littlejo- I'm glad to hear you had no problems with eBay. In my experience, most of the sellers on eBay are not nursery folks, but simply people who have some bamboo out in the back 40 and want to make money off of it. They often don't know how to dig and stabilize it, and I've known plenty of people who got rhizomes only, or got a topped culm with dirt removed from the rhizome to save on shipping. Frequently, these plants are so abused that they die after receipt. I'm not saying all sellers on eBay are like that, but buyer beware...

An acre of bamboo is very probably not clumping bamboo, esp as far north as NJ, esp not 30 ft high (afaik, common cold-hardy clumping bamboo doesn't get that tall). To cover an acre, a clumping bamboo would have to planted with may 10s, or more, of individual clumps. More likely is a cold-hard running bamboo, like dirt-common Phyllostachys aurea "golden bamboo" that has spread over the property during a period of 10 - 20 years. It reaches up to 30 ft high. If the "somebody" knows what they are doing, they probably want to dig up "field divisions", 2 or 3 culms together with rhizomes/rootball, to re-sell them. see typical pricing here: http://www.lewisbamboo.com/pricelst.html. Retail nurseries will be equal or more expensive for potted bamboo. If you don't want the bamboo, then you could let him harvest all of it for a lump sum, paid up front. I think it would be very difficult for you to define, price, and monitor the harvesting at per-division level. btw, the harvesting is sort of destructive in the sense each extracted rootball will leave a hole in the ground, maybe 8" - 12" deep, and 12" diam. I'd require him to fill the holes. :)

The American Bamboo Society lists Mex Weep as cold hardy to 22F and all of the Bambusa multiplexes as cold hardy to 18F. I think they may be cold hardy to even 15F from my experience, but other factors are involved, such as keeping them watered well before a freeze helps keep them from frostbite, and also if they are planted in a protected area or next to a warm house. The B. textilis is the largest and most cold hardy Bambusa that does very well here. Mine has survived many Winters down to below 15F with only a little leaf burn and it has no protection from cold north winds. The B. multiplexes are the next cold hardiest of my clumpers. The Mexican Weeping does very well in these long hot humid Summers, but it doesn't do well below about 26F where it starts to lose leaves from frostbite. Remember, a young plant is less cold hardy than a well-established one. Good Luck Kt

Here in z8b in Texas, the tallest cold hardy bamboo is Bambusa textilis, growing 40+ feet and cold hardy to below 15F. It does very well here during Winter months and tolerate high heat and wind very well. Other less cold hardy clumpers are B. oldhamii and B. tuldoides, both get severe Winter weather damage when temps get below 20F. For smaller clumpers, try B. multiplex or some of it's varieties, the tallest get to about 20 feet here and there are many to chose from. Good Luck Kt