Bamboo in NE PA

[Chris_In_Central_PA]

Hello Mark,

I've read many of your posts with great interest. I live in central PA, started growing bamboo last summer and am going to be planting bamboo on my parents place (they have more space than I) just north of Honesdale PA.

I was wondering where your Pocono bamboo experiences took place and if you have any other suggestions (I picked up that stone worked well) for runners.

I think I'm giving P. bissetii, P. atrovaginata 'Congesta', P. aureosulcata 'Spectabilis', P. v. 'robert Young' and Red Margin a shot up there (whenever things thaw). I figure the R.Y. is pretty marginal that far north, but if you don't play, you can't win. :)

Thanks,
Chris

[Mark Meckes]

Hi Chris,
I lived in this region (between Mt Pocono and White Haven, on the Pocono Plateau NE PA, elevation about 1800ft - Zone 5b? will need to check)
- for 20 something meterologically diverse years, grew, trialed about 50 bamboo species, (7-13 years depending on species), 50 grasses and many other perennials, on 1 1/2 acres surrounded by maple, beech, oak, pine, hemlock and rhododendron etc.
The soil was glacial morain (mostly rocks and boulders with a little bit of clay grit and humus... with many pickup loads of stable mulch horse manure/straw/sawdust added over the years.

Some factors affecting the bamboos survival ...
* Location and micro-climates makes a bif diff
* Species of bamboo
- Size of and care given to the well-being of the plant.
In my crowded garden, if a plant didn't perform well in it's space, another plant was soon to step in. Competition was great, and the demise of some less hardy bamboos was speeded up by this.
Annual rhizome growth and vigor greatly affects the following year's top growth if plant tops are killed outright each winter.

* Severity of winter
- minimum temps, duration and frequency.
- snow, or lack of
- ice storms/heavy snow breaking culms
- deer browsing winter foliage
- rabbits - lower bamboo branches
- voles eating rhizome shoot buds (extent of damage unknown)
- Spring thaws, warm-ups and freezes / March winds
Only one year all of my earliest biggest sized shoots were frost killed.

P. bissetii - grew very well

P. atrovaginata 'Congesta' - would usually get top dieback, but it came back with vigor.

P. aureosulcata 'Spectabilis' - never had it, but the species grows very well

P. v. 'Robert Young' - gradually dwindled into obscurity

P. rubromarginata Red Margin - same as above, alas.

Mark

[Chris_In_Central_PA]

Interesting, I know that area fairly well, I recently did a bunch of telemetry on Northern Flying Squirrels on Pocano Lake Preserve and a few other properties in the area. That is a very rough area to grow anything but hemlock, spruce and rocks. :)

Although further north, my growing spot is between 1,000 and 1,100 feet in elevation and is in a valley bottom, so significantly lower in elevation and sorta sheltered. Still gets dang cold, I think they hit -20 this winter (not a real frequent occurance).

I'm surprised the Red Margin failed, that is one I have high hopes for. Deer pressure is very high up there, they even ate the deer resistant holly bushes this winter. I'm going to try and fence for the first few years, but then you get clums snapping when weighed down by ice/snow and bent over a fence. one thing is sure, it will be a grand experiment.

Thanks,
Chris

[Mark Meckes]

Hi Chris, don't let any of my findings dissuade you from experimenting.
There's a very good chance that you may have better results then with some of my species which were eventually crowded out.

It is a most enjoyable pastime to observe shoots of many differing varieties of bamboo, which for my collection emerged from about mid April, mostly May and into early June.
(Will post a list of what I grew when I get a chance)

Growing certain species of bamboo in the fringe zone, one has to expect that there will be winters when complete dieback will occur.
(Here in Texas, bamboo species of a more sub/tropical nature are grown with similar results)

One side benefit of clear-cutting top growth ... if the rhizomes have become established, it causes an alert reaction or awakening of rhizome buds, which produce a flush of new rhizome development, and though smaller sized top growth, very suitable for propagating divisions from.

Another thing I enjoyed was using my own homegrown `winter-kill harvest' for making simple garden fences and trellises etc.
One of my other fancys was growing gourds, flowering/fruiting vines of all sorts, and this bamboo was very helpful in providing the framework for these vertically grown gardens.

Mark