bamboo rising

[lazygood4nothinbum]

largest of all the grasses, bamboo grows quicker than any other woody plant in the world. there are more than 1000 species (only 3 native to north america, more than 60% native to southeast asia). while new shoots might start slowly, a culm can reach full height in 60 days with some species growing at a rate of 2 feet per day.

yesterday, i noticed my tropical black producing 3 sprouts (actually there were only two yesterday) right after tropical storm barry pushed through and gave the garden a much needed drenching. i thought it might be fun to document here in pictures the growth. (not all shoots survive so lets hope i picked a good one.)

this is gigantochloa atroviolcacia aka tropical black bamboo. it clumps tightly at the base, growing mostly verticle and then flares out like a fountain at it's peak height of 40 feet. culms of a mature plant are 3 inches in diameter. mine is about 3 or 4 years old, about 20 ft tall with the thickest culm being just under 2 inches.

a skinny twig or two in a 3 gallon container will put you back about $80 while a field grown plant will cost over $500--guess which one i started with. in my garden it is located at the rear, center stage, in front of the grotto, rising up as a garden focal point, to form the front entry to the grotto and to partially hide some electric lines higher up at the property line. it is flanked by two yellow, asian lemon bamboo clusters.

ladies and gentlemen, i present to you in all its magnificence:

bamboo rising

 

[bpp3]

Looks delicious. Harvest it quickly!

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Beautiful culms. Mine are popping up like mad, too.

They go from pop-out to full height in about 60 days. So for a 40 foot beauty, that's 8 inches a day. I often come home and see growth of 2-3" a day in my Buddha Belly that's finally starting to explode. Love it.

 

[HFWR]

There's some bamboo on the rise...

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

There's some bamboo on the rise...

Is that like a woody?

 

[Khan]

There's some bamboo on the rise...

Earthquakes and lightning?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Theres a bathroom on the right?

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

Looks delicious. Harvest it quickly!

put your hands in the air and wok away from that bamboo sprout, you cannibal.

There's some bamboo on the rise...Is that like a woody...Theres a bathroom on the right

pervs

hey, this is almost as exciting as watching grass grow. here's bamboo on day 4, growth rate a not yet impressive .33 inch/day.

this tree frog was entertaining me last night, hanging out on the picture window waiting for moths attracted to the light. there's another one who hangs out by the front porch light.

when i had wolfpuppy in my life the opportunistic frogs and lizards used to hang out on his poop, ambushing flies.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

sprout now at 4.25 inches. growth rate now at .375 inch/day. in the bamboo's defense we're in the middle of a drought. think maybe i'll substitute viagra for fertilizer. cool, blue bamboo.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

bamboo now at 7.75 inches has revved up to 0.7 inches per day growth rate. turns out i'm monitoring the wrong one because another species popped out of the ground the other day after a heavy rain and is blowing this one away. 9 inches in like 4 days. oh well, this one should crank up pretty soon. patience please. it is, after all, watching grass grow.

 

[TromboneAl]

You better give it some fertilizer, Bum, 'cause I've seen bean plants grow faster than that.

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

You better give it some fertilizer, Bum, 'cause I've seen bean plants grow faster than that.

Just wait...

 

[dumpster56]

My wife says NO bamboo in her yard!!

I love the stuff, and we have a great spot for it.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

it is, after all, watching grass grow.

Can you put a little paint on it so we can watch that dry at the same time?

 

[kbst]

You should use this early slower growing time to build a measuring device. That tape only goes to 25 feet and you're going to have to stand on a hellofa ladder to get that high.

kbst

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

You better give it some fertilizer, Bum, 'cause I've seen bean plants grow faster than that.

yer gonna need jack to climb down that stalk 'cause otherwise i'd like to see you build a house or a bridge with that bean plant.

"Bamboo takes in nearly 5 times the amount of greenhouse gases, and produces 35% more oxygen than an equivalent stand of trees." "By encouraging the growth and utilization of bamboo, we can begin to combat global warming."~~deborah keesey, abs magazine

Can you put a little paint on it so we can watch that dry at the same time?

&

You should use this early slower growing time to build a measuring device. That tape only goes to 25 feet and you're going to have to stand on a hellofa ladder to get that high.

hmmm, do i see another e.r. project in the works? yippee, something i can do all day.


seems i picked the wrong bamboo. i started photoing this one because it was the first sprout to sprout. but since then a teddy bear sprout has risen 90 inches (yesterday it wasn't as tall as me and today it is taller than me). that's almost 4 inches per day.

and this bambusa membranacea (pka dendrocalamus mebranaceus) has since risen 34 inches or about 1.5 inches per day.

the subject black bamboo is now at 27 inches. so the growth rate has accelerated from .7 to 1 inch per day. note though that the rhizone has put out a few more competing sprouts (subject culm to the far right).

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

we've been getting a ton of rain over last month. i think one spot in miami yesterday got 5 inches. my garden couldn't be wetter or happier.

the green bambusa membranacea is now 3 inches in diameter & 55 inches high, growing at a rate of 3 inches per day.

the subject tropical black bamboo shown below is now 64 inches growing at a rate of 5.28 inches per day. houston we have lift off.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

never look down on a bamboo, because two days later bamboo is looking down on you. now at 76 inches and over my head, the tropical black is growing at a rate of 6 inches per day. before long it will be producing oxygen and providing shade before it eventually becomes a renewable resource for shelters, bridges, fences, windchimes, furniture, fly rods and that 10-foot pole unafraid to touch any subject. according to Bamboo Technologies | About Bamboo 2.5 acres of bamboo can soak up to 12 tons of carbon dioxide per year.

now all i need is permission to extend my garden into my neighbors' yards...

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

the tropical black has just about grown out of the camera. now 93 inches tall, growth has leveled off at 5.66 inches per day. my teddy bear bamboo is already at least 20 feet tall, so growth for that averaged about 6.33 inches per day.

another interesting bamboo in the garden here is this tropical blue aka emperor's blue aka bambusa chungii. still somewhat rare, it was first imported from china in the 1990s. pretty much just an ornamental as it is very thin walled, the young culms produce a powder--called a bloom (but it is not a flower)--over the entire surface. when the light hits just right, the bamboo glows blue. the solid green culms in the picture are older culms which have lost their bloom.

 

[TromboneAl]

What's it look like now?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

The ISS just ran into it and is venting atmosphere.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

how funny. with all the old threads arising i should have expected bamboo rising as well. my best guess is that this years crop of culms have reached 25 feet. each year the new culms grow larger in diameter and longer in length. within two or three years it could max out near 40 feet, not the older culms but the new ones. the older put out new branches over the years but do not gain greater height. this year's culms have yet to put out any branches at all; they are just sticks rising into space.

should they ever gain altitude to interfere with the iss i will have to erect upon them blinking red lights. fortunately, i'll be able to use the bamboo to build scaffolding high enough to reach the top. i have no idea why nasa thinks it needs all that fossil rocket fuel.

edit: just noticed the color difference in pic. the thicker green ones are the new culms. they likely will turn black like the others as they age though some black have been known to revert back to remaining green. (not that they go from green to black to green but they never turn black.)

 

[toofrugalformycat]

Amazing.
I should do a post like this next spring with Anchorage dandelions.

 

[dumpster56]

How well will bamboo do in large containers?

We have a deck with a good southwest sunny face here in north carolina and some real good deep sized planters. Want to make a screen with them? Types? Suggestions, thanks.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

Amazing.
I should do a post like this next spring with Anchorage dandelions.

steal away. i already stole this idea from watching nords' pineapple ripen (don't worry, it wasn't at a naked twister party).

How well will bamboo do in large containers?

We have a deck with a good southwest sunny face here in north carolina and some real good deep sized planters. Want to make a screen with them? Types? Suggestions, thanks.

i wouldn't suggest for deck for a few reasons. the main reason might be their mess. bamboo loves mulch so much that it makes it's own fairly regularly. my anal retentive neighbor planted some in his oriental-themed lanai and now i hear him out there every weekend with his leaf blower.

i planted gardens around this house in jungle fashion and so the droppings fit naturally the landscape. i also did a bamboo hedge running about 75 feet in front of the house, along the street, which will soon be messing up every neighbor's front yard within a block radius. ain't i funny?

the other reason is more manageable but still annoying. the rhizomes are both strong and persistant. i have one example of creeping bamboo (as opposed to the cluster varieties) which i keep in container. i wanted it in the ground so i dug a big hole, sunk a heavy duty outdoor plastic garbage can (bottom holed) and planted the bamboo there. within two years it had broken through the plastic sides and started to spread out of the container. i had to carefully remove the entire root system before it took over the town and have it above ground now.

so you could do bamboo if you are willing to work it. the spreading bamboo might be better as it would fill your containers. you will have to clean up often if you are a neatnik and you will have to replant every so often when it outgrows the containers.

you can shop for them online or maybe you have a local grower. shop according to cold tolerance, height, etc. i couldn't really suggest one because i don't know your preferences. you will find a wide variety of texture, leaf size, plant size, foliage thickness, care requirements, etc.

here are some sites with good pictures & pricing if you care to browse:

Tropical Bamboo Nursery - The Bamboo Plant Source

Bamboo Down Under - Australia's number one retail bamboo nursery!