Bamboo is a unique plant desired for its dramatic appearance and rapid growth, creating a powerful presence in any landscape. It is celebrated as a beautiful, fast-growing screen but simultaneously feared as an aggressive, invasive weed. Deciding whether to plant bamboo requires evaluating its benefits against the potential for uncontrolled spread. Understanding the distinct growth habits of different bamboo types is the most important step in making a choice that will either enhance your garden or create a costly problem.
The Aesthetic and Practical Benefits
Bamboo’s popularity in landscaping stems largely from its exceptional growth rate, which can provide quick privacy and vertical interest. Certain species are among the fastest-growing plants in the world, capable of growing nearly one meter in a single day. This rapid expansion makes it an unparalleled choice for establishing an evergreen privacy screen or a dense windbreak quickly.
The plant offers a distinct architectural appeal, characterized by its tall, slender, and often colorful culms, which are the woody stems. This visual texture introduces elegance and movement to a garden, whether the desired look is a serene, Zen-inspired retreat or a lush, tropical oasis. Bamboo is also a highly renewable resource that sequesters carbon dioxide and produces up to 35% more oxygen than an equivalent stand of trees. Its extensive root systems help stabilize soil, which is beneficial for erosion control on slopes.
Critical Choice: Running Versus Clumping Varieties
The distinction between running and clumping bamboo is based entirely on the structure of their underground stems, known as rhizomes. This difference in rhizome anatomy determines the plant’s growth pattern and its potential for invasiveness.
Running bamboo varieties feature a leptomorph rhizome system, consisting of long, thin stems that branch away horizontally from the parent plant. These runners can travel a considerable distance beneath the soil, sometimes spreading as far as 20 feet in a single growing season before sending up new culms. This expansive growth pattern allows running bamboo to quickly colonize large areas.
Conversely, clumping bamboo possesses a pachymorph rhizome system. These rhizomes are generally short and thick, curving upward close to the main plant to form a new culm immediately. This growth habit results in a tight, localized cluster of canes that expands slowly outward only by short distances each year. Clumping varieties, such as those in the Bambusa and Fargesia genera, are considered non-invasive. For gardeners with smaller spaces or those seeking a low-maintenance option, choosing a clumping species is the safer and more manageable option.
Essential Containment Strategies for Safe Planting
For those who choose to plant running bamboo, effective physical containment is necessary to manage its aggressive spread. The most reliable method involves installing a specialized rhizome barrier made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic. This material should be at least 60 to 80 mil thick to resist penetration by the sharp rhizome tips.
The barrier must be installed vertically around the entire perimeter of the planting area, reaching a depth of 22 to 30 inches, as bamboo rhizomes rarely grow deeper than this. The barrier must protrude one to two inches above the soil surface. This above-ground lip prevents rhizomes from growing up and over the barrier before dipping back down into the surrounding soil.
An alternative approach is to maintain a clear trench around the planting area, about one foot deep and one foot wide. This exposed trench allows the gardener to easily spot any running rhizomes as they attempt to cross the boundary. The exposed rhizomes can then be routinely pruned back with a spade or heavy clippers, effectively managing the plant’s spread.
Planting bamboo in large, sturdy containers or planter boxes is another guaranteed method of containment. However, containerized bamboo requires periodic maintenance, such as lifting and root pruning every few years, to prevent the plant from becoming root-bound and potentially splitting the container.