It is also known as Yushania boliana. I grow bamboo in the Seattle area and have not grown this one. I think it could survive winters here, but would look pretty ratty. My suggestion for a tall clumper that would do well here is Chusquea culeou, Chusquea culeou 'Cana Prieta,' or one of the Fargesias.

Thanks for the recommendations. A local bamboo retailer recommended against any of the Chusquea saying that one (I believe a Chusquea Gigantia) dove below a 34" rhizome barrier and spread aggressively. Do you think that might be a specific tendency of the Gigantia because it's a large timber bamboo? Have you hear good things about the ease of controlling Chusquea Culeou in an urban environment? Thanks in advance for you input. I keep returning to this thread hoping
someone will have offered their advise.

Tess-
I saw your other thread about gigantea and I think that vendor was full of it...just not credible. I have two large Chusqueas now and have been growing them without barrier for 9 years in the Seattle area. They have required no control as they don't need it; the base just gets a bit bigger each year. Some day the clump of Ch. culeou may get too big and I'll divide out a chunk, but it's not a problem. If I get a chance in the next few days I'll take some pictures and post them here.

You should get yourself some bamboo and enjoy it, and not listen to tall tales about how rampant it is. I grow many runners without barrier and just do some maintenance to keep them in line; for the clumpers I do nothing.

This post was edited by kudzu9 on Tue, May 20, 14 at 22:33

I'm beyond excited to make your acquaintance. I think bamboo is the only real solution for my screening problem but I've been frightened away from it from countless horror stories. What runners/clumpers do you recommend for my situation? I've been considering sumiarundinaria fatuosa veritis (that's Temple Green, yes?) for it's upright habit and semi shade tolerance. I also like the phyllostachys nigra (I don't know if that's the only bamboo called 'black bamboo' or if there are others). I've heard it's less aggressive but not as upright. Upright is very important as I'd like to get tall coverage of the adjacent structure without loosing all my sunlight on the ground. I'm open to other suggestions if you have them. Thanks for your input!

Ph. nigra is a beautiful bamboo and mine is quite upright. It's also a very healthy runner, so factor that in. The S. fastuosa viridis is a very nice bamboo that has foliage all the way from the bottom up and is called hedge bamboo because it is so erect. It also will run.

As I mentioned a couple of days ago, here are two pictures of my Chusqueas after 9 years in the ground with no rhizome control:

Ch. culeou 'Cana Prieta'

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Ch. culeou

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(The barrier is 6" deep and is to keep the grass out, not the bamboo in!)