Propagating bamboo from cuttings

[Fishmoose]

Tryied to search for this topic here to no avail.

Hoping for some first hand knowledge. I have access to some large black bamboo and want to start some of my own.

The bamboo is around 3" thick at the base. Do I take cuttings from the tips? Leave 3 or 4 nodes? Root hormone?

Any links or tips would be greatly appreciated!

[John Case]

Bamboo is a grass; tip cuttings and node divisions rarely are successful. Root divisions are the most reliable if not the only way to propagate asexually.

Black bamboos come in running (Phyllostachys) and clumping (Bambusa) specieis. A photo would help in IDing. Based on your description, I would guess that you may be digging a Bambusa lako.....there are some other choices.

Prepare yourself for some major digging on such a large bamboo.....

Good luck,

JC

[Fishmoose]

I guess I'll get the shovel and machete ready then..

[Bennz]

I'm not sure what species black bamboo is. I've tried unsuccessfully to root cuttings of Phyllostachys edulis (runner) and Dendrocalamus latiflorus (tropical clumper). In both cases the cuttings produced good shots, but never produced roots. Bambusa oldhamii is very easy to root from cuttings, with close to 100% success.

[Fishmoose]

  On 9/8/2015 at 8:21 AM, Bennz said:

I'm not sure what species black bamboo is. I've tried unsuccessfully to root cuttings of Phyllostachys edulis (runner) and Dendrocalamus latiflorus (tropical clumper). In both cases the cuttings produced good shots, but never produced roots. Bambusa oldhamii is very easy to root from cuttings, with close to 100% success.

So, how did you go about preparing the cuttings? Number of nodes, propagating medium, rooting powder, etc..

[Bennz]

All I did was remove the branch structure hard up against the culm node. In the case of narrow culms and banches I cut through the culm/branch either side of the node where the branchs came out. Just used IAA and composted bark potting mix, nothing fancy. Probably covered with plastic bag for humidity. This was a few years back, I decided to use N-fixing trees instead of bamboo for my windbreaks and abandoned the project.