How tall does bamboo get?

9 years ago

We recently moved into a new home and the sellers had planted bamboo as a privacy wall on one side of the home. We like the look very much but it's pretty tall and got wound up with a wire the other day... so thinking maybe it needs to be trimmed. We are wondering how tall bamboo can get? These stalks are already as tall as the 2 story house. My biggest concern is if they are going to get any taller or if they reach a max height???

Featured Answer

kudzu9

9 years ago

Bamboo plants put out shoots annually and each succeeding year the culms that grow up from the shoots will be taller than last year's. All of the growth for a culm occurs over a 1-2 month period, and then it will never get taller. Each species has a maximum height, and the mature sizes of bamboo range between 6 inches and 120 feet, depending on which of 1200 species you have. Obviously, yours is tall but, without a positive identification of the species, I can't tell you what the maximum height might be.

Your bamboo looks very upright and relatively skinny, and it could be the species Semiarundinaria fastuosa, which has a mature height of 30 feet, or so. But, that's just a guess based on a less-than-ideal photo for ID purposes. It could also be quite a few other bamboo species. Unfortunately the question you asked is like asking: "how tall will my tree grow?" without knowing whether it's a fir, a cedar, an alder or an oak. Do you know what bamboo species you have?

Oh...one last thing: be aware that, if you prune it, what you trimmed will never re-grow. It's not like pruning a bush or tree, as pruning does not encourage bushiness or regrowth in bamboo. It's simply an amputation. Bamboo can look unattractive if you top them, so be aware of this before you start going after yours with the pruning shears.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (9)

kkc178
Original Author
9 years ago
Thanks kudzu9! Here are some other photos. We have no idea what kind of bamboo it is. Can anyone guess based on these photos?
Related Professionals
McAllen Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Saginaw Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Brainerd Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Manchester Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Akron Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Vidalia Landscape Contractors · Vineland Landscape Contractors · Fall River Landscape Contractors · Lansing Landscape Contractors · Kearney Landscape Contractors · Evanston Landscape Contractors · Bloomington Architects & Building Designers · Cape Girardeau Architects & Building Designers · Cornwall Architects & Building Designers · Cowansville Architects & Building Designers
kudzu9
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
Ok...hard to tell just from those photos, but here are three possibilities:

1) Phyllostachys bambusoides 'Slender Crookstem', which can get up to 50' high

2) Phyllostachys aureasulcata 'Alata', which can get to about 30' high

3) Phyllostachys aureasulcata, which is similar to #2 above, but has a yellow groove running between nodes.

Or it could be a number of other things... :-) It's most likely a Phyllostachys of some kind, and those bends and crooks at the base are what made me think of those three specifically.

You can check out photos and descriptions of all the bamboo that are commonly available in the U.S. here: Bambooweb
kkc178 thanked kudzu9
lagunaangelgirl
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
One method to shorten this year's new growth would be to take a sharp spade/shovel and push it into the ground here and there around the bamboo to sever the rhizome network (roots) in various places. This will essentially create separate plants and the bamboo will be less able to support such tall culms for this year's growth. It won't be an exact science but it is worth a shot.

if a shovel doesn't work, you may need to upgrade to something designed for trimming bamboo roots. I've read about these tools but have never used them personally.

http://bamboogarden.com/Tools.htm

this link shows them in action: http://bamboogarden.com/Grove%20thinning.htm
kkc178 thanked lagunaangelgirl
kudzu9
9 years ago
lagunaangelgirl-

I don't think that approach will be very effective or doable, especially with such a mature grove. As someone who has dug out bamboo and made divisions hundreds of times, I can say that the rhizomes will be too tough and woody to be severed easily. Another complication will be that the rhizomes will form a complex network with new and mature rhizomes intermixed. And using something like a bamboo spade -- which is mainly intended to take out divisions, or to prune rhizomes at the perimeter of a grove -- would require a lot of hard work with an unclear outcome. This procedure may succeed in preventing some new shoots from coming up, but I doubt it will have a significant effect on the height of culms that do come up.
lagunaangelgirl
9 years ago
thanks for the input kudzu9... worth noting for when my grove begins to mature.
kudzu9
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
lagunaangelgirl-

Thanks for not being offended at my comments. I wasn't trying to contradict you. Just sharing my own experience after many years of trying different methods to maintain/control my own bamboo.
User
9 years ago
While y'all are on this topic...what's the SHORTEST bamboo to get? I'm in FL. I would like something to accent the front corner of my mulched front. Something max 15' or less would be great. Looking forward to your comments!
albert_135 　 39.17°N 119.76°W 4695ft.
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
- Just browsing I find this one, for sale I think. There may be another at this site. Pleioblastus pygmaeus - Plant Finder - Pleioblastus pygmaeus, commonly called pygmy bamboo, is classified as a dwarf running bamboo in that rhizomes from the parent plant spread rampantly in all directions from the plant forming an underground network from which new shoots periodically appear. Typically grows only 12-18" tall.