Garden shrubs – Bamboo

Although bamboos are true grasses their needs differ from many of the ornamental grasses which is why we tend to grow them more as shrubs, not just because their size, scale and longevity allow us to plant them as such.

While grasses are content in impoverished soil and handle severe drought and exposure to the elements, most bamboos are fussier. In their native habitats in China, they grow in dips and clothe the sides of shallow valleys which gives them protection from drying winds yet allows them to enjoy maximum sunshine. Exposure to wind is probably the most damaging aspect of British garden life, because it desiccates plants, making them brittle and weak. If possible you should give bamboo a physical windbreak like a fence or screen. Perhaps their biggest dislikes are waterlogged ground and dense shade – given reasonable drainage in the soil, they will usually survive a wet winter, but if you have clay soil, you need to pick your bamboo species carefully as the tendency of clay to hold water will often rot the roots of even well-established bamboo in a particularly rainy season.

Bamboos do benefit from some pruning, and you can trim them back annually removing older and less attractive shoots and stems, making each cut above a node so that the stem doesn’t die back and look unsightly. Remember that some bamboo species do run riot and you should check your variety carefully before planting it out. If in doubt, put it in a pot so that it doesn’t rampage through your garden!

Bamboo photograph by patty_colmer, used under a creative commons attribution licence

 

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