Bamboo makes a great hedge,

Bamboo is the tallest grass in the World. It is also the fastest growing plant, some species reputed to grow one meter per day. There are over 1000 species. While most people imagine bamboo to be a tropical plant, several species will tolerate temperatures below freezing.

Apart from the obvious beauty of the garden size plants, bamboo has many uses. It provides food, shelter, medicine, and income for over 2 billion people. Bamboo is used for building, tools, implements toys, furniture, the list goes on almost forever. The furniture manufactured from black bamboo particularly is very beautiful.

In developed counties it is commercially grown for timber, flooring, fencing material, paper, and one company even makes bamboo surfboards!
There are many nurseries now specialising in bamboo, and in many countries including the US and Australia, where the climate is appropriate, it is now grown commercially.

In Asia and other countries, bamboo has been used for centuries in Ayurveda and Chinese medicine. It has been revered as a mystical plant, a symbol of strength, and endurance.

One of the interesting things about bamboo is that the shoots emerge from the ground the same size, or diameter, as the parent trunk!

Some bamboo species can make an excellent hedge, but make sure you get the right species!

If planting in pot, some small varieties make magnificent house plants, and they look great in a patio or house entrance. Use a terracotta pot if you can rather than plastic, so the plant roots can breathe, and the pot can drain. Don’t forget to give your bamboo house plants a spell outside! One month in, and one month out is usually okay.

Happy gardening, Patrick!

ps.... remember that if you plant a green tree in your heart, a singing bird may come!

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