Hankering for Heavenly Bamboo

Heavenly bamboo is a beautiful, all-purpose, garden plant, but just like lucky bamboo, it is not bamboo at all! It derives it's 'bamboo' name from it's resemblance to bamboo in the shape of the leaves and the fact that its stems look very much like bamboo cane. Heavenly bamboo is very hardy and lives a long time, but unlike bamboo, its cane is not hard and durable, so it doesn't act as a raw material for making items such as bamboo fences and bamboo flooring like true bamboo does. Heavenly bamboo is truly best known for its use in gardens and planters. It's hard to go wrong with heavenly bamboo.

Heavenly bamboo grows from 4 to 8 feet tall. It can easily be trimmed and bushed to any height below 8 feet that fits your garden's needs. Heavenly bamboo grows in a clump and can be planted in line to create a tall border or a low hedge. I have my heavenly bamboo planted along the front yard fence to create a green border that is more pleasant to look at than the fence by itself.

Heavenly bamboo is classified as an evergreen and can grow in most any climate warmer than 10F, even in the heat of the Arizona desert. Below 10F it has a tendency to die back to the ground, but even if that happens, it will re-emerge come spring with new canes.

One of the most striking attributes of heavenly bamboo is its color changes. Heavenly bamboo leaves emerge red and change to light green as they age, opposite of other plants we see in the west. And in the spring you get beautiful sprays of white flowers that turn into bundles of bright red berries. If you like birds in your yard, these berries will attract them.

Just like indoor bamboo plants, you can use heavenly bamboo indoor as well. It likes mild shade to bright sun, so place it in a sunny location and it will delight you. Try planting in a bamboo vase or bamboo basket for texture. To keep it looking bushy for your indoor environment be sure to top the canes as they grow and also, in the winter months, cull the older canes, cutting them at soil level. This will ensure a fresh growth of green around the bottom of the plant. Canes have a tendency to lose lower leaves as they age.

If you are looking for a low-maintenance, hardy plant for your yard, or a bushy impressive indoor plant, you can't do wrong with heavenly bamboo!