Bamboo Open House - Saturday, November 14, 9 am to 2 pm

We are having another Bamboo Open House! Lots of bamboo plants to choose from, both running and clumping.

Here are the details:

When: Saturday, November 14, 9 am to 2 pm

Where: 5719 Jersey Drive in Rocklin, 95765 [map it]
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We will also have Ted Jordan Meredith's Pocket Guide to Bamboos for sale at below the cover price - only $16.
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Can't make the Open House? No problem. We can set aside and reserve bamboo plants for those customers that pre-pay. If you want to pre-pay, just send an e-mail to sean@madmanbamboo.com with your name telephone number, the type of bamboo you want, size (5 or 15 gallon) and the quantity of each. We also need to know how you want to pay (credit card via PayPal or a check). Payment must be received no later than Thursday, November 12 by noon. Once payment is received, your plants will be set aside and guaranteed yours.
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We will also have large plants in 15 and 25 gallon sizes - both running and clumping, many rare. I need the space, so good deals will be had at the Open House. Ask when you arrive.

Hope to see you there!

Cheers!

Sean
Mad Man Bamboo Nursery

(916) 300-6335
http://www.madmanbamboo.com/
Facebook Page for Mad Man Bamboo Nursery

Sacramento Bee article and the next open house...

Wow. I'm humbled by the the folks that came to my Halloween Bamboo Open House and expressed their appreciation for bamboo. Sacramento Bee reporter, Debbie Arrington spent some time with us touring the yard along with photographer Lezlie Sterling a couple of weeks ago. Christy and I had a great time and we couldn't be happier with the article.

Sacramento Bee article on bamboo

For those that missed today's Open House, we are planning another one in November. I will have many more plants, popular, practical and unique, available for sale. If you want to know when the next Open House is, check this site in the next week or two. If you want that special bamboo plant and want to put a special order in, sign up for e-mail subscription list at http://www.madmanbamboo.com/ (look at the black box on the right) and you'll know how to get that bamboo plant you have been looking for.

Thanks for the great day. It was really nice getting to talk to so many people that appreciate bamboo.

Sean

Red bamboo......

Received a question from a Facebook Fan on my Mad Man Bamboo Nursery facebook page. Question was whether I have run across bamboo with red leaves.

The answer..... no, not full red, sometimes you'll get slight hints of red, like new keaves on Hibanobambusa tranquillans 'Shiroshima.'

But there are bamboo plants that get vibrant red culms when exposed to bright sunlight and/or cold.

Phylostachys aurea 'Spectabalis', Phylostachys bambusoides 'Castillon', Himalayacalamus falconeri damarapi 'Candystripe Bamboo' and Semiarundaria yashadake 'Kimmei' are varieties that show this trait. There are other examples as well.

Pictured top to bottom are Himalayacalamus falconeri damarapi 'Candystripe Bamboo', Phylostacys bambusoides 'Castillon' and Semiarundaria yashadake 'Kimmei.'

Cheers!

Sean

Leaping rhizomes!

This is why you leave 1 -2 inches above ground when you install a bamboo rhizome barrier. Pictured is a rhizome from Phylostachys nigra "Megurochiku" coming up for air and diving right back into the ground. A 30 inch plastic barrier with 1 to 2 inches above ground is an effective way to contain a running bamboo in its intended planting area.

Although I do love running bamboo, clumping bamboo is nice because it is non-invasive and does not require containment with rhizome barrier. For me, running bamboo belongs in a pot.

Cheers!

Sean

Mad Man Bamboo Nursery on Facebook; bamboo rhizome barrier.

Facebook plunge

It's funny, I don't find Facebook very user friendly and sometimes I wonder the purpose of it when you get alot of meaningless chatter. But I do see its real power, connecting people together.

I'm a bit "old school" - I like e-mail, I don't get text messaging and twitter, not so sure. I'm like a weird Luddite mixed with amateur technology adopter - if its easy to use, I'll try it, if its too complex, nevermind.

Anyways, today I took a step into the 21st century and set up a Facebook account for my bamboo business - Mad Man Bamboo.

If you'd like to see what I am up to, look to your right, click "Become a Fan", sign up if your new to Facebook or if your already registered with Facebook - you'll become a "fan." I'll be posting updates from time-to-time and hope to have it serve as a place to answer questions regarding my favorite plant - bamboo.

Bamboo rhizome barrier

Another new thing I have added to our offerings is - bamboo rhizome barrier. We carry both 24 inch and 30 inch. More on this by clicking here - bamboo rhizome barrier.

Cheers!

Sean

Interesting question from a reader: Larger the diameter for bamboo, the stronger it is? True or false?

Received an interesting e-mail from Javier, a reader of this blog that posted the following question:

"Hi Sean,

Is it safe to say that the larger the diameter the bamboo is, the stronger it is? If not, please shed some light on this.

Many thanks,

Javier"

Great question and the answer is "no." It really depends on the fiber and lignen (the white binding material between the fibers) and how tightly packed they are. So, bamboo with larger air chambers (like Phylostachys heteroclada "Water Bamboo") in them or ones that are not as densely packed, even if they are large in diameter, are not necessarily the strongest.

But more impressive is the fact that bamboo, in its very strongest form is like reinforced concrete and is, in some cases, stronger than steel. Steel has a tensile strength of 23,000, while the strongest bamboo has a tensile strength of 28,000.

It also used 1/8th the energy in production that concrete does, pretty impressive.

For more interesting facts on bamboo, its strength and its possibilities for solid, environmentally friendly buildings of the future, check out the article from Discover Magazine, ironically enough, from 1996 - The Bamboo Solution.

Cheers!

Sean

Ted Jordan Meredith's Pocket Guide to Bamboo Plants is out, yeah!

I got a tip from a good friend in the bamboo nursery business a couple of months ago about Ted Jordan Meredith's Pocket Guide to Bamboos with is published by Timber Press. Its a pocket guide with over 300 species of bamboo in it, word is that it is full of color photos that look at all aspects of the plant, from culm colors to leaves to shoot coloration. With bamboo plants the differences are often very subtle, for those who love bamboo this holds to be a very helpful guide in discerning one bamboo species from another.

I am planning on purchasing a few copies to sell at plant sales I attend, for customers that visit my nursery and online.

If all the talk is true, this has promise to be a very valuable guide from a very credible bamboo expert that will be used for all that love bamboo, from the beginner bamboo lover to the most seasoned bambusero.

Cheers!

Sean