Basicly it looks like an established 'cash crop' but we don't want to just jump in and start waisting time and $ without a little 'education'.

So...here are some questions:
1. Is this type edible? If so, what parts?

2. If we want to sell bamboo for the person to grow - what part do we sell?
When (in NC) and how do you harvest that for them?

3. Does the drying/treating time differ with the size/age of the 'trunk' ? We have some in there that are over 12inches in diameter!!!

4. What tools are best to cut the larger stalks for craft/building purposes? An electric jig saw maybe??

Wow...I am LOADED with questions and don't mean to be ignorant, but as we search we get some conflicting info on how to transplant and use this resource that is easily so availbe to us!

Blessings - and thank you in advance!
Joe and Donna

2. To sell a viable plant, you will need to dig up a good size root ball -- basketball size or larger -- with the culms attached, replant it in a suitable sized pot, let it stabilize for 3-6 months to see whether it survives, and then sell it. Digging is hard work as the rhizome (root) mass is very tough and you will need saws, pruners, shovels, and steel demolition bars to pry it out of the ground. You will also need to determine whether the plants are healthy in the first place. It is very common to have stands of bamboo such as yours infected with bamboo mites, which causes the leaves to lose pigmentation and have little white blotches on them. This pest does not kill the bamboo, but gives the leaves an unsightly appearance, and it is hard to eradicate without a longterm spraying program using very expensive specialty chemicals. Knowledgeable bamboo buyers will not purchase such plants.

3. Your bamboo will be hollow, but have a hard membrane separating each node. Mass producers of bamboo poles often drill out the nodes or smash them out with a piece of rebar to help hasten the drying time; this is also hard work. Most poles that are mass-produced come from Asia where they dry them in smoky, open furnaces. It would take a number of months for yours to dry naturally. [By the way, while you may have bamboo that is 12" in circumference, I am unaware of any bamboo grown in the U.S. that is 12" in diameter.]

4. Bamboo culms can be cut with hand or power saws; just be aware that, unless you tape the cut area first, you will get strands of the tough, outer surface tearing away.

Most bamboo shoots(newly emerging shoots) are edible depending on the variety. Some are more desirable than others.

The best would be field dug divisions which would include a small culm or two with a good sized rootball including rhizomes and roots.

You want to harvest only the older culms(at least the three years old, but older would be better), as they are harder than newer culms. The drying time is longer for larger culms, depending on humidity and outside temps.

There are bamboo cutting saws out there that work really well. I use one of the folding pruning saws that you can get at Lowes or Home Depot. Larger culms may require a chainsaw.

Cutting rhizomes will require a good saw also. A reciprocating saw works nicely, some use chainsaws, and I use an ax since I have sandy soil here.

During transplanting, do NOT let the rootball dry out, keep it moist. Also, it may help to water(or wait for a rain) before you attempt transplanting as this will help keep the soil together and be easier to dig.

I have had success at all times of the year with taking divisions of bamboo, most with good results.

Now would be a good time to take divisions while the plant is still dormant. I made a couple of divisions this morning, and hopefully can make a few more this afternoon.

I would be interested to know exactly what variety you do have.

Good Luck

Kt

Thanks,
Jodie

Still trying to figure out how this forum works for replying.

I have created a photobucket album if any of you can help me identify what we have and how to propagate it for sale.
Yes - it is very invasive - but makes such a beautiful evergreen forest/wall/fence - personally we LOVE it!

The runners will send up shoots even through the asphalt (there's a pic of that).

Someone told me that they dig/cut the roots - then keep them moist and priority mail them to people who want to buy/start with instructions. That is what we want to do - but are not sure this is the type that can be handled/transplanted that way. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated!

Photobucket URL is below....
Thank you in advance for your help!

It looks like a runner, and it doesn't resemble Oldhamii at all, which is a clumper.

Photos of the newly emerging shoots can be very helpful. Does it have a groove on alternate sides of the internodes?

Kt

The answer to that is - it seems so to me - a slight indentation (both inside [when cut] and exterior) with what looks like a 'grain' change (as if this were a wood grain - seems smoother, going in a different direction or something).

Does any of that make sense?
Am I looking at the right place?

I'll try to get some pics as soon as the shoots come up (they literally come up EVERYWHERE in cones - until about 3 feet high, then the leaves start to sprout out)
and
If it's sunny, I'll travel into the deep dark center of the bamboo forest and try to get some pics of the HUGE ones!

Thanks for the help!
Joe and Donna in NC

Are the culms rough to the touch when you slide your hand along the culm, or are they smoothe?

Kt

The texture of the mature stalk is VERY smooth, almost glass like.

They have no dent, mark, impression of any sort between the nodes (where branches come out) once they are mature - it's as smooth as can be all the way around with an almost plastic/pvc pipe glossy smoothness.

Thanks for being patient with me and clarifying!
(o:
Joe and Donna in NC