachys nigra, and for a few years it was fine. Then once it had bulked up it was off in all directions... under concrete paths, under the drive, in amongst other shrubs and palms. Anyone saying they can just dig and chop must have no other plants within 10 feet or you end up damaging them.

Took me nearly 2 weeks to nearly dig it out, and is now controlled by lopping all canes as they appear, as they do throughout the growing season. I thought that denying it top growth would eventually kill it off, but 5 years down the line, it is still keeping me busy

I must admit... I'm a little scared of my Bamboo... And I have a fair bit in my little garden. It's staying, but it is hard work and it's amazing quite how far it can travel... Next door were surprised too

Dave Brown wrote: to anyone foolish enough to believe you can control Bamboo

I planted Phylostachys nigra, and for a few years it was fine. Then once it had bulked up it was off in all directions... under concrete paths, under the drive, in amongst other shrubs and palms. Anyone saying they can just dig and chop must have no other plants within 10 feet or you end up damaging them.

Took me nearly 2 weeks to nearly dig it out, and is now controlled by lopping all canes as they appear, as they do throughout the growing season. I thought that denying it top growth would eventually kill it off, but 5 years down the line, it is still keeping me busy

are you sure it hasn't escaped somewhere it can grow to feed your rhizomes ?
also have you tried pulling instead of chopping to get some of the rhizome out at the same time?

if you dug in a circle immediately around the canes that appear to separate the rhizomes.
each time you separate and make them separate plants you are weakening the individuals so they will have less reserves to grow back.

I believe a lot of these horror stories have a lot to do with soil type's, I'm on very heavy clay which in itself is a barrier, loose open soil is just an invitation for running boo's.

I'm with Karl on this. Neither my Aurea nor Nigra have run and I am on heavy clay soil too. The supposed Pseudo Japonica I had ran like crazy. I tried it in a large planter but it sulked and died.

I've got very heavy clay and it didn't make one iota. It still found a way to run like Usain Bolt. Plus, root Barriers can cause an even bigger problem with the rhizomes going deeper to escape and then moving horizontal, making it harder to dig out and remove the plant if you have a change of heart. It's all down to preference though (and space)

if the runners are going down under root barrier it has been put in wrong.
you are supposed to angle it so they deflect upwards.