How to grow bamboo so it thrives? Master these care tips
Bamboo is the general term for plants of the genus Bambusa in the grass family Poaceae. There are many species; some are low and grass-like, others as tall as large trees. Their stems are upright and graceful, green all year round, and they brave the snow and frost. They are greatly loved by Chinese people and are called one of the Four Gentlemen together with plum, orchid and chrysanthemum, and one of the Three Friends of Winter together with plum and pine. Through the ages, very many men of letters and scholars have loved and praised bamboo. Let us take a look below at how to grow bamboo so it thrives!
What kinds of bamboo are there?
1. Stem-form types: Bamboos grown for their stem form include Buddha bamboo (Bambusa ventricosa), lesser Buddha belly bamboo, great Buddha belly bamboo, square bamboo (Chimonobambusa quadrangularis) and Qiong bamboo (Qiongzhuea tumidinoda).
2. Stem-colour types: Bamboos grown for their stem colour include black bamboo (Phyllostachys nigra), mottled bamboo, Jinming bamboo, yellow-stemmed black-billed bamboo and yellow-striped bamboo.
3. Leaf-colour types: Bamboos grown for their leaf colour include white-striped Yin-Yang bamboo, Phyllostachys glauca f. alba, yellow-striped King Kong bamboo and indocalamus (Indocalamus tessellatus).
4. Plant-form types: Bamboos grown for their plant form include Phoenix tail bamboo (Bambusa multiplex), small qinsi bamboo and olive bamboo.
Bamboo propagation methods
1. Rhizome burial propagation: Dig up strong rhizomes, keeping the rhizome roots and rhizome buds and retaining plenty of the original soil. Cut the rhizomes into suitable sections and lay them flat on the seedbed. After covering with soil, keep the seedbed moist. This suits scattered (monopodial) and mixed bamboo species.
2. Culm burial propagation: Choose healthy two-year-old culms, dig them up with the root clump or cut them off without the clump, and after special treatment bury them in soil. Keep the seedbed moist. After about 1 month, the buds at the culm nodes sprout and emerge one after another. This suits clumping bamboo species.
3. Node burial propagation: Saw the culm into single-node or two-node sections, then transplant and bury them in the seedbed, cover with soil and keep moist. Management requirements are basically the same as for culm burial propagation. It suits clumping bamboos whose lateral branch bases have dormant buds.
4. Lateral branch propagation: Take lateral branches from the nodes of culms two years old or more, cut off excess branch tips and leaves, insert them into the seedbed with the upper half of the branches and leaves exposed. After 1 to 2 weeks, roots grow from the base of the secondary branches and new buds grow on the branch nodes. This suits clumping bamboo species.
How to grow bamboo so it thrives?
1. Soil: Bamboo prefers acidic or neutral soil and dislikes heavy clay and alkaline soil. You can use fertile, loose sandy soil, or mix field soil with leaf mould and fine sand to increase the soil's air permeability.
2. Pot: Bamboo is a shallow-rooted plant, so you can choose a pot with a shallower mouth. After planting, add some ornamental stones or moss to raise its ornamental value and make it look fresher and more elegant.
3. Watering: Bamboo likes moisture and fears waterlogging. Newly transplanted bamboo should first be watered thoroughly. In routine care, do not water too much. In summer, water every day and spray the leaves; in winter, reduce watering to prevent frost damage.
4. Fertilising: When planting bamboo, mix organic fertiliser into the potting soil. After normal growth, apply supplementary fertiliser appropriately, applying light fertiliser frequently. In spring and summer, you can apply 0.5% urea or 1.0% compound fertiliser with the water.
5. Pests and diseases: The main insect pests of bamboo are bamboo aphids and bamboo scale insects, which can be sprayed with insecticide. The main diseases are sooty mould and witches' broom, so management should be strengthened and diseased plants pruned in time.
6. Pruning: Bamboo grows fairly quickly, so prune it in good time: remove old growth and keep young, remove dense growth and keep sparse, remove weak growth and keep strong. When repotting each year, remove dead branches appropriately. This keeps the plant's shape graceful.