We're Jmbamboo, a mail order, retail/wholesale bamboo nursery. We have the selection and service of the larger nurseries with the personal service and attention to detail that they just can't provide. I'm Jim and I'm the one who will take your order and answer you questions. I like the one to one relationship I have with my customers and I enjoy answering the questions and providing advice on which bamboo to choose.

My wife Mickey and I live in an underground home we built ourselves. It took us almost ten years from the time we started until we moved in. We were blessed/cursed with thousands of moss rocks on our place so we used them for building and landscaping. The roof has a couple of feet of dirt on it and is the perfect place for our gardens as it is one of the few places that gets sun. We grow elephant ears, gingers, cannas, banana trees, brugmansias, carnivorous plants,.... well you get the idea. Of course this is in addition to all the bamboo we grow.
I guess I've always had a love for bamboo. Perhaps it's my early memories of playing with a bamboo pole as a kid and thinking about all the things we could do if only we had more! Unfortunately, the only grove we knew of was off limits to us. When my wife and I bought some property of our own I finally planted my own bamboo grove. It was slow to get started and meanwhile we were busy building our home over the next several years. About fifteen years ago a someone told me about a man in Birmingham who grew lots of bamboo. Turns out it was Steve Ray and he had over a hundred species. I soon became a regular visitor, driving him crazy with my questions and buying bamboo every time I got a little extra money. I began selling bamboo in 1994 and built my website in 1995. Today I have over 100 species of bamboo growing on 25 acres and the website has changed many times over the years. We love the beautiful bamboo groves that cover our property, especially since they provide greenery and privacy all year round.

We sometimes wonder if the bamboo is getting out of hand but we love it anyway. With our home underground we have to be carefull about letting the bamboo take over the roof. I finally transplanted the P.v. Robert Young that was headed that way and think I may have it under control. We still have some bamboo around the house. There's Sasa palmata near the back door along with a nice patch of Pleioblastus viridistriatus. There's even a long line of Pleioblastus humilis along the fron edge of the roof to keep people from walking off! We made one other mistake by planting Okuboi bamboo near the roof to hide our power meter. It worked so well that we are now in the process of removing this bamboo. It spread rapidly and about three years ago we realized we needed to stop it. We cut it all back to the ground and have continued cutting it each year. It is about gone now but I still find new, small shoots each spring amoung some of the rocks lining the edge of the roof. We definitely won't be planting anymore bamboo near the house!

We have a long drive (about 650 feet) and bamboo lines it most of the way. We also have a small pond, surrounded by bamboo. The back side of the dam is a mature grove of Robert Young. Most of our 25 acres is wooded but any clearing has bamboo planted in it. We're running out of room, so I've begun planting more at relatives and friends homes My eventual goal is to spread bamboo far and wide.The summer of 2006 we had the local utility company tell us that they were planning on clearing a 20 foot right of way from the road to our home. This would cut through the middle of my Robert Young bamboo grove and pretty much eliminate the Dwarf David Bisset Bamboo along with a small grove of Ruscus bamboo. After exploring our options we decided to have our power lines and telephone line placed underground. It was surprisingly affordable and now we have a much prettier drive with no power lines and intact bamboo groves. I wish we had done this years ago!

Along with bamboo, we grow many other plants. I collect and grow many Aroids, especially Alocasias, Colocasias, and Xanthosomas (Elephant ears). My wife, Mickey, mixes in Phlox, Salvia, Lantana and other flowers for lots of color. We grow Gingers, Cannas, Banana trees, Brugmansias, and Lillies along with the Elephant ears to give our rooftop gardens a tropical look. I am also fascinated by carnivorous plants and have three artificial bogs where I grow Venus flytraps, Pitcher Plants, Sundews, and other plants that thrive in the unique soil conditions that carnivorous plants prefer. You can find these (and some of our bamboos) at Big Plants.

Currently, we only sell by mail-order. For visits to the nursery there is a $150 minimum purchase. You can get larger plants at reduced prices by picking up at the nursery. To arrange a visit call 205 283 5638.

We guarantee all plants for 30 days once you receive them. Call or email me as soon as you suspect any problems. We will replace the plant and pay for the shipping of a new plant. We don't require that you return the dead plant.We've found that in most cases if we treat our customers right they do right by us. If you are not happy with the plant when your bamboo arrives, let us know right away. We'll try to make you happy. If the plant dies after the 30 day warranty but you feel you did everything right, give us a call or email. We can usually come up with a solution that makes everybody happy. We do our best to make every customer satisfied. More information

Many factors determine the health of your plant. Site placement, watering, and fertilizing all play an important part in how well the bamboo does. We send detailed directions for planting and care of the bamboo. It is the responsibility of the customer to follow these directions and give the plant it's best chance to thrive. If you have any questions feel free to call 205 283 5638 or email and Ill be glad to anwer them and offer free advice. We ship on Mondays and can accomodate changes in the orders up until the Saturday evening before shipment. Thanks for ordering from jmbamboo.

The size of the rootball is probably the most important consideration when choosing a bamboo plant.
However, top growth is what looks good when you receive a plant and can be
an indication of a strong, healthy rhizome system. When I dig divisions of bamboo and pot them up it is a very
subjective decision as to whether the plant will go into a 2, 3, or 5 gallon container. It's the same with any
bamboo nursery that propagates bamboo by division. The number of canes in the division often determines the size.
However, with many of the giant species, a division often has only one cane. In that case the size rootball I've
managed to dig and the cane size both help me decide. Once the plant is potted, the rhizomes and
roots fill in the container. Since we pull the plants straight from the container and prepare for shipping, the sizes
of the rootball you see below are what you get.

Our plants are potted up several months before shipping. We pot bamboo divisions in containers using a sterile, professional grade potting mix. When we ship we remove the container, wrap the rootball in paper and plastic, and box them up. We do not remove any of the potting soil so when you order a 2 or 3 gallon plant you get a full size rootball. Nothing has been done to disturb the roots. Removing some soil would reduce the weight making shipping cheaper. However, there's no need to concern yourself about the cost of shipping because shipping is free at JMBAMBOO.