| Home Price List
Order Form
Planting
Instructions
Contact Us
Links
|
PLANTING
INSTRUCTIONS When caring for a bamboo
think of it as a large grass and act accordingly. It wants decent soil, water when dry,
high nitrogen fertilizer and a reasonable amount of sun if it is to develop at the maximum
rate. Our care has consisted of having decent soil to begin with and planting the bamboo
where it receives enough sun. After that it has been up to the bamboo to get along and
they are doing well. Had we fertilized and watered during dry spells our clumps would have
reached their mature size a few years sooner.
When receiving and planting your bamboo follow a few simple steps. First, do not expose
the roots to air long enough for them to dry out. Soak the potted bamboo in water prior to
planting. Select a location that receives the proper amount of sun for that type of
bamboo. Prepare the planting hole by adding organic material, a high nitrogen slow release
fertilizer(lawn fertilizer) and mix the amendments together. Remove the bamboo from the
pot placing it close to level with the ground. Fill in with dirt and step down the soil to
firm it up. Water the hole again and mulch with leaves or whatever is available. If no
rain occurs water deeply once a week for a month or two so it gets off to a good start.
Don't expect an instant bamboo grove. Your new plant needs to put down deep roots and
adjust to it's new home. Some initial leaf drop is normal. Once a year usually in spring
or summer bamboo produce shoots. Each year the shoots(called culms) become thicker, taller
and more abundant. Clumping bamboo spread outward from the center of the plant a few
inches a year or by a foot if it is a larger species. Running bamboo spread by under
ground rhizomes from a few feet to many feet but rarely more than the height of the bamboo
in one year. An aggressive running bamboo is a determined life form to be taken seriously.
There are ways to deal with this. For some runners I simply mow down the new spring shoots
while others are contained by an underground barrier. Roads and water are natural
barriers. Very poor dry soil is a type of barrier.
Hint for sandy soil customers. Kitty
litter is mainly baked clay. The least expensive kitty litter has the fewest
added chemicals. Clay will absorb and hold water especially when mixed into
your soil evenly and deeply. A planting hole which contains 20 to 25 % kitty
litter by volume will be much more water retentive, an oasis in sandy soil.
Kitty litter is inexpensive as compared to monthly water bills.
Another hint. Fall(October and November) and Spring(April and May) are often
dry rainless periods in Florida. This is the time your bamboo and other
valued plants need a drink.
|
