Otatea acuminatata aztecorum - Mexican Weeping Bamboo is a clumping bamboo. I have one that has been planted for 5 years and is now 7 ft. tall, the diameter of the clump is about 3 ft. It's not in an optimal climate, too cool, but it's doing reasonably well.

Search Google for Otatea acuminatata aztecorum and you will find a lot of information. I have seen it grow to over 20 ft. in height and 4-5 ft. in diameter. It depends on a lot on your climate.

Here is a link that might be useful: Google search results

Clumping or running, they will always increase their diameters throughout their lives and as long as there is room for it to grow.

Mine reached four foot in diameter in it's third season, but it is an open clumper and culms are sometimes over a foot apart. You can easily just cut down the new culms when they emerge.

I will be replanting a division from mine so it will have more room to grow.

Kt

kentuck, are you saying that you have a specimen of Otatea acuminatata aztecorum with culms that can be up to one foot apart? Mine is not behaving that way at all. Where do you live? Maybe the plant behaves differently in different climates.

That is correct. I live in Texas and the culms do come up over a foot apart, sometimes 14 or 15 inches from one another. Rarely have they ever come up right next to each other. Temps here last year ranged from 22F to 102F.

We had a drought here last Summer(2006) and the plant suffered greatly and it lost many of it's culms. It is recovering and I will be dividing some for planting in new locations soon.

In a year or so, I will see if they spread as quickly as they do here.

Kt