Which bamboo species should I pick??

[bluelizy522]

I live in Miami, FL. I want to pick something that grows fairly fast, and can withstand direct sunlight. The thinkness doesn't really matter, as long as it clumps (not runs) and is non invasive.

So far, I have narrowed my list down to:
-Giant thorny (bambusa bambos)
-Punting Pole (Bambusa tuldoides)
-Bambusa Distegia
-Bambusa oldhamii
-Bambusa malingesis
-Bambusa textilis
-Giglantoa apus

Do you have any experience with any of these? Any advice would help! I am new to bamboo =D thank you!!!!!

[stevelau1911]

You could probably pay a couple bucks to get dendrocalamus strictus seeds on ebay which are clumping and size up as fast as anything. Tropical clumping bamboo seedlings put on size much faster than temperates on their first couple years.

[CaroleMeckes]

I live in Miami, FL. I want to pick something that grows fairly fast, and can withstand direct sunlight. The thinkness doesn't really matter, as long as it clumps (not runs) and is non invasive.

So far, I have narrowed my list down to:
-Giant thorny (bambusa bambos)
-Punting Pole (Bambusa tuldoides)
-Bambusa Distegia
-Bambusa oldhamii
-Bambusa malingesis
-Bambusa textilis
-Giglantoa apus

Do you have any experience with any of these? Any advice would help! I am new to bamboo =D thank you!!!!!

All those bamboo like full sun.
If you have not been there yet, I suggest you visit Fairchild Tropical Garden since you are in Miami to see what the bamboos that you named look like when they are mature.
The Florida chapter of the American Bamboo Society will be having a bamboo sale there on June 13-14, 2009 and you will be able to purchase plants at that time.
http://www.fairchildgarden.org/index.cfm?page=events&date=06-2009&eventID=240

Another thing you can do is do a search for "Fairchild Tropical Garden" at http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo and 101 different pictures come up.
(Mark and I visited the bamboo plantings at Fairchild in 2003 and took pictures)
Carole

ps - bamboo takes a longer time to get big when you grow it from seed