Through history, Bamboo has been an inspiration for the art, the preservation of nature, the creation of a modern and the spark of many legends. Strong, resilient and beautiful, black bamboo (Phyllostachys nigra) will inspire your thoughts. Start decorating with this ornamental plant and your garden will truly be epic.

Black bamboo’s unusual color of the stems and the extremely simple look of the leaves will improve your garden design. Whether is a Japanese, Mediterranean or plain landscape garden. For many, black bamboo’s canes are unmatched in its appearance, but the problems these plants can make are not at all naive.

What kind of plant black bamboo really is?

You can say the strongest, the fastest grower, unusual, the one from which you will build a house, bicycles, or a barrier from a neighbor. An evergreen plant which looks like a tree but it isn’t. It is a monster grass. As all bamboos, Phyllostachys nigra has an exceptionally strong root system. Although is a less invasive, when received it can spread even ten meters from its original site. Grows through the underground rhizome system which will easily establish a forest.

In the beginning, all species have the green color of the stems and how they grow they become orange, brown, red or black. The black bamboo is identical in width on the entire length, and when combined with other plants or decorative elements, will create interesting visual effects in the garden.

Only a few gardeners can resist a relaxing walk among black bamboos.

In its homeland, Kurochik or Kurokaka ie. Phyllostachys nigra is valid for a resistant, graceful plant with clod-like root. Thin stems are immediately black, while those thicker (18-42mm) become black in after 3 years. (dry ground will make it black sooner)

So if you plan to praise to your friends that you have a black bamboo, wait for the stems to become black, otherwise, you got nothing to show for. Phyllostachys nigra will not exceed 3 m if you are a resident of cooler continental climate. Usually 2.4-3 m.

Choose your bamboo spot wisely!

When you are designing the look of your garden, it is always important to arrange a garden to look nice. It’s very easy to say that your garden looks like the one in the magazines, but the most important thing is how will you feel in it. Will a lack of time sometimes make your plants suffer or make a mess?

Black bamboo is less invasive than its cousins, but it still loves to “walks around” in the backyard if it gets the chance.

Root is in spear-like form and spreads through the earth like a snake.

Its sharp tip will pierce almost everything on its way, even thinner plastic. ( ordinary plastic barrier tends to decay over just a couple years, enough for rhizomes to pierce it ). Always have in mind its root nature and choose spot according to that.  The beauty of your stems will always create a wow effect. Particularly lovely looks along the stream, but not beside those who have flexible bottom protection.

Another place where your black bamboo will come to an expression is the corner of the yard, where the lawn meets the bottom of black stems.

Never place it very close to the neighborhood fence. Consider this; when drought comes or the soil has a lack of nutrients, bamboo begins with its “walk”, seeking ways to make up for it. Don’t be surprised if you find rhizome that jumped the barrier. Making some automatic drip watering system is a good idea.

Use one or two starting points in your yard where the black bamboo will immediately attract attention to your guests.

Whether is a sun or partial shade you can integrate it with similar plants.

If you are a Japanese style lover, your bamboo will superbly adapt with style oriented plants.

Purple Japanese maple (Acer palmatum atropurpureum) – sun

Ginnala maple ( Acer ginnala )-sun

Purple smoke bush ( Cotinus coggygria )-sun

Red-leaved Berberis (Berberis thunbergii )-sun

Plantain lilies ( Hosta )-shade

Himalayan Maidenhair Fern ( Adiantum venustum )-shade

Fragrant sumac (Rhus aromatica) – Sun or shade

Planting and transplanting of the black bamboo

Planting itself won’t give you headaches. Nursery gardens are selling Phyllostachys nigra in containers with formed root. Plant your black bamboo in late spring or early fall, because it gets less disturbance when the soil is warmer.

As all garden plants, planting black bamboo must be carried out thoroughly. Although it doesn’t have a deep root, the first step is to dig in a barrier to limit rhizome spreading. A hole 30 cm deep and 50×50 cm wide will be enough for you to plant a bamboo and add a mixture of compost, sand and wood chips ( 5 : 1 : 2 ratio ). Wood chips will retain water through a dry spell for as much as possible.

If you are planting a seedlings that have a bare root, it is advisable to immerse the root in a lukewarm water for a few hours before placing it into the ground. Then, remove it from the water and let the excess of water drips away. Plant it a little bit deeper and pour water (min 5 liters) to get out all the air.

In the first two years, your black bamboo requires regular watering and adding compost in the spring.

Use nitrogen-rich fertilizer or some of the NPK 15:15:15. Mineral fertilizers with higher proportions of phosphorus and potassium will encourage invasiveness of the root. A bad example is NPK 8:16:24. (the one you are using on your lawn).

Transplanting black bamboo is best to do in late autumn. Shifting it can sometimes involve the power of more people as the black bamboo has a very clod-like root. You can cut off the old canes and connect the rest so they don’t strike you in the face.

There is a good technique to do this.

Dig a 50-65 cm deep and 50 cm wide trench. When you loosen the root of the plant, place two broad boards below the root, tie the rope around the base and slowly start to pull. This way will provide stress-free transplant and bamboo will adapt quickly.

It is very important that you already have a previously excavated hole where you want to transplant your bamboo. Make sure that the soil around has moist all the time.

Although planting from the seed means more resistance power later, I would not recommend it. Seeds are often traveling by delivery service for a long time, so you can get a pile of seeds that are dried out or sterile. Depending on the manufacturer, the percentage of germination is only 5-10 %.

Black bamboo fence

Black bamboo isn’t the most desirable when it comes to forming a thick live fence, due to poor branching. But if you wish, you can. If you plant it near the fence, be careful to make that your bamboo spot is at the same level as neighbors garden. Also, your barrier must be about 5 cm above the ground.

Otherwise, there is a chance that rhizome will skip the enclosure, and dig in in the barrier-free ground. Catching it again means to engage your neighbor. You don’t need that kind of attention, no matter how good are you with him.

Making a living bamboo fence will really test your persistence as well as your wallet. Why?

Preparations for making bamboo fence are (sorry to say), massive. These are crucial:

– choosing a good spot

– digging in : galvanized metal box without bottom ( 1m wide, 1 m deep, 2-3m long ) or   root barrier film ( HDPE foil ) 5mm thick (not 3,5mm)

– buying as many healthy seedlings as you can

How many still boxes will you need depends on the length of the fence you want to form. Then you need an excavator that will dig the holes in which the boxes will fit. Bring the earth back, make proper soil mixture, and plant your precious black bamboo.

It’s not a small task, is it?

When planting, try to separate seedlings about 60 cm one from another. Using smaller spacing will create a thicker fence fast, but also is much more expensive, because it requires a higher number of plants.

No matter how much you think your bamboo is a fast grower, it will not happen until it gets accustomed to a new habitat.

It takes about 2 years for black bamboo because it directs all its power to acclimatization and making new rhizomes.

New stems will appear more faster in the third year.

Even now once or twice in a year, check for creeping rhizomes around the barrier.

Best time for it is in the spring and early fall.

Black bamboo in the face of the winter

Did you know? Bamboo is one of the few plants that survived large amounts of radiation during the bombing of Hiroshima in 1945.

Of all bamboo species, only about 50 are tropical plants. Other species have the flexibility to meet winter conditions, withstand the impact of larger minuses and wind. Black bamboo needs some time to acclimatise, but the experience of cultivating this plant along the river in the continental climate has shown some interesting results.

According to personal experience, black bamboo has endured for 3 months of strong winter with temperatures up to -20’C. If you have harsher winters, please use Yuta cover to wrap the stems. This is also a good protection from heavy snow that can damage it.

When the winter passes don’t be upset about yellowish edges on the leaves.

By the middle of spring, your plant will be like new.

As well as decorating … well everything, gardening requires planning and skillful deployment of plants, best ornamental plants. Having to spend all that energy to dig and sustain your black bamboo from spreading will be back to you in multiple ways. In creating your garden, have strong willpower such are bamboos stems. Be persistent as bamboo rhizomes and in the end, you will delight yourself and others as your bamboo does with its appearance.

Author: Nenad Pejak

Natural living enthusiast, gardener and copywriter.

www.writersmeadow.com