Clumping bamboos on the N-E NJ/S-E NY border

18 years ago

I've lurked around a bit here, and have some questions for locals in terms of successes and possibly local resources for bamboos to incorporate into our landscaping.

Our house is in Chestnut Ridge, NY, which is a mile away from the last exit north on the Garden State Parkway.

We are interested in using some clumping bamboo in our garden to shield the view of our neighbor's home (particularly during the winter). As there is not too much of a height requirement, a number of the Fargesia varieties have peaked our interest, including:

F. rufa

F. murielae

F. nitida (seedlings, of course): very interested in this.

F. scabrida as a specimen planting

We also have a few 5 gal P. Nigra that will be selectiveley planted in the sunniest spots, and for some spacial/form diversity as a background planting., as well as a garden-shop small patch of "golden bamboo".

I have plenty of sources in my area for shrubs, grasses and evergreens, so the rest of the planting has been rather easy (aside from growing that darn money tree to afford all of it), but not much knowledge in terms of bamboo.

Reasonably general question, but I guess this is more of a call-out to locals for a little inside info.

Thanks

Ken

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Comments (7)

Fori
18 years ago
I'm not local but had the same problem finding local Fargesias. It seems like all the US Fargesia growers are in the Pacific NW.

I ended up buying over the internet and received nice 1 gallon plants from (dramatic pause while I look it up)... bamboogarden.com . I was nervous because I've never had good luck with mail order plants before but these looked good right out of the box and are doing well even after a year and a half of neglect.

Most Fargesias like quite a bit of shade but they vary, so do be sure you get the right species for your spot. It is also important to post pictures of your project here!
koniferkid_nj
18 years ago
Sent an email to you regarding fargesias in this area...
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kennerd
Original Author
18 years ago
UPDATE:

Received 3 F. rufa and 2 F. scabrida from philinshelton today (wife informed me of their arrival) and spoke to him on the phone this morning. Very pleasant fellow.

Waiting for some hardscape to get finished and will post pics of their locations in the yard when they're in.
firemountain
15 years ago
Just recently planted 16 Scabrida (2 gallon pot sizes) in my backyard along my fenceline out here in norther NJ. They were purchased from the Bamboogarden, and I am super happy with them. They have only been in the ground for 2 weeks now and seem to be fine. Some are in partial shade, and some in full sun. I have been thinking on setting up a shade filter of some sort. Any recommendations?? I am a newbie at this, so any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
User
15 years ago
I have been seeing Fargesia appear much more frequently in local nurseries in recent years. Still, I mostly purchased mine from growers in the Pacific northwest. I have F.rufa, murilae, and robusta. I recently moved them to a much shadier locale from where they were last summer so time will time how robust they actually are. One of my favorite clumpers is Borinda angustifolius (very fine dainty foliage). I know they are not supposed to be too hardy but mine overwintered fine and look better than the Fargesias right now.
kennerd
Original Author
15 years ago
Wow: Over 2.5 years since I started this thread.

Scabrida are doing very well in dappled shade: well protected from wind and drying sun in winter. Have clumped nicely and this year I have new growth in the 5' range.

Rufa are also doing well: only 4' but bushing up nicely. admittedly, I have transplanted 2 of the 3 and they take a season to recover, as evidenced by how well the unmoved bunch is doing. These get partial sun (2-3 hours)and one gets baked during the winter, but is reasonably protected from wind.

From what I've read: the scabrida don;t take very well to too much sun. IN fact, mine never get direct sun during summer and are doing great. One gets some direct sun during winter, and is slower to grow than the fully protected bunch.

Hope that helps!
nucci60
15 years ago
Funny how micro climates work. My robusta and scabrida die to the ground over the last two years.On the other side of my house which actually gets more sun, My rufa is now five feet tall and stays green all through the tough winter. Seems to be much more winter hardy for me.