On the left is a mature grove of Hibanobambusa tranquilans. Most canes are 12 to 15 feet tall. This is an agressive runner. On the right is a young grove of P.aureosulcata 'Spectabilis'. These yellow canes with green grooves is one of the prettier bamboos. It is also extremely cold hardy.
     

Below is a grove of P.aureosulcata (left) that is being cleaned of old and dead canes. On the right is a small patch of P.discichus with our dog "Cowboy" looking for his ball.
  

The leaf below is form Fernleaf bamboo. This little groundcover gets about 24 inches tall with fan like leaves giving it a fernlike appearance. On the right is P.gramineaus. This is a great screening bamboo with canes up to 16 feet inheigth.
 

Below, on the left is a small patch of P.kongosenensis. This little grove always gets very ragged looking each winter and I mow it to the ground in February. It comes back with lots of lush new growth each spring. On the right is a grove of P.n.Megurochiku (Black Stripe Bamboo). This grove is about 8 years old and has a few 3 inch canes now. The black stripe is not very prominent. The canes have the gray look of P.n.Henon.
    

On the left below is a nice grove of Pygmy bamboo. It averages about 12 to 15 inches in height. I've controlled it over the last several years by mowing around it. However, it is spreading into the surround lawn even with mowing. The dogs love to lay in this bamboo. On the right is Dwarf Greenstripe bamboo (P.viridistriatus)The new growth in spring is almost neon green.

The leaves below are from the Dwarf Greenstripe bamboo. Notice the nice variegation of the leaves. It's easy to see why this bamboo is called Greenstripe. On the right is another "greenstripe". This one is Green Stripe Vivax (P.v.aureocaulis). This is one of the largest cold hardy bamboos. I love the yellow canes with lots of green stripes. My 7 year old grove has a few 2 inch or slightly larger canes.
        

Below on the left is another grove of Dwarf Greenstripe beside my driveway. Directly across from this grove is the same bamboo without the green stripes. (P.v. Chrysophyllus) (picture on the right)

These two pictures are of Robert Young bamboo. On the left you can see some canes that are only a few months old. They haven't turned yellow like the ones in the back have. It usually takes about 6 months for Robert Young colors up nicely. On the right is a grove I recently drove by. This is one of the prettiest bamboos I grow. I have a large grove along my driveway and it always provokes more comments than most any of the other bamboos on the farm.

Below you can see the semi-persistent culm sheaths. This is S.fastuosa, often called Temple bamboo. These sheaths are protective covers over each section (internode) of the new canes. On most bamboos they fall off right away but on this bamboo they hang on for several months. On a few bamboos the sheaths don't drop at all. On the right is a nice little grove of S.kumasaza - Ruscus bamboo. Notice allthe new little canes that are shooting.

This little bamboo is S.m.albostriata. It has some of the prettiest variagation of any bamboo with creamy white stripes on the green leaves. This bamboo can get ot almost 6 feet. Planted along my driveway it often gets ratty looking before winter is over. Last year I mowed the entire grove down to about 6 to 8 inches. It came back strong inthe spring with lots of bright, new growth. It only got to about 18 inches this year. I'll leave it alone this winter so it will likely send up some 2 to 3 foot growth this spring.

On the left below is Sasa palmata. Notice how the leaves on this bamboo spread out like a fan or "palm".It will grow in fairly low light levels. On the right is a close-up of S. kurilensis 'Simofuri'. I knew I had to have this bamboo the first time I saw it. I have a lot of variegated plants, both bamboos and others and I've never seen variagation like this. It looks almost like a brush with white paint has lightly brushed the leaf.

Phyllostachys aurea - Golden bamboo, fishcane bamboo. These distorted or compacted nodes at the base of the cane is a very distinct characteristic of this species. It is probably the most common bamboo here in the southeast.

                          

Left to right above. S.fastuosa has semi-permanent sheats. My largest Moso cane is nearly 8 inches in diameter at the base. This little groundcover is P.distichus. Although it gets about 8 to 12 inches in heigth this little patch has been mowed to about 2 inches and if growing just fine.

More pitctures added 2/24/07

Above Right - This grove of P.v.Robert Young is on the back side of the dam as you come down the hill into our nursery. Above on the right is a grove of P.aureosulcata, Yellow Groove. That little clump in front is Green Onion bamboo (P.j.Tsutsumana). Most of our drive is lines with bamoo along both sides.

         
The bamboo above is Giant Gray Henon (P.n.Henon). My brother told me about this grove. He was usre it was Henon as he has a grove at his home. I drove a good ways to get a look at it. The grove is very impressive, over 300 feet long but only 6 to 8 feet wide. As you can see from the pictures above it makes a good screen even at only a few feet deep. The paved road you see in the picture on the right controls the spread on one side. The picture below shows the othe side. Just a gravel driveway that extends all along the other side. The man who lived next to the grove says his neighbors planted several platns about 12 years ago. There are some canes that are close to 3 inches in diameter. I expect there will be some even larger canes in the future.

Created and Maintained by: 
Jim Mortensen 
mailto:jim@jmbamboo.com