When purchasing bamboo the final expected mature height is probably the most important factor you will need to consider, as well as the amount of sun the planting area will receive. Since maximum height is a product of perfect environmental growing conditions, plan on purchasing a bamboo that is rated to grow higher in height then you actually want. It is much easier to trim back the top of the culms then to be disappointed a few years down the road with a bamboo that will never grow tall enough for your needs.

Select the position for your bamboo carefully. Most of the temperate bamboo that grow well in Portland are reasonably well behaved. The majority of running bamboo growing here have a tendency to spread slowly but there are exceptions. Unless you want a bamboo screen over 15 feet tall or a formal grove of timber bamboo that you can walk through, the clumping mountain bamboo species from the genuses; Fargesia, Borinda or Chusquea would be a much better choice. For a thick inpenetrable hedge or privacy screen under 15 feet tall it's hard to beat the mountain bamboos.

Bamboo prefer good free draining garden soil high in acidity which is what we generally have on the west side of the Cascades. You should amend the soil around the planting area and use a good garden mulch after planting to keep soil temperature even at the base of the clump. Although they prefer good loamy garden soil, bamboo will do fine in rich clay soils as well. They don't need much irrigation if at all in clay after establishment. The large running timber bamboo prefer full sun and do not grow well in a shady environment. The mountain bamboos actually prefer partial shade but most will tolerate full sun and still thrive.

As you know by now some bamboo species are rampant spreaders and will often need plenty of space to grow as thick and tall as they are rated. There are many different species and genuses to choose from. Phyllostachys is the most common running bamboo genus, and Pleioblastus, the most common dwarf bamboo genus. Containing can be done by planting into a large pot, although this means careful watering and feeding, or by sinking a rhizome barrier made from 60 mil HDPE plastic to a depth of approximately 30” inches all around the plant. You can also rhizome prune around the grove area with a sharp spade in late fall or early winter which is what we do. Usually a combination of control methods is required to keep running bamboo in check.

The rule of thumb with bamboo is; the larger the area the bamboo is allowed to spread into, the larger size the bamboo will attain for the environmental conditions provided. That is especially true with pot culture!