Choosing a bamboo.

[Whatever]

Currently I have no bamboo but I have ordered a yellow groove that should be here later next week. I plan on keeping it indoors until late winter / early spring.

Now though I'm wanting more lol. So I'm thinking something for a container that will be mostly an indoor plant which might be taken outside in the summer.

So I would like something that does well indoors with partial sun. It will be able to get a good amount of early sun from the west. I would also like something that's relatively fast growing (non boring lol) which brings me to the next thing, I would kinda like to start from seed if available and if it doesnt take to long to get going from seed.

As far as the bamboo itself I would like something that doesnt have to many leaves so the culm's will be nicely visible. Something that will get to at least 1" in diameter, bigger would be cool though. The room is on the short side, About 6' 1/2" tall so would it be ok to just cut the culm when it starts to reach the ceiling?

I'm new to bamboo and am just throwing ideas out here so any and all suggestions are appreciated.

[CaroleMeckes]

Welcome to the bamboo forums, or as we spell the word welcome here, Welculm. You may not know it but we have recently lost Mark Meckes, who is the real creator of this site and the person who replied to more messages than anyone else.

So I will try to address a few of your questions...

As you indicate that you live somewhere in 6a where the low temperatures reach -10 to 0 degrees Fahrenfeit, Phyllostachys aureosulcata (yellow groove) (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showgallery.php?cat=520) is a good choice, however I question how well your plant will do inside the house from now till the springtime.

I would suggest that you keep your plant outside as much as possible and bring it indoors when you are expecting really cold days and nights.

re: The room is on the short side, About 6' 1/2" tall so would it be ok to just cut the culm when it starts to reach the ceiling?

It is unlikely that the culms on your plant will get any taller than they already are. When bamboo sends up its new shoots (normally in the springtime for Phyllostachys in the USA), the shoots grow their full height in 6-8 weeks, and then they never get any taller (they just get stronger) - so the culms on your plant that you ordered will stay the same height that they are now - in the springtime the new shoots will rise, they may exceed the height of your ceiling but by that time the plant would be ready to be outside and be put into the ground.

re growing bamboo from seed - it does take a much longer time to get larger canes when starting from seed and it also takes a lot more caring for your plants as you will see as you read some of the other posts here regarding growing bamboo from seed.

Carole

[Whatever]

I'm sorry to hear about mark. I hope this site stays and thrives it could really help out a lot of people and be a great resource for information. Its the only nice bamboo forum Ive found. Is the future of the forum known?

Just a little bit before your message I ordered some seeds. I ordered 100 moso and 100 water to try. Both of which are reported as being somewhat cold hardy, not quite down to what we get here but close.

Ive kinda dropped the idea for bamboo just for indoors and will just have the "moso" and "water bamboo" in while needed.

[CaroleMeckes]

This forum will continue as it would be Mark's wish. My major concern is that the forum will also be able to continue after I leave this earth too - so I am trying to research and learn what I can do so that the forum will always be available for future generations.

re water bamboo - I am not sure what that is...

And for the record - moso may not grow as large as you would want it to grow in zone 6a, but do not be discouraged as it is very interesting to watch bamboo grow from seed.

I tried it once and kept a few plants for about 2 or 3 years - then I put the 2 plants I had left in the ground and lost them.

Carole

[Whatever]

PHYLLOSTACHYS heteroclada is what I would be referring to as water bamboo.

I understand I wont get mature sizes but the seeds where cheap and available so it should be fun :)

I have experience with forums and websites / hosting and the like. If you have any questions along those lines I would gladly try and answer them for you.

[CaroleMeckes]

PHYLLOSTACHYS heteroclada is what I would be referring to as water bamboo.


Oh yes, now I do remember now about heteroclada. The American Bamboo Society Source list says about P heteroclada: "Air channels in rhizomes permit growth in wet locations"

http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/data/515/thumbs/PheteroE9BGA050216-761.jpg (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showphoto.php?photo=1655)
by the way - that is me in Byron, GA next to plot E9. (I followed Mark from plot to plot and took notes for him as he took photos.)

And I will keep you in mind re web things if I have any questions.

My best reqards,
Carole

[calbino]

I have only recently found your site which I love so far! I am interested for several years now to raise bamboo. In fact my wife and I have raised the small types you buy at the store in arrays around a pot or that have been raised to curl etc. But we live in Iowa and the cold weather just doesn't agree with the bamboo plant. I have been to the Philippines several times and have been looking at developing some kind of business that will help the local economies there (my wife is Filipino) as well as grow into a business that will be both profitable and rewarding here. I have spent my life in construction and so I tend to be more interested in the develpment of a commercial application of the bamboo plant. I have recently begun to use bamboo flooring instead of carpet in my rentals as a means to dress up the houses or apartments.
I am extremely interested in looking into what it will take to both grow and harvest to market the bamboo here in the US. I would appreciate your input as well as that of any other member on this. Thank you, Calbino

[ShmuBamboo]

Regarding the original question:

Bamboo is not an indoor plant, in general. As such where you live, I would look for really cold hardy types that tolerate low temperature winter regions. There is a good book, called Hardy Bamboos Taming the Dragon by Paul Whittaker (from England) that deals with only cold heardy bamboos that do well in cold regions. It has relly good photos and excellent descriptions of bamboos. I think that it is one of the best bamboo books out there, really. Spend some money on books and figuring out what will work best before spending a lot of money on bamboos.

If you want an indoor-tolerant bamboo, one that comes to mind is xHibanobambusa tranquillans and xHibanobambusa tranquillans 'Shiroshima' that will do OK indoors, and would do OK if you want to move it inside and out. It will also tolerate temps to zone 6 (-10 degrees F).

[calbino]

Thanks I will look into that, but where do you buy these various types of bamboo? It is not like we have them growing around Iowa! How do I find a supplier? I also would like to find a supplier in northern California as I am out there periodically also (east bay area of San Fransico). Cal

[CaroleMeckes]

The American Bamboo Society Source List (http://americanbamboo.org/SpeciesSourceList.html) is a good place to start to look for bamboo plants and related bamboo items.

[ShmuBamboo]

Thanks I will look into that, but where do you buy these various types of bamboo? It is not like we have them growing around Iowa! How do I find a supplier? I also would like to find a supplier in northern California as I am out there periodically also (east bay area of San Fransico). Cal

I know some growers in No Cal (I lived in the sough SF bay area for 7 years). PM me if you want some names and locations. None are in the east bay though. One is in Davis, several are over toward Santa Cruz, and several are around Sebastopol. I would also avoid some that are known to have bamboo mites. :mad:

[calbino]

Thanks. I am leaving this week to go to Antioch for a couple weeks and will look into it a little more then. What is PM? Calvin

[CaroleMeckes]

PM means private message.
This forum has a way that you can email just one member by sending him or her a private message.

To do so:
click on the user's name in the left hand corner of a message
a drop down menu will appear
the second choice down is "Send a private message to ______"
click on that line and continue

Carole

[voodoolord]

The reason most bamboos dont do well in doors is that they need a period of cold weather. bamboo shooting season is dependent on soil temperature and being indoors confuses the plant into thinking its spring year round. Almost all bamboos need a period of dormancy.

[Indoor Bamboo]

Bamboo can be raised Indoors.. just have plenty of sunshine and when summer time comes (where temp. is 15 - 25 F), you must move it outside.. it likes the humid weather. Practically, zones 8 thru 10 are the best zones. I have the Bambusa Textilis- Alphonse Karr (already 6 feet tall) in my house. Even Monrovia.com sells them as Container/tropical plant which means it can be raised indoors.