How to Start Another Bamboo Plant From Existing Plant
If you grow bamboo in your yard, or know someone who does, you can start another bamboo plant from an existing bamboo plant quite easily by cutting off part of a healthy rhizome. Bamboo comes in two forms, clumping and running, and some varieties are cold-hardy. While bamboo can be invasive when you do not keep it under control, it does add an exotic flare to any garden.
Cut the bamboo canes back to 2 feet to make them easier to maneuver.
Dig around the existing bamboo plant 4 to 5 feet in diameter and 2 feet in depth. Loosen the soil until you have a good view of the rhizomes.
Choose a rhizome that is yellow with one or two culms attached to it. Cut off the rhizome from the mother plant at the neck using a sharp knife.
- If you grow bamboo in your yard, or know someone who does, you can start another bamboo plant from an existing bamboo plant quite easily by cutting off part of a healthy rhizome.
Wrap the bamboo rhizome in a damp burlap sack. Plant it immediately in a well-drained pot filled with potting soil or in your yard. If planting in your yard, make sure the soil is drains well and the bamboo has access to full sun. Plant the bamboo as deep as the rhizome.
Water the bamboo for five minutes and place mulch over the soil around the base of the plant. Keep the soil around the bamboo moist for one to two months until it is established.
Plant Bamboo For Shade
Plan your bamboo placement. The bamboo needs to be placed where it will create shade but receive full sun. Don't inadvertently shade sun-loving plants that are already established. Turn the soil in the planting area with a shovel or tiller to encourage bamboo rhizome development. Rhizomes are the underground tendrils through which a bamboo plant spreads. Even clumping bamboo expands a bit. Place the bamboo in the hole, and fill the rest of the hole with soil. If you plant multiple bamboo plants, space clumping bamboo 2 to 3 feet apart and running bamboo 3 to 5 feet apart. Dig a trench 36 inches deep and about 24 inches wide around the bamboo if you planted a running bamboo variety. A bamboo plant should receive 1 gallon of water each watering session if its nursery pot was fewer than 5 gallons in size.
- Plan your bamboo placement.
- Turn the soil in the planting area with a shovel or tiller to encourage bamboo rhizome development.
Plant Bamboo For Shade
Plan your bamboo placement. The bamboo needs to be placed where it will create shade but receive full sun. Don't inadvertently shade sun-loving plants that are already established. Turn the soil in the planting area with a shovel or tiller to encourage bamboo rhizome development. Rhizomes are the underground tendrils through which a bamboo plant spreads. Even clumping bamboo expands a bit. Place the bamboo in the hole, and fill the rest of the hole with soil. If you plant multiple bamboo plants, space clumping bamboo 2 to 3 feet apart and running bamboo 3 to 5 feet apart. Dig a trench 36 inches deep and about 24 inches wide around the bamboo if you planted a running bamboo variety. A bamboo plant should receive 1 gallon of water each watering session if its nursery pot was fewer than 5 gallons in size.
- Plan your bamboo placement.
- Turn the soil in the planting area with a shovel or tiller to encourage bamboo rhizome development.
Tip
Take bamboo cuttings from February to April.
Warning
Do not take rhizomes that are red, brown or black. These rhizomes are diseased and will not start healthy new bamboo plants.
Related Articles
References
- Sunset Western Garden Book; Editors of Sunset Magazine
- American Bamboo Society: Controlling Bamboo
- American Bamboo Society: Planting and Caring for Bamboo
- Beauty and the Bamboo Inc.: Bamboo -- Frequently Asked Questions
- Connor Bamboo: Cultivation
- Bamboo Garden: Cold-Hardy Bamboo
- Sunset Western Garden Book; Editors of Sunset Magazine
- American Bamboo Society: Controlling Bamboo
- American Bamboo Society: Planting and Caring for Bamboo
- Beauty and the Bamboo Inc.: Bamboo -- Frequently Asked Questions
- Connor Bamboo: Cultivation
- Bamboo Garden: Cold-Hardy Bamboo
Writer Bio
Hollan Johnson is a freelance writer and contributing editor for many online publications. She has been writing professionally since 2008 and her interests are travel, gardening, sewing and Mac computers. Prior to freelance writing, Johnson taught English in Japan. She has a Bachelor of Arts in linguistics from the University of Las Vegas, Nevada.
