Bamboo Care, Plant Descriptions, Nursery Journal, Pictures and Links

About I created this site for sharing bamboo information, particularly on the plants I grow at Halfside Bamboo, a nursery I operate out of my home in Shelton, WA.  I gathered most of the information included in the bamboo descriptions from personal experience and conversations with other folks that grow bamboo (mostly, bamboo growers I acquired plants from).  The cold hardiness and size data are, with some exceptions, very similar to the information published in the ABS Species Table.   Brief History of the Nursery I planted my first bamboo in the spring of 1998 at my home in Shelton, WA.  I continued to collect and grow bamboo, filling my 1/3 acre lot with upwards of 50 different species and forms of bamboo (and other plants too!) by 2004.  After searching for room to expand my collection, I purchased a couple of small lots not far from home, in summer of 2005.  The land is currently planted in peonies, so I refer to it as “the peony farm”, but there is plenty of room for planting the bamboos I have run out of room for.   Bambo Info  The Bamboo Info page includes some general information about bamboo, as well as info on planting, how to asses the development of container propagations, fertilizer recommedations, and instructions for pruning and containment.    Plant List The Plant List page includes the botanical names of all the plants I am currently growing.  Each plant name is a clickable link to a brief description of the plant, (including a few words on how it might be used in the landscape) a short planting history, and any pictures that I have posted.  All photographs are my own, and unless otherwise indicated, were taken here at the nursery.  I am comitted to adding pictures and info as time permits, so check back if you don't see a picture you are looking for.   Links There are numerous locations on the web that publish lots of good information on all aspects of growing bamboo.  On my links page, I list a few I have run across, many in the pursuit of information regarding the suitability of a bamboo for a particular climatic region.  Most are bamboo nursery websites - their plant lists can be a very good indicator of what bamboos are doing well in their region.  This is by no means an all-inclusive list, nor is it meant to be an endorsement of any particular business.   Climatic Conditions at the Nursery I would describe the general Western Washington climate as somewhat Mediterranean; that is, we have cool, wet winters, and warm dry summers.  For the past several years especially, summers have been very dry, with negligible rainfall July through September (I have had even less summer rainfall at my home than in the surrounding areas of Olympia and Seattle).   We usually have a summer day or two when temperatures approach 100 degrees F., a week or two with temperatures in the mid-to-upper-80’s, and the remainder in the 60’s and 70’s.  Summer nights are cool here – usually between 50-65 degrees F.   Winters are mostly cool and rainy, with daytime temperatures between 40-50 degrees F.  Night temperatures frequently dip into the 30’s, and we do get several days where they dip into the 20’s.  Rarely does it drop below 20 degrees F., or remain below freezing during the day.  The coldest night temperature we have experienced at the nursery in the last 10 years is 3 degrees F., with a day time high of about 16 degrees F.   It snows a few times during the winter, occasionally accumulating a few to several inches, more often melting at snowfall.