Yellow leaves on Alphonse!

[henrimolle]

I just got a pot of alphonse karr. about 8 feet tall, about 10 shoots.
I live in Austin, Tx and some of the leaves are turning yellow. Is it normal? Are they going to come back? I replanted it in a bigger pot about 3 weeks ago and it started turning yellow about 3 days ago.

Help!

[CaroleMeckes]

Please describe the watering schedule that you have been using.

[henrimolle]

I got it 3 weeks ago. I transferred it in a bigger pot then. I have been watering it everyday since then, aside for a couple of days a week ago when it wasn't hot. the leaves curled up (maybe for just a few hours) as the dirt got drier. As soon as I noticed, I watered and the leaves plumped up within minutes.
I don't think that the dry episode is directly responsible for the yellow leaves (but maybe) as they are turning yellow now and not then.
It is possible that I have over watered since then... Is it ok to let the leaves curl a little before I water?
The weather here has just changed a bit, but the other (A.K.) bamboos I look at still look good.
Thanks for your reply.
Henri

[CaroleMeckes]

You may have overwatered your bamboo.

If you transplanted it before the rootball was properly developed that could also be part of the problem.

Try checking back with your source -

Carole

[henrimolle]

thanks!
Maybe I'll try drying it out again... ;)

[henrimolle]

SAVED IT!
I realized I had repotted it with soil that was way too rich for it. It would never dry either. I repotted it with better-drained, more neutral soil and waited for the leaves to curl up (making sure that nothing was moist enough for rotting). They did so within 24 hours of repotting. Then I watered it. All the yellow leaves fell off within 2 days and there has not been any new one.
For this week, I propped up the pot so it would dry out fast with the wind and the sun. And I am going to let a few leaves curl up before I water it every time so I can establish a more predictable watering pattern for the future.
Thanks for your help!

P.S.:remember for the holidays no bamboozin' and drivin':)

[CaroleMeckes]

Glad to hear your Bambusa multiplex 'Alphonse Karr' is surviving. That is a very interesting study that you described.

Here are two pictures of our Bambusa multiplex 'Alphonse Karr'
http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/data/569/thumbs/alphonse1998.jpg (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showphoto.php?photo=5116)Planted in 1998

Here is what the same plant looks like nine years later in 2007:
http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/data/569/thumbs/BmAKAuTX070916-9030.jpg (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showphoto.php?photo=5084)

Bear in mind that Mark had thinned out the canes quite often.

If you don't keep up with taking out the canes in the middle of a clumping bamboo - it becomes extremely difficult to do so later on in the plant's life.

Carole

[voodoolord]

Wow Carol, what a plant! Thats the biggest Karr Ive seen a picture of yet. Henrimolle, I have several Alphonse karr plants and a few in pots. I dont think this plant likes pots too much, I had bad leaf problems with the ones in pots and the one in the ground did fine.