I believe it will be tough to get the effect you are looking for because many dwarf bamboos have large leaves. Even the ones with "smaller" leaves will not have the ratio of leaf size to culm height/size you're looking for. This is a chief reason it is not used much in bonsai. I know there is a palm that looks a bit like bamboo in a much smaller scale. I believe it is called parlor palm (Chamaedorea elegans). You can purchase this plant at most grocery shops, and it looks great as a quicky bonsai. Good luck!

Bambusa multiplex is supposed to work. There are cultivars with small leaves such as 'Tiny Fern.' With pruning you probably could get some thicker culms. Don't know. I might try it this winter, so I'll get back to you later on. :)

Here are some photos of bonsai bamboo from the Huntington Gardens in California.

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Pseudosasa owatarii and Pleioblastus fortunei

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Phyllostachys nigra

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Phyllostachys aurea

Bill

Bill, am I missing something; where are the photos?

If you don't see the photos they are at:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v134/hollenback/Bonsai1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v134/hollenback/bonsai2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v134/hollenback/bonsai3.jpg

Bill

http://www.bamboodirect.com/bamboo/catalog/gibs_picks.html#bonsai

Kt

Sorry, try this one.

Gib's Picks For Bamboo Bonsai--Tradewinds Bamboo Nursery

Kt

Bill, I like that Black Bamboo bonsai. I might try that. Up to this point I haven't grown P. nigra since it isn't hardy enough, but this may be a way to try. Hmm... also this is a way to squeeze a few more varieties into an already over-filled yard. Jeez, I'd have room for thousands of these tiny plants!

Here is a link that might be useful: Kentuck's link above that I think doesn't work

Oops, Kentuck got it that time. Good job.

Is this the thread you were looking for?

Here is a link that might be useful: My pond the way it was before the freeze.