a few ideas are, if you want or have the time. bird cages, boxes, a spine for a kite. for some of the larger ones, around 2or3inch thick, table legs, and or tables, hutch, cabinets, plant stands and such. as for mulch, it would make ok mulch but you would have to run it through a wood shreader or mulcher, the machine that people use to grind wood limbs..

Axial curling of the leaves indicates you're not watering enough, and you don't want this to be a frequent occurrence. Bamboo like to be moist, although not submerged in standing water for extended periods. If you're not good at gauging soil moisture levels, get a cheap (less than $10) moisture meter at one of the big box stores. It sounds like you did a good job of planting...unless the depression will hold standing water in your rainy season. I usually plant my bamboo in a mound that is higher than the surrounding soil (easier to patrol for stray rhizomes) and keep things well-watered. As for new growth, it's possible that you may not see any new shoots for a year or two until the plants are established. However, if they're otherwise ok, you should be getting some new leaves in the next two months (check the very tips of the branches to see if there are any little green spikes appearing).

Murray, There is a place near Mount Barker that has around 200 varieties, Hillside Bamboo nursery: http://www.members.westnet.com.au/peter.bamboo/ Haven't been there yet as it's a bit of a hike. Or there's Coast Road Palms in Beechboro: http://www.coastroadpalms.groworks.com/ Or: Palms & Bamboos of Neerabup. 8 Bushland Retreat, Neerabup (9405 1980) Hope you have some success. Cheers, Ben

As you discovered, the more crevices the plant has, the harder it will be to dislodge those bamboo sheaths. So I'd look to either very large/coarse-leaved plants like Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia species) or even a large trunk-forming succulent like Euphorbia ammak 'Variegata', or very feathery ones like Mahonia 'Soft Caress' or Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt' that don't have enough leaf surface to trap the sheaths. Make sure you choose species that can handle the sun exposure there, including the glare off the white wall and the urban setting. The bamboo won't stop raining debris no matter what you plant, so you or your gardener might invest in a shop vacuum (with the narrow crevice tool attachment) to suction out debris from the Agave and other plants — much more effective than trying to blow it out. Also, topping bamboo really isn't an effective way to control debris. Bamboo doesn't grow like shrubs or trees; bamboo canes (or culms) are genetically predetermined to grow to a certain height -- say, 20' -- and then stop growing. Topping them creates that dense "witch's broom" of branchlets visible just below the cuts, which creates even more leaves and therefore more debris. It would be much more effective to cut out the old, mature culms at the base of the plant as the new ones grow in, allowing the new culms to reach their full height before cutting them out the following season. Good luck! We'd love to see photos of what you decide to do.