Landscaping help for back garden

Hi All,

Firslty apologies for the state of the garden in the picture. I am only back from holidays and the bamboo has gone a little wild on me!

I am looking at putting down a new patio and am considering options re my golden bamboo. It was planted 2 years ago for privicy and is going well.

As part of the patio, i wanted to put in a stone planter box in front of the bamboo with flowers and lights etc. however if completed, I wont be able to get into the bamboo for pruning each year to take out the old canes.

As the builders (who are putting down the patio as part of a wider extension) will have a mini digger in the garden would I be better off digging out the bamboo, building the concrete planter box and replanting the bamboo in there? Would the bamboo survive? Should I even bother with planter boxes?
Any thoughts would be great as I obviously would like it to look as best it can.

Thanks

 

Hi @Niall . This is always the problem with bamboo. It might seem like a good idea, but....

You can certainly 'contain' it, but it will need a decent soil mix, and good watering to keep it happy, and that might be more difficult at this time of year unless you're in a wetter part of the country, although as we're not far from September, it might be ok. That's assuming you can get it removed and replanted properly.
However, it's pretty hard to kill [which is why it can be a huge problem] so it shouldn't be too hard to do. The only problem is that as it spreads by sending out runners, you may still find it growing from the surrounding ground.
Be aware that it may also spread into the neighbouring gardens, although if that concrete block wall has decent enough founds, you might be ok. It causes all sorts of problems because of that running growth habit, but the runners are usually reasonably shallow. Another alternative is to leave it as it is, and get a low blockwork wall put in front of it, but make sure a deep trench is done for building it, so that the runners don't spread forward to the patio and the rest of the garden, just as that back wall should help stop any spread the other way. Make sure the ends are also secure, because it'll go that way too.

You could still have a separate planter for other flowers etc, next to your patio, but that might be better to the front of it, rather than near the bamboo, so that you don't have to worry about access, or runners getting into it.

 

Depending on your location and soil type @Niall, you may find that your bamboo remains quite well contained in the ground without sending out runners aggressively. I've grown several varieties of Phyllostachys in two gardens over a period of 20 years and they have all been easy to control in my shallow, sandy soil. The important thing is to reduce the canes to a suitable number every year and keep a close eye out for runners. The runners can usually be pulled up and removed with secateurs quite easily if caught before they become too woody. Adding another wall in front of your bamboo to act as a barrier would be a sensible safeguard to protect your patio.