Care of lucky bamboo: All lucky bamboo needs to grow is a container,clean water and polished stones to keep the stalks upright. It doesnÂt do well with fluoride,so tap water is not preferable.If you must use tap water,let it sit out overnight before using.This will cause the chloride to evaporate,but wonÂt get rid of the fluoride.Change the water once a month adding a drop of fertilizer if you want rapid growth.It doesnÂt like to be over-fertilized though. DonÂt wash the stones as the nutrients are stored in the rocks. Also donÂt fill the container too full (especially a tall vase) as they will cause the bamboo to sprout roots higher on the stalk.The roots need to be totally submerged in water though. Place the bamboo in an area with bright filtered light.It will also do well in a room with no natural light. Exposure to sunlight, treated water,roots that arenÂt in the water,or sudden tem- perature changes can cause problems for lucky bamboo.If the leaves start to turn yellow,check the lighting,change the water using only filtered or distilled water,and/or move it out of drafts or away from furnace registers. Trim yellow leaves with a sharp clean scissors.This should bring it back to health. High salt levels can also burn the tips of leaves.Salt buildup can come from city water or fertilizer.Fertilize with care.

Lucky Bamboo that have spent their whole lives in water may reject soil. Not sure why. Also, my experience is that healthy plants make this transition better than distressed plants. If you want to grow in soil you may want to start with new individual stalks that have not spent years in a rock and water arangement. Make sure you use a container that drains. Start by packing potting soil(I use Miracle Grow Moisture Control) in the bottom of the container leaving about 3.5 inches of space to the top. Set your plants root system on top of this layer. Do not push the root system into the soil. This will make the roots point up. Roots want to grow down. Then pack another 3 inches or so of soil on top of the root system. Lucky Bamboo like packed soil. Keep the soil moist but not saturated with water for extended periods of time. Some drops of Green Green fertilizer may help. Sand helps drainage as well as a layer of rocks at the bottom. Good Luck

Hi, I am new to the whole bamboo thing, and i just have somewhat of a question.. i just bought one back in feb 08 and for the past 2 months it was doing great! I been watering it as directed (Once a week)- and all seemed fine, until i took it down for its last watering, (yesterday) I noticed that i now have 2-3 leafs are yellow!! BUT all the rest of the plant, (stalks, and leaves are just fine and green)- i also felt the stalks, and they are solid.. just the yellow leaves are whats of concern to me. my house is normally anywhere from 70-73 degrees.. when i water it i used destilled water also as directed.. & i also use green green to help it remain green.. i really have no reason why the leaves would turn yellow if im doing everything right and the rest of the plant seems be healthy.. I was online looking for answers as to what it maybe from, and all that makes sense to me is that the old leaves are dying back due to the change of weather.. im really looking for answers and or help to try and fix this.. what should i do??

I initially did a tester bowl with a betta and a few stalks of lucky bamboo a few months ago. The bamboo was in about 2 inches of gravel, with about 8 inches of water on top of the gravel leaving between 4 and 6 inches of exposes stalk above the water line (I had 3 stalks in there at the time). The betta seemed to really enjoy swimming around the bamboo. He went from hanging out around a favorite resting rock to swimming laps around the bowl and sitting on one of the leaves that dipped below the waters surface. A month or so later, he (the betta) asked me to upgrade his place. Yes, my fish can talk. So I bought a 10-gallon tank and transplanted everything. The water level was raised a bit higher leaving less bamboo exposed to the air so I was concerned. But after a few weeks, the bamboo still seemed to be doing well. Fast forward a couple more months: the betta and plants are doing extremely well and I still find the betta resting on some of the lower leaves. I have even slowly added a few tank mates and more live plants to the mix. I highly recomend doing this if you have a small aquarium and a fish that doesn't jump out of his/her home since you might not be able to put a top on the aquarium. The fish are happy, the bamboo is growing extremely well, and it makes a great conversation piece whenever anyone comes over. :)