Bamboo Uses

There are bamboos to fit just about every job description in the garden and landscape - whether it's working as a border plant, screen, hedge, groundcover, woodlander, solitary specimen or container plant. In fact, there is usually a choice of bamboo qualified for each job.

Screens & Hedges

A frequent characteristic of the modern garden is that there's almost always something that needs to be hidden away such as an unsightly shed or some neighbouring eyesore. These common problems provide a great opportnity to make use of bamboo as a living screen. Varieties like Pseudosasa Japonica, Yushania anceps, Phyllostchys Bissetii, Phyllostachys Glauca or Phyllostchays Viridisglaucescens are ideal where a tall, fast growing screen-effect is required. Fargesia bamboos are also invaluable for screens where there is enough room for the canes to arch over gracefully - our favourites include Fargesia Robusta and Dracocephala. For lower screens try Pleioblastus Humilis, Sasa Palmata or Sasa Veitchii.

When planting a bamboo screen or hedge using clumping bamboos, such as Fargesia varieties, it is advisable to create a minimum bed width of 600mm (2 feet) to allow for expansion of the clumps.  When using the spreading varieties such as Phyllostachys is is advisable to create a bed width of at least 1m (3 feet).  The distance required between plants is generally recommended at 1m (3 feet) for clumping varieties such as Fargesia and 1-2m (3-6 feet) for spreading varieties such as Phyllostachys bamboos.

Although these are some we have picked out as good screens or hedges, most bamboo plants will create an effective screen or hedge - so don't rule out your favourite if we haven't listed it here. Also see our Bamboo Hedging Guide for more information :

Phyllostachys Glauca
Phyllostachys Viridiglaucescens
Phyllostachys Bissetii
Pseudosasa Japonica
Pleioblastus Humilus
Sasa Palmata
Sasa Veitchii
Yushania Anceps
Fargesia Robusta
Fargesia Dracocephala

Keeping Bamboo in Containers and Pots

Many bamboo plants will grow quite happily in containers or pots and can make very attractive additions to patios or terraces, especially where a little bit of shelter or privacy is required.  It is however important to remember when keeping bamboos in pots or containers, it is more labour intensive than growing in the ground as they need more watering and eventual repotting when they outgrow their pot.  Also, we specialise in bamboo plants which are proven to be hardy when planted in the ground, but when the same plant is kept in a pot, the roots and rhizomes are more exposed to winter frosts.  In colder regions of the UK (like here in NE Scotland) it might be worth wrapping your pot in fleece or bubble wrap or even taking the pot to a sheltered location or undercover (but not indoors to a heated builing).

The best bamboos for growing successfully in pots are the clump forming ones or only the moderately invasive ones.  It is advisable to avoid the very vigorous growing ones as they will quickly fill the pot with circling rhizomes and will split the strongest of pots.

The following bamboos are particularly good choices for keeping in pots:

Shorter Growing:-

Fargesia Murielae 'Bimbo'
Shibataea Kumasaca
Sasaella Glabra 'Albostriata'

Fargesia Rufa

Fargesia Murielae 'Simba'

Taller Growing:-

Fargesia Robusta

Fargesia Nitida

Thamnocalamus Crassinodus 'Kew Beauty'

Thamnocalamus Spathiforus 'Aristatus'

Phyllostachys Nigra 'Punctata'

Phyllostachys Aurea

Phyllostachys Aureosulcata 'Aureocaulis'

Phyllostachys Aureosulcata 'Spectabilis'

We must however highlight the following potential problems with keeping you bamboo plants in a pot or container.  The main problem occurs with over or under watering.  A bamboo in a container must be constantly monitored to ensure it has not become too dry and likewise it must not be allowed to become waterlogged.  The sign of poor watering is usually browning or loss of leaves.  If this happens, try to correct the watering regime and the plant should show signs of recovery - it is quite hard to kill the roots.  It is also advisable to feed your containerised bamboos regularly through the growing season - an under nurished bamboo will have yellowing leaves or be pale green.

Groundcover and stabilising steep banks

Many of the dwarf and small bamboos (those that grow up to about 2 metres) are superb for groundcover, and soon make a dense, weed-suppressing covering of evergreen leaves. We like to use Pleioblastus varieties for a shorter, carpeting effect under shrubs and in woodland, or even to replace a lawn - it can be clipped once a year to create a lawn / carpet. Indocalamus tessellatus and Sasa types are ideal where taller cover is required. Bamboos are also ideal for stabilising soil on steep slopes and river banks. After just a couple of years the network of rhizomes is so well-knitted that the soil is held in place during the most torrential rain (we recommend keeping these watered until established to gain a strong root network).