What do plant in front a stand of clumping bamboo?

2 months ago

I just cut the bamboo back from the short wall and topped it as a do every year. During renovations on my home I'd like decide what planting would go in the two recessed planters at the sidewalk. I get quite a bit of leaves falling all year round from the bamboo and the flax I had planted there couldn't handle the leaves falling into it. I did my best to detail it but it was getting to the point I needed to almost damage the flax to clean out all the bamboo leaves.

Yes, I have a gardener but he is a blow and go type. The remaining agave you can see were able to be blown clean.

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Comments (5)

PRO
Verdance Landscape Architecture
2 months ago
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.
Paul F. thanked Verdance Landscape Architecture
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
2 months ago
Good point about the witches brooms. You can see them in the OP's photo. Rather spoils the elegance of the bamboo.
Paul F. thanked floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
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The poles aren't as strong as you might think (native cane). The plants are very sensitive to the occasional droughts. I had a good stand behind my back yard in a forest and during the drought they died off . Later I found it growing in a low spot that normally floods. Ground water is going to be the key issue and rain runoff ditches are probably the best site for establishing a stand. Still, they spread underground and re-establish where there is adequate and continuous moisture so I have no idea how you would contain them. I don't find them attractive at all. A summertime short visual barrier if there's enough moisture but the rest of the year and in dry periods they do look ratty and the dead,dying leaves do persist. Are you trying to hide a view? As I mentioned, they aren't a permanent barrier. In the riverine (drainage/creek overflow) forest they would pop up in a different location every few years.
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Embothrium
2 months ago
last modified: 2 months ago
The extremely reduced leaf coverage your planting is actually displaying indicates a problem - maybe the droughts in recent years? Otherwise, the twiggy appearance it has also developed could indicate it has been blooming. If so, there will have been the same general kind of petal less flower spikes (and perhaps seeds present afterward) as produced by non-woody grasses.
Paul F. thanked Embothrium
Paul F.
Original Author
2 months ago
There is a mountain view from my rooftop deck otherwise I'd let them do their thing full height. The hedge was just drastically cut back and the clumps and stumps around the perimeter dug out and removed. It always looks like I killed it when I cut out the outside layer of shoots although this is the most aggressive ever. Then it rained for a month right after. I think its ok.

I plan putting a short wall on the other side... in the yard, at about bench height and backfilling the bamboo planter higher. After I've waterproof the front wall. I've been assured that covering the base of the bamboo with dirt will not hurt it. Is that right?
Paul F.
Original Author
2 months ago
last modified: last month
I absolutely love the landscaping of this Lloyd Wright around the corner from my home. Can I put oversized cactus anywhere near bamboo with that kind of leaf drop?