Yes, bamboos like it near water but not in it. Don't let yours sit under water for more than brief periods.

Thanks, bboy! They're planted about a foot above the high-water mark. We dug the holes when the ground was totally saturated so that we'd know how deep we could set the roots. We also plan on increasing the bedding area, so the plants can grow above the natural ground level eventually.

If you are talking about P. nigra, then it likes shade. Here, the culms will never turn completely black without shade from an outside source.

In direct sun, the leaves remain yellowish-green instead of the deep green that they turn in shade.

It may in part be due to this Texas sun though.

Good Luck

Kt

Thanks!
Tall oak trees will provide some shade.
But, as I said, these transplants came from a friend's property (which is about five minutes from my property). Given the similarity of conditions, and the blackness of this bamboo, I assume it will color in my yard, too.

I'm in northern California, north-east of Sacramento, in the wonderful foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains.
Fingers crossed,

Josh

*Update: February 17 - March 20*

Went out in the yard yesterday and noticed an inch and a half tall bamboo sprout pushing up. I moved some of my tomato cages to protect it from careless-footed deer, and I also put a small stick beside the shoot to compare growth-rate.

Quite excited. This is my first attempt at bamboo, and I wasn't sure if I'd gotten the transplant window right.

Pics as the area develops.

Josh

*Update: March 28*

Here we are a little over a week later.
In the third and fourth images, you can see just how much the bamboo
has grown. We've had perfect bamboo weather. The first two pictures
are of a bamboo rhizome that started putting up shoots - I repotted it,
and I'm hoping I can keep it alive. A fun experiment, if nothing else.
Enjoy!

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Well done!

Thank you!

I planted four more sprouting lengths of rhizome.
Two of the rhizomes were three feet in length; one was about two feet long; and one
was a little under a foot. By adding these rhizomes, I'm hoping to get a headstart on
"filling out" the area over the next few years. This summer will let me know how the
plants will fare in the heat; then, the test of water-levels in the winter. I have every
confidence in the black bamboo's hardiness in my area, but I'm not sure if the roots will
drown in the location in my yard.

Josh

*Update: Feb. 17th - April 17th*

Well here we are again, exactly two months after transplanting,
and the bamboo have put up several more shoots. The first and tallest is
at least five feet tall, which seems to be decent growth in two months'
time. There are now *three* culms shooting from the clump pictured
above. One of the other clumps (that had a culm above soil that died)
is pushing up a shoot that I just noticed this afternoon. I'll take a few
pictures and actual measurements this weekend.
Stay tuned!

Josh

*Update: April 22nd*

A year (and five days) later, I'm glad to see signs of the first shoot. This shoot is about 18"-22" from the main clump.

Sadly, the two Bamboo shoots - in the images I posted last year - died. The potted rhizome became too dry, I believe. I should have potted it deeper; or, I should have used deeper mulch. Live and learn. The first culm that appeared last year, which shot up nearly a month earlier (in March 08), grew very tall and then was hit by two freezes and wind, followed by sun. The culm - over five feet at the time - snapped at the three foot mark, and then slowly died down to the ground, where it became a bush. Over the whole season, I counted some 15-20 shoots, but most with a diameter less than that of a pencil. The longest of the rhizomes I planted sent up a line of seven culms.

Anyhow, here's my little area:
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And here's the shoot:
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Took a few more pics this evening.
One with flash, one without. I can't wait to spot the second shoot.....
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Nice... my P. Nigra I recently posted as it wasnt quite clear what type of black it was as I thought initially it was a clumping form because the original owner of the 50+ gallon planter said it had been in there for 5+ years and she never had any rhizome escapees... I expected to see a rhizome racetrack when I finally got the planter to let go of the mass within. But no racetrack which made me think clumper for sure. Several veterans here assured me its a P. Nigra... I have several divisions in planters now and one half the planter is out in the yard... been 2 months and real lush green but no new culms in the yard... the planters though have 3-4 in each :-)

Lots of growth....culms are growing several inches per day. Spotting new
culms is a little game we play.... ;)

This should be a fun bamboo season! The pictures are all a blurry scramble, but I've
tried to photo every culm in the "grove." Looks as though I might have a little
bit of green bamboo in there, too....something that snuck in on the roots....

These pics are a few days old. The tallest culm is close to two feet now...

Three culms visible in the last pic.
More later!
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Josh

Shooting season is well under way!

The tallest of my culms - which I measured forty-five minutes ago - is now 105 inches tall!
(That's 8 feet 9 inches, by my reckon) On Thursday, I noticed it was about 75 inches.....so, 30 inches in two days.

Needless to say, I am quite excited. There are other shoots nearly as tall, but I think that this one will be the tallest.

Pics coming soon.

Josh

few of my bamboos are shooting too, with many that will shoot in next week or two

Josh-
Congratulations on your success! However, I'm a little worried about your increasing addiction. We may have to get you into the Bamboo Anonymous 12-step program....

Bamboo Anonymous here I come! Hey all, my bamboo has gotten up around 12 - 14 feet now...although it's increasingly hard to measure at this point because the last few feet of each culm are beginning to arch as they leaf out. Sorry for these terrible pics. Afternoon shade, distracting background. You can kinda see some of the culms...if you look real hard. Once the culms are leafed out fully, they'll provide a bit more contrast. Smaller culms continue to shoot.

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Another month has slipped by, and the bamboo are filling in nicely....not quite thick
enough for a decent pic, but getting better. Click the thumbnail for a full-size image.

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Good evening, gardeners!
It's been a while since the last update! I hope your bamboo seasons are underway!
Here in northern California, we had a wet winter and a wet spring, which was great for the bamboo.

My little grove is just about 2 1/2 years old now, and finally starting to look the part. Difficult to see,
but some of this year's culms must be at least 15 or 16 feet tall.

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Josh

Impressive!

Thanks, Juicy! Here's an update from yesterday.

I've been shoveling deer droppings into my grove for fertilizer, and I've been watering
at least once a week, or when I begin to see leaves curling. My little cat loves to hang
out in the bamboo...until I start to hose it down ;)

I have also started to thin out and remove the smallest culms from the first season.

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The black is back...

'Round here, spotting the first culm is a sort of game we play...anyhow, the first shoot
of the year broke ground on April 25th. The second shoot showed up the following day.

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Josh

Continuing right along with some great new growth!

Last month's little shoot is nearly as tall as I am now.....

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Josh

Nice upsize. It looks like P Nigra grows very similar to P Parvifolia, in its form and overall appearance however it is just a different color.