Untreated would will rot or be eaten termites

Pressure-treated wood ($$$) could will leach arsenic/copper into the soil, perhaps stunting/killing the plant.

I'd use a depth of 20" at least, 24" would be better.

You don't have much choice but to use p/t wood. Maybe isolate the p/t wood/poisons from contact with the bed soil by lining the inside of the p/t wood with pond liner.

70 feet is going to require about 10+ starer plants to create a screen, and much more than 10 if you're in a hurry for the screen to fill in.

Pruning culms will not harm the plant.

- I would be interested in hearing any other comments about growing bamboo in raised beds.
- I was planning on using pressure treated wood. Has anyone else done this? How did it work?
- What other material and tecniques have been used to grow bamboo in a raised bed?

thanks for any comments

I'm building a bed with cinderblocks. More expensive, but swill work better than wood.

Raised beds work fine. However, your idea of using it to restrict clumpers baffles me. By definition, clumpers don't go anywhere; they just slowly expand outward. At the time -- many, many years from now -- that a clumper reaches a 4' diameter root ball, timbers (if they still are intact) won't resist the sideways force of the rootball. If you're planning to built raised beds to contain clumpers, I think it's both a non-problem and a waste of money. I'll also point out that expecting to get a complete screen from clumpers that is 70' long is going to cost big bucks: you'll need quite a few plants because clumpers fill in so slowly. If it were me, I'd plant runners in a mound and not worry about containment or a raised bed. Planting in a mound helps keep the runners close to the surface, and it's not much work to annually chop off ones that stray too far. Don't let your fear of bamboo push you into doing too much work. Bamboo can be invasive if you ignore it, but controllable without great expense if you're willing to manintain it.

Revisiting this thread 11 years later. I have some bamboo that I panted in raised beds a year or two back--fortunately--and some that I transplanted directly into the ground from their 25 gallon containers. Those where I got lazy and planted in the ground are now clinging to life after a very unusual king tide covered most of my property with salt water a few weeks ago (zone 10a: a barrier island off the Gulf Coast of Florida).

Am curious to hear from anyone who has long-term experience with bamboo in raised beds. I have constructed 4' x 6' as well as 6' x 6' raised beds from pressure treated 2" x 12" lumber stacked 2x high...

Hi all I have a simliar requirement. I am looking to grow golden bamboo in a raised bed. I made a raised bed 2 feet tall 10 feet long x 2 feet wide . i lined it with tarp to avoid bamboo runners. Will this be good enough with controlling bamboo spread. I got really scared with all the horror stories that I put the plan on hold. I need some advice with the current setup I have . I love the plants and looking for options. The pic is little dated but this is what I have. Some folks told me that bamboo will break this in an year Or 2.

Kudzu9 - a local Bamboo grower here offers a box similar to the one shown above. They line it with 60 mil barrier, sides and bottom, and use clamping system vs hpde tape. Do you feel this will still not contain runners ? Would another possibility be raised beds ? I am looking for options other than leaving them in pots. Thx in advance for your input

Hi! I am considering the same thing and have been following this thread. Sushant Mudholkar, do you have any updates on your project? I'm curious to know. Thanks!

Paso Pete- Just saw your post. If the soil in the planter is deep enough, say 24" SOIL DEPTH, a liner on the bottom is probably unnecessary; if ir isn't that deep, the rhizomes will attempt to escape where the liner sides meet the liner bottom as I can't imagine how that could be sealed adequately. It's possible that it might work, but the other problem is that, some years hence, when the bamboo gets rootbound in the planter, it will be impossible to divide it. That is why I would only plant bamboo in a planter box with removable sides, or put the bamboo in large pots that simply sit in the box with no other dirt around the outside of the pots.

kuddzu9 - thx for response. My 'planter box' is 10'Wx2'Dx2'L.and is made from 2 x 6 with 4 x 4 posts. no wood on bottom. Sides and bottom lined with Bamboo Shield product. Drain holes in bottom only at sides, so anything escaping will be visible. The 'planter box' sits on a brick pad. Center posts are secured with cable to prevent bowing. I have planted runner-type so achieve the screening effect I need. Yes, should I not be able to divide from top, the front can be removed. I appreciated your posts and info. Thanks.

Stevanie - I also suggest you visit the various Bamboo growers websites, as you will find additional info that will be very helpful. I spent lots of time researching before I proceeded, and think with a little careful planning you can easily avoid some potential problems down the road and get the planting your are looking for. Hope this helps.

Paso Pete-

Thanks for the response. I think that looks really good. The design and, particularly, the removable front and the fact that it's sitting on pavers should eliminate any potential issues. Most people are not capable of that level of attention or have the building ability to do something that sophisticated. You really did research this. :-)

Thanks everyone, what an informative thread! I too am looking to set up a bamboo privavy hedge in raised planters in zone 5b. I have heard that runner in zone 5 do not spread quickly at all due to the weather condition, is that true? that would be very reassuring. We are in a tight urban space, I really want to avoid any issues but can't find better than a bamboo hedge with a 5 store building towering over my patio.

I am looking at 14 foot x 2x2 foot raised planter in a space that is 15 foot wide total. I am located in Zone 5b and unfortunately, no clumping bamboo will grow tall enough here (hoping for 10-12 ft). Planter set up on croncrete pavers, raised with blocks so I can see any potential runners. With intertior plastic containers (large storage totes with drainage holes?) so the bamboo can be taken out and "repotted" once root bound. (need to learn about that process)

I am still concerned about roots pushing against the planter/neighbors fences, so I was considering adding cinder blocks on each side, between the planters and the neighboring fence just in case. It wont help for my back fence though.

Given all the above, would that be enough to contain and run no risk of issues?

Should I do things differently?

.

Hiela - what I did to address the possibility of the long sides 'bowing out' was to use eye bolts and wire with turnbuckles and attach on either side. look at my pic above - I used them on the 2 'center' 4 x 4's. I used those at the tops of the planter, as I had a 2 x 4 crossways at bottom, keeping the bottom part from spreading. Hope I described this ok. Kudzu9 - what do you think?

Paso Pete-

I think you nailed it... ;-)

@kudzu9 You have mentioned large utility planters pots. I was looking for some and can only find round ones that are not very big. With the suggestion to plant bamboo every 3-5 foot. I was looking for rectangle utility planters that were 3 ft wide ideally. ANy source? I am assuming they will need to be cut out of them in a few years so not looking to spend several hundreds of dollar..

Hiela-

Large utility pots are pretty readily available unless you live far away from a decent size town/city. I've bought used ones from nurseries and I have a large garden supply warehouse near me that sells large utility pots that come in various diameters such as 24", 32" and even 48". You won't find these at big box stores, but if you find the right place, they shouldn't be expensive. To give you an idea, the price for a 24" X 18" pot at my supply store is about $6.

As for rectangular, I doubt you could find anything much in larger sizes because a plastic pot with corners is structurally weak compared to something circular. And if you did find anything large it would be pretty expensive.