Planting bamboo need help

Im planning to plant bamboo next to planned patio area. We are laying patio next year.

I am not sure do I need to install bamboo root barier?

On one side of the bedding area I digged trench and put mot type1 and then concreted and put one layer of engineered brick.

Other side is neighbours fence and next to fence is his soild patio.

You can see from picture I donot have much width so not sure do I need to install bamboo root barier.

Area is 9 meter in length? I got 6 bamboo plants. Should these be enough.

Any speacial thing do I need to plant them?

 

Hi Mane
Looking very nice, I had black bamboo (nigra) which is clump forming which worked well, probably different varieties now, I'm sure someone will have great ideas for you.

 

If I remember rightly I dug out the soil about 12" deep and added loads of well rotted manure then put the soil back in and planted, spacing I can't remember but I think 6 is a good start, clump forming varieties can be split when established.

 

My first thought is that that is not much width for the bamboos and it could get very dry with hard surfaces on both sides. "Clump forming" bamboos spread more slowly and don't come up a couple of feet away. My Phyllostachys nigra now occupies a space about 4ft*5ft after 15 years. it gets trimmed by the lawn mower when it strays into the grass and a sharp spade is regularly used to temper its enthusiasm, several people now have chunks. I would put a root barrier front and back otherwise they will come up between the fence and the edge of the neighbours patio.

 

thanks for all help.

Not sure where to buy bamboo root barrier. I will check local garden shop.

 

After what I've heard about bamboo I dont think I would plant it in that kind of area, sorry.
It will be ok for a few years, but likely to start pushing up the patio at some stage.

 

oh i see...

i may change the plan...

 

What type are those bamboos you have bought?

A latin name would be useful to work out just how spreading they are likely to be.

I dont want to put you off, but that was my gut feeling.

 

It was cuttings from my friend.

I am thinking to put them in long plastic pots. Not sure if anything like this available?

So my idea is dig space for plastic pots in same area and then put bamboos inside them.

 

Genuine clump forming bamboos, at least down here and in my experience, are limited to mainly fargesia types.
Phylostachys nigra and aurea have proven to be very invasive, hardly clump formers. Here their invasive tendencies were obvious within 2 years ......roots appeared several feet from their planting spots.
Bamboos can run and run...maybe behaving well for a while....and damage can be extensive even catastrophic
Before planting bamboo do your research

 

Very interesting. This is where forums such as this come into their own. Each contributor relates their experience and hopefully no offence will be taken if someone perhaps disagrees with anothers comment.

I must admit, I haven't any bamboo in my garden, had I the space then I would plant some. I have in the past planted beds of bamboo to naturalize in parks and woodlands. The latter areas, cost was of no importance, but adding compost etc was never resorted to. My last experience was to plant a single bamboo in my daughter's garden. No feed of any kind has been used in the garden probably since the house was built and some fifteen years have passed since plantin this subject. A suitable sized hole was dug, and the large pot was tapped free of the plant. Plant inserted and heeled in, followed by a good watering. The plant has grown well, certainly hasn't produced runners, it's a great plant and has become a ready source of canes.

So IMO I feel that at times we may perhaps go a bit overboard with some plantings and tend to molly-coddle them too much. As I learned in my plant pathology and plants sciences studies. A plant that alread has a good strong healthy root system doesn't need a lot of soil, nutrient additives. As I say/imply. We live and learn and as friendly gardeners we share our knowledge, even our failures.

 

We can only relate our own experiences.......they may or may not reflect others' but a word of caution about the possibilities to make folks think before planting bamboo.

There was a prog on the box about bamboos featuring the grower himself. The warnings were clear.....he had bamboo roots crossing a road and emerging on the other side. Removing a well established bamboo can be expensive, difficult and "bolting the stable door after the horse has gone"

No bamboos here.....grasses instead

 

Thanks for all help and input. Appreciate you all sharing your experences. I will go and see in local garden and buy some plastic pots...

 

Could I dig soil and burry this plastic container in soil and put bamboos. Will it work?

Looks sill idea but never know it may work.


Thanks