P. Bissetii leaf and cane spotting

9 years ago

Hi. I have two species of bamboo, P. Bissetii and P. aureosulcata 'Spectabilis'. They have not been planted yet and are still in the black containers they came in. The Spectabilis does not have the same problem as the Bissetii. (see pic #6-8) They all are watered in the same fashion described below.

The leaves of the Bissetii plants are getting spots/blotchy areas that are turning yellow, brown, and black. (#1-2) It is not just around the edges. Also the canes are getting dark spots, but this is less prevalent than the leaf spotting. (#3) It is continuing to have new growth and get taller as well, but the lower branches are mostly bare. (#4-6) Not all of the Bissetii have sparse leaves near the bottom.

They all get watered depending on the weather. I usually feel the soil around the bamboo and if it's moist still, I don't water; if it isn't moist I water. If we are to have ongoing high temps (80F+) I might water even if the soil is a bit moist still. The summers in Seattle actually tend to be quite dry. (All other seasons stay pretty wet.)

I plan to plant these bamboo in the next 2 weeks in containers, but I am worried that whatever is wrong with the 2-3 (of 11 pots) might spread assuming it's something that CAN spread.

Anyway, please check out the pictures and let me know if you have any insight as to the issue and if it'd be safe to plant them with the others.

Sick Bissetii-
#1 leaves
{{gwi:419612}}

#2 leaves
{{gwi:419613}}

#3 cane
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#4 bare
{{gwi:419615}}

#5 bare
{{gwi:419617}}

#6 bare
{{gwi:419619}}

Healthy Spectabilis-
#7
{{gwi:419621}}

#8
{{gwi:419622}}

Thanks so much!

This post was edited by Storhy on Sun, Aug 17, 14 at 18:12

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Comments (6)

kudzu9
9 years ago
Don't worry about the other plants...that's not a disease. What you are seeing is just an unhappy plant. It could be getting too little water, or it may simply be rootbound. How long has it been in the pot? Plant it and see if its condition improves.
Storhy
Original Author
9 years ago
I've had them for over a month and I was assured they'd be OK in their current containers so long as I keep them watered. (Having been assured obvs doesn't mean it was the truth!) Who knows how long they were in them before I bought them though. I got the 2 sickly looking fellows for free- they didn't look any better when I got them.

Thanks for the input though. I'm new with bamboo, and was worried it might be diseased and could spread. As you suggested, it may be they're becoming root bound. It makes sense- I think as the 2 that don't look so hot are definitely the taller of the lot.

I'm hoping to have them planted before I have my wisdom teeth removed, fingers crossed. That will be next Wednesday.

I have two 8x3x3 metal stock tanks with lots of holes drilled in the bottom and around the sides of the base for drainage. I was going to try and slightly insulate the inside of the tanks with garden fabric from costco; mostly I just want something to keep the holes from clogging with dirt. From what I've read rocks are bad for drainage as moisture has a harder time flowing from fine to coarse material. This is my first time though, any suggestions?
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Storhy
Original Author
9 years ago
{{gwi:419623}}
{{gwi:419624}}
kudzu9
9 years ago
If it were me, I'd put a layer of drain rock under the tanks, then a layer of drain rock at the bottom of the tanks covered by landscape fabric; then I'd fill them with dirt. If you don't do this, after a while the tanks will not drain properly, and in the wet season the soil will become waterlogged and your bamboo will not do well.
Storhy
Original Author
9 years ago
That sounds like a good idea. I may try that. I was worried about them becoming waterlogged even with the holes. How many of those plants do you think would fit (healthily) in 1 tank? I'd like a screen (so the neighbors can't see into the backyard) quicker, but I'd have to divide them sooner if I did that, would I not? Thanks so much for the feedback!
kudzu9
9 years ago
Three plants per tank would be my limit. However many you plant, be aware that it will be a little tougher dividing them in the future than if they were in the ground. Bamboo in containers send out rhizomes to the edges and then the rhizomes turn and follow the sides of the container. This results in a lot of force and resistance on the sides of the container that you need to overcome when extracting the bamboo. In a straight-sided ceramic pot, this means it is next to impossible to get the bamboo out. However, since you have large containers, you should have enough room to cut through the roots and remove decent size divisions without mangling the plants or the container.

This post was edited by kudzu9 on Tue, Aug 19, 14 at 14:06