Bambusa, Chinese Bamboo, Hedge Bamboo 'Alphonse Karr'

I have grown this bamboo in the ground in my OKC yard for several years. At 15-20 degrees it dies back to the ground but has always re-s...Read Moreprouted from the roots the following late spring. When planting this in zone 7, do not expect to see any life from it until the 1st of May, depending how warm the spring is.

I planted this bamboo last fall and in one year it has not grown hardly at all. I have one in full sun and one in partial shade. They loo...Read Morek green and healthy, but almost the same size as 1 year ago. Is there any tricks to get them growing?

Planting nearly anything is a challenge in the Greater Phoenix area with our very poor, caliche filled soil. I planted one 5 gallon, 5 f...Read Moreoot tall Alphonse Karr in May of 2007 after preparing a 16' long x 2' wide x 3' deep trench along a south wall that was dug, sifted and admended. I separated the bamboo into 3 sections and now in Nov of 2008 the new shoots are exceeding 8 feet in height and the clumps have grown from a dozen shoots to about 30 each that are twice the originals diameter. I pruned out the original skinny shoots in July of 2008. The bamboo is intended to produce a 10 foot high plus living privacy screen and to block the neighbors porch light and it is well on its way. I am in process of extending the trench to 32 feet and adding another separted bamboo to the additional trench in the Spring of 2009. In mid Summer, make sure you don't let the soil dry out or the new growth will stop at the height it is at the that time and you will have to wait for the next round of new shoots.

A great bamboo. Very easy, fast growing, tight clumper. Culms are a beautiful yellow with green stripes. They can have pink and orange...Read More hues, especially when young. I trim the node branches off on the first four feet or so of the culms to really show them off. The leaves are deep green & dense. Mealy bugs can be a problem. They get in the branches at the nodes and can be difficult to get at. I use a systemic soil drench made for trees & shrubs once a year & it works like a charm.