Goats, tomatoes and bamboo... random sights and sounds from today.

Like many folks, I was fortunate to have the day off.   Memorial Day is a day to reflect on the sacrifices made by military service members to secure the freedom we enjoy today.  Many mark the day by spending time with their friends and family, barbecuing, watching a Little League game or spending the day in the garden.  I spent my time today meandering through the garden and taking a short bike ride with my daughter.

Enjoying the day, I took some photos along the way.  Of course, there is no specific theme for this post, just random sights and sounds along the way.

This is a carnivorous plant in the Sarracenia family, commonly known as a Pitcher Plant.  I bought Pitcher Plants over several years at plant sales that I have sold at.  They grow openly in my front yard, do just fine in the cold without protection.  If I didn't grow bamboo, this would be another plant family I'd love to try to grow.

This is the flower of the Pitcher Plant.

My tomatoes growing among the 'Black Bamboo' are thriving.  I didn't plant these, they came up from the compost we generate at home, part of which is from fruit and vegetable scraps.  So, these tomatoes will be a surprise as far as what we get.  We are hoping for Cherry Tomatoes.  Ironically, these tomatoes look way better than the hybrid tomatoes we planted in the backyard.  Go figure!

Hollyhocks that re-seed every year and rest between my house and the neighbors.  A few years ago, they were all pink, but now they are getting shades of red. Hybridization at work. Very pretty!

So, if you are hanging out in my front yard today, you can hear the sound of goats and sheep.... "baaahhh" and "maaah," pervade the air.  My daughter and I took a short bike ride about a quarter of a mile away to the neighboring creek and open space where the City of Rocklin uses sheep and goats to mow down the overgrown grass and weeds as a way to reduce the fire danger and not overly disturb the natural environment.

They have been using this method for the past few years and its quite the sight.  Good excuse to hop on our bikes and check it out.

Its been a great day, beautiful weather and have enjoyed the sights along the way.

Cheers!

Sean
Mad Man Bamboo
(916) 300-6335
www.madmanbamboo.com
Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook
Twitter: @madmanbamboo

Post script to bamboo growing in the Northern California foothills...

Penn sent me another photo yesterday on the amazing growth of his Phylostachys nigra 'Black Bamboo' growing in the Northern California foothills.  I posted last week (May 18) on the progress of his running bamboo privacy screen in the making. Already performing beyond expectations, the new Black Bamboo culms are at 9 feet tall as of yesterday, May 25.

What impressive growth.  Penn did all the right prep, installing bamboo rhizome barrier (which isn't easy, but worth it), showing how running bamboo can be planted responsibly and with great results.

Cheers!

Sean
Mad Man Bamboo
(916) 300-6335
www.madmanbamboo.com
Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook
Twitter: @madmanbamboo

Fast running bamboo in a container... one year later. Experience from a Roseville, California bamboo customer.

I have been chronicling the growth of Phylostachys bissetti  in several containers in a Roseville, California backyard.  Phylostachys bissettii is a green, dense, running bamboo that is wind tolerant, can take full sun, temperatures down to minus 15 degrees and is fast growing.  For a container grown running bamboo, I think it is a great choice.

Joe, who has cultivated the plants in containers for the past year, has been very happy with the growth and the look it gives his tropical-themed backyard.  He recently shared some photos from last year and photos of the Phylostachys bissetti a year later (this past week).  Joe has shown that used in the right way, running bamboo can create a great privacy screen and still be contained within a planting container.  Here are some photos of the progress over the past year, before and after:

Taken in May 2010 (before).  As you can see, the neighbor's windows look right down into Joe's backyard. This type of yard is pretty typical in Roseville.

Taken in May 2011 (last week-after).  The new culms are now well over the fence and once they fully leaf out will be the beginning of a nice privacy hedge.  Just imagine what the growth will look like in May 2012...

Joe made a great choice with Phylostachys bissetti.  It shows that with a bit of well thought out containment and a plan, running bamboo can create an effective and fast privacy screen that is in control.

Cheers!

Sean
Mad Man Bamboo
(916) 300-6335
www.madmanbamboo.com
Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook
Twitter: @madmanbamboo

Northern California foothill bamboo customer sees lots of growth from bamboo...

Penn, a bamboo customer who lives in the foothills east of Sacramento, California, put in some work to install bamboo rhizome barrier for his running bamboo that he bought from me in late 2009 - Phylostachys nigra 'Black Bamboo' and Pleioblastus shibayanus 'Tsuboi'.  His goal was to screen off a spa and his backyard from a neighbor.  Both bamboo varieties offer great contrast, 'Black Bamboo' has the beautiful black upright culms and the 'Tsuboi' is bushy with slender white and green variegated leaves.  Two really nice bamboo choices that fit the practical purpose for Penn's bamboo purchase - privacy.

The installation of the bamboo rhizome barrier, early 2010.

After the barrier installation, the bamboo plants were put in place.  Again, this was early 2010.

He e-mailed me this week showing the amazing growth during the 2011 bamboo shooting season.  Here are some photos he shared:

First 'Black Bamboo" shoots in of the season, May 10, 2011.

'Tsuboi' shoots intermixed with 'Black Bamboo' shoots.

Penn's notes: "Another closer shot of the same black bamboo shoots that had just broken the surface of the ground on May 10. This picture was taken on the morning of May 18 and they are almost 4 feet tall! That's an average growth of about 6" per day. Yippee!"

An emerging privacy hedge is fulfilling its vision. More from Penn: "This is the bamboo hedge looking from the top of the path. The deer fence in the background is to protect the nearby vegetable garden (deer won't eat the bamboo). Also, the close-by neighbor's house in the background was the reason for planting the hedge. Notice the tall black bamboo shoots in front of the deer fence."


It's great to see that Penn's hard work to install rhizome barrier and to plant running bamboo to create privacy hedge that is performing very well.  Running bamboo works well when rhizome barrier is installed (to ensure containment), soil is prepared well and the right varieties for the area are selected.  Penn did a great job in all these areas and his attention to detail shows.

Cheers!

Sean
Mad Man Bamboo
(916) 300-6335
www.madmanbamboo.com
Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook
Twitter: @madmanbamboo

Adventures in the garden... making the most of a sunny day in May.

So this weekend was a mixed bag, starting off sunny and ending with cloudy skies and a good chance for rain.  Friday, getting home from work, the weather was beautiful and sunny. Enjoying the opportunity to have a day that was warm with virtually no wind, camera in hand, here is what I found:

Tomatoes growing in the same container as my Black Bamboo.  When I planted the bamboo, I mixed in some compost in with the soil and several months later... voila!  Tomato plants... I'll be keeping them for sure.

My running bamboo is shooting like crazy,  This particular variety is Phylostachys dulcis 'Sweetshoot Bamboo.' This bamboo is known for its exceptional edible bamboo shoots.  At the nodes, normally there are tender branchlets.  In this case the lower branchlets were nibbled off... slugs, rats or do I have a Panda Bear hiding out in my backyard?  A mystery indeed...

Friday, I started some Phylostachys nigra 'Black Bamboo' plants to get them ready for next year. This continued on Saturday.  It is dirty work, but it's what I love.

Even the cat was taking in the beautiful day....

And since this weekend is a mixed bag, here is what we can expect Sunday, but no worries, more beautiful May days are ahead, no doubt.

Cheers!

Sean
Mad Man Bamboo
(916) 300-6335
www.madmanbamboo.com
Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook
Twitter: @madmanbamboo

Bamboo Geek sighting in Roseville...

I have two bumper stickers (pictured above) that I have been giving to customers that drop by for bamboo plants, on Facebook and will be giving out for free at our Saturday, May 21 plant sale at Ace Hardware in Rocklin.

Funny story.  A work colleague, who knows about my bamboo obsession, business, etc. said that she saw a car driving around near Old Town Roseville with a bumper sticker that said 'I am a Bamboo Geek.'  Convinced that it had to be associated with me somehow, she pulled up closer to the side of the car and sure enough it had www.madmanbamboo.com on it.

So, when she told me about it, of course I was happy to see someone, like me, who calls themselves a 'Bamboo Geek' and shows it on their bumper, with pride of course.

If you want one or both of these bumper stickers, drop by our Saturday, May 21 plant sale in Rocklin (click here for details).  They are free and no purchase is necessary.

Show that bamboo pride!

Sean
Mad Man Bamboo
(916) 300-6335
www.madmanbamboo.com
Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook
Twitter: @madmanbamboo

Show how much you love bamboo with a free bumper sticker!

A small token of appreciation to my Bamboo Geek blog fans... mail a self-addressed stamped envelope to me and I'll send you a free bumper sticker... I have "I Love Bamboo" or "I am a Bamboo Geek" to choose from. Post "Gimme a bumper sticker!" in the comments section on my Facebook Page (click here and 'like' the page) and I'll send you the address to send the envelope to. 

Cheers!

Sean

Mad Man Bamboo

(916) 300-6335

www.madmanbamboo.com

Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook

Twitter: @madmanbamboo

Phylostachys edulis 'Moso' goes big for Citrus Heights bamboo afficionado...

Yesterday, I received an e-mail from Lisa, a semi-regular bamboo customer from Citrus Heights, who has definitely been bit by the 'Bamboo Bug.'  She purchased a Phylostachys edulis 'Moso' from me during my Bamboo Open House on October 31, 2009.

That day is one I will always remember because it was the day that Debbie Arrington's article on Mad Man Bamboo was published in the Sacramento Bee's Home and Garden Section.  The article was cleverly titled Bam-BOO, since it published on Halloween and was subsequently re-published in news papers across the country.

Moso Bamboo is among the largest bamboo plants in the world - in ideal conditions, it can grow to 75 feet and have 7 inch culms in 10 years.  This bamboo is used to build structures, it's that big.

So, fast forward over a year and a half later.  Lisa's Moso Bamboo was originally planted in a wood barrel, but she later re-planted it in a plastic tub, presumably with drain holes, as it retains moisture better.  Lisa wrote: 'My moso in it's big tub has 7 or 8 foot tall shoots! It is sooooo exciting.'

Lisa has also been feeding the Moso with 'Weed Tea.'  The formula is simple as described by Lisa:

'This spring I have been giving it the weed tea and it is putting on some amazing new growth.  Which I didn't even know about until just recently. You just take your weeds (I added some grass and leaves) and soak them in water for a few days or a couple of weeks and feed your plants. Stinks real bad so I figure it's gotta be good! LOL. The Moso seems to like it.'


Lisa's experiment with 'Weed Tea' seems to be paying off as shown above.


Cheers!


Sean
Mad Man Bamboo
(916) 300-6335
www.madmanbamboo.com
Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook
Twitter: @madmanbamboo

We have our first Garden Cache winner; next Garden Cache code

Congratulations to Carole Rains who found the Garden Cache label a few blocks from her work with her husband.  The label was found in Downtown Sacramento.  Carole won a one gallon plant.

OK, ready for the next coordinates?

Copy and paste the following coordinates into Google Maps on your desktop (be sure to print the map), on your smart phone using your map app or use a GPS unit.


N 38 34.523, W 121 29.418

Once you find the tag, post the secret code word on the Mad Man Bamboo Facebook page or in the comments section on this blog.

The prize is a one gallon plant.

Happy hunting for the treasure!

Sean

Mad Man Bamboo

(916) 300-6335

www.madmanbamboo.com

Mad Man Bamboo on Facebook

Twitter: @madmanbamboo