Lawns are cut regularly to encourage side shoots, prevent flowers and to keep the grass tidy. Some attention should also be given to other grasses and bamboos to encourage production of fresher growth at the beginning of the growing season.

Pruning Bamboo

• All bamboos look better when scruffy, broken or damaged shoots are removed.
• Thin out dense thickets to create space for the flexing stems of new shoots.
• Cut out old canes with sharp loppers or a pruning saw flush to the ground.
• Thin out other shoots to create a balanced, airy clump.
• Prune above a node to prevent die back.
• Weak side shoots and branches often look unattractive and a judicious pruning improves appearance.

Bamboo Care

• The best time to thin and prune is late spring just before new culms emerge.
• Don’t be afraid to remove 30% of the culms leaving the freshest one-two year olds.
• For more growth from dwarf bamboos cut down to soil level in early spring and treat like a hardy perennial to get fresh clean foliage.
• Instead of under planting you can decorate with stones or round pebbles.
• Some bamboos are invasive and the tough, springy roots need to be removed or root pruned annually. Plant a barrier at least 18 inches deep around invasive types.
• Bamboo can be turned into Topiary as the leaves grow more abundantly after pruning and the culm won’t grow
• Bamboos need to be replaced every 10-15 years
• Water plants in late spring during a dry spell to help new shoots to develop.

Bamboo in Pots

• Potted bamboos should never be allowed to dry out even in winter.
• Because bamboo is tall, it may be susceptible to being blown over so weight the pot accordingly.
• Bamboos make good subjects for growing in pots. I use terracotta pots as the colour seems to go well with the green leaves.
• Pots restrict the root run of the plants and they should be trimmed every year.
• Arundinaria viridistriata ‘Pleioblastus’ or Phyllostachys nigra ‘Black Bambo’o are decorative dwarf bamboos suitable for pot culture.
• Feed with a high nitrogen feed as bamboos are hungry plants and you are their only source of nourishment.

New Bamboo Boulevard at RHS Harlow Carr