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pvecholane

Rhizome Pruning

echolane
16 years ago

I have a running bamboo, Sinobambusa tootsik 'Albostriata', presently growing in a 25 gallon container. It was a fresh division with a couple of culms about 2' tall when I got it two years ago; last year it put out shoots to about 4' tall, and this year the shoots are at least 10' tall.

It's absolutely gorgeous in a container, but it will sonn outgrow it. I'm thinking it needs to be in the ground, but I'm absolutely terrified (well, not really, but worried, for sure) about planting in the ground and managing its runners.

Would appreciate it if those with experience managing runners by rhizome pruning would explain this more specifically, so I could better decide if it's something we could keep up with. We're no longer youthful, so it'b be helpful to know how physically demanding it would be.

Also, would be helpful to know just how aggressive this particular bamboo is.

Comments (5)

  • kudzu9
    16 years ago

    If running bamboo were as aggressive as the urban legends claim, there would be no room for humans. Yes, if you completely neglect a runner for several years, you may get runners where you don't want them. However, a little annual maintenance will take care of problems. I have a little experience with rhizome pruning: I have about 40 runners in the ground in the Seattle area and none have barriers.

    Rhizomes generally don't go very deep, and once a year in the late summer or early fall I take a pickaxe and chop through any wayward runners. Usually I remove the chopped off runner from the ground by sticking the pick end under the rhizome every foot or so and leveraging it out. However, chopped off rhizomes can generally be left in the ground if you prune regularly since a runner needs a number of months to become established.

    In your situation, when you plant, I suggest you dig a shallow trench (about a foot deep) around the perimeter you want to maintain, and fill it with bark or sand. Then it will be easy to chop down with a sharp shovel or a pickaxe to rhizome prune. I have also found that when you plant bamboo in a slight mound (say, 6" high, or so) it encourages the rhizomes to stay close to the surface and make pruning a little easier.

    By all means, put this beautiful bamboo in the ground and enjoy it.

  • suprdude
    16 years ago

    I can't speak to this particular species of bamboo, but it's true that pruning can control it if you don't get lazy about it. The biggest issue I see with that method vs the barrier is if you have any plants nearby, they will sprout right into the other plant's space making it difficult to get back. Usually they won't pop up next to the mother plant, they will go several feet underground before poking their head up.

  • echolane
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    I guess I had hoped to hear that we could just nip off/break off the emerging culms at the soil surface, without having to dig deeply to root out the rhizomes. Of course it would mean daily/weekly vigilance during shooting season, but if it'd work, that'd be so much easier physically for us. (But then perhaps those rhizomes left in the soil would be busy storing up energy to make even more encroaching runs the next year!)

    The idea that a rhizome could run out underground for many feet and pop up in another established planting gives further pause (!).

  • echolane
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    It also seems "doable" to keep the bamboo confined with a "moat" of sand or bark. But I'm wondering how long you can keep a bamboo confined like this? Isn't a moat really just an inground container? And just like in a container, the bamboo will need dividing to maintain appearance and vigor?

  • kudzu9
    16 years ago

    echolane-
    Re-read what I wrote:
    1. You don't need to worry about this on a daily or weekly basis.

    2. Chopped-off rhizomes left in the ground are not generally well-established enough to stay alive.

    However, if you want to be nervous about this, don't let me convince you otherwise.

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