It's not possible to answer this question fully because you have not given your gardening zone. In general, Black Bamboo is hardy IN THE GROUND to about zone 7. It can be grown in the ground in zone 6 but will burn and/or suffer some degree of dieback. In a pot, however, they will be significantly more vulvnerable to burning and dieback. Conditions in a container are very different from the ground--temps change much faster in a pot than in the ground. If you live in a cold winter zone, the ground in the winter is going to be warmer, overall, above ground. However, you have provided reasons for why you might want to go the container route. For starters, you are a RENTER, and the owner might not be thrilled to have you plant a running bamboo in the ground. While they are NOT AS aggressive as Phyllostachys aureus (Golden Bamboo)--they are still spreaders and want to form a GROVE. In the ground you will either have to put in a rhizome barrier or do annual pruning to remove spreading rhizomes. I am in a somewhat similar position as I have larger containerized bamboos that I will want to overwinter in their containers. I intend to gather them together and put them along the side the garage (reduced wind) and cover up the containers with some burlap and leaves some time before it gets really frosty (mid to late December for me). In the ground, I have non-running clumpers (mostly Fargesia species). If you are concerned about taking them with you, you can do this regardless of whether they are in a container or not. I took all of my runners from in-ground plantings. You could even plant the entire container--but this would NOT solve the problem of the boos spreading. As to the size, those are already big plants, you'd need a large container. Can't give you a guess here maybe someone else can do the math--the bigger the better if they are going to overwinter in them (and depending on your gardening zone). Yes, full sun is fine, but if you overwinter in the container, provide shelter from wind and winter sun. I water/hose down my containerized bamboos every day from April through September, maybe every other day in the cooler months and occasionaly in the winter during milder periods. In the well-drained soil that they enjoy, it's difficult too overwater a bamboo in a container. Good luck!