Can bamboo be hedged?

Yes it can, quite easily with no impact on the plant itself. It works best on running and clumping bamboo that are naturally screening, that is thick and dense, as opposed to a tall open timber bamboo. The key is to hedge each culm above a node that is at the the desired height when the culm has fully hardened and there is no threat of freeze. For running bamboo, the best time is August/September, whereas for clumping bamboo May/June are ideal times.

Also worth noting is that when you hedge and remove top leaf growth, the bamboo plant will put it energy into generating more leaf growth and/or put its energy back into developing new shoots. This provides conditions for a denser bamboo plant that provides the desired landscaping effect, a tidy dense hedge for privacy or provide a barrier.

Pictured is a hedge of bamboo at the Japanese Tea Garden at San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.

Cheers!

Sean

Mad Man Bamboo Nursery

www.madmanbamboo.com