Bamboo hedge

Hi,
This is my first foray into the world of bamboos and by the looks of it, it cetainly won't be the last.

My wife and I have just taken delivery of five, 6ft tall Arrow bamboos that we want to create a screening/hedge at the rear of our garden but that remains at 6-7ft tall but gives good sound and wind screening. Is this the best one for the job or are we opening a can of uncontrollable worms?

Currently the bamboo culms are quite thin despite good foliage near the top, how do we encourage leaf growth in the 0-7ft range while not letting the top of the bamboo increase above 6-7ft?

Also, do we need to put a barrier in to stop any unwanted forward/backward spread of the bamboo while still letting it grow sideways to encourage our screen to grow - there seems to be mixed information on the net about whether this bamboo is a clump or running type.

Many thanks for reading and I'm looking forward to some helpful replies - you never know I may be an expert myself one day?! :0)

 

Hi Superscooop and welcome to a fellow Cornish person. I've just looked it up and it's the Pseudosasa japonica. It seems as though it is a type used for screening, but that doesn't mean some sort of barrier for the roots won't be needed. It's a bit of a giant at up to 4m but sounds lovely.
Like you I found mixed info about it's spreading habit.
See Here:
http://www.junglegiants.co.uk/acatalog/Pseudosasa_japonica.html
And here:
http://www.bamboogarden.com/Pseudosasa%20japonica.html

Maybe someone who grows it will along to offer more help soon.

 

Thanks Blackthorn,

Do you know if 4m height means that it will be mission impossible to keep it trimmed to just six-eight feet in height which is all we want?

Meanwhile, I'll take a look at the web pages you recommend.

Big up the Kern !

 

It looks like in one of the sites the bamboo is used as a hedge and is chopped down fairly drastically.

 

Very true - for some reason I'm very nervous of it though - we got it cheap from a local garden centre and were suckered in by the bargain !!

Thanks again

 

Because it is such an invasive and obtrusive bamboo, it is a doddle to propagate by division and that it probably why it was a bargain.
I have a bamboo hedge of Phyllostachys Nigra (the black bamboo) and find that this is fairly easy to manage and isn't too invasive either. I planted it 5 years ago and didn't use any sort of root barrier. It has reached about 8 feet in height but you can cut it right down and it will regrow very quickly. The canes are useful for supporting other plants and look good too.

 

Thanks for that, sounds good - I'll investigate the black bamboo option, someone else has suggested Semiarundinaria fastuosa as a good hedge option too - just going to check it out online now. It seems this bamboo hedge idea is one that could do with some good advice online?