Hardy Bamboos: Taming the DragonBamboos are extraordinary in the ability to transform a garden, adapt to inhospitable surroundings, survive with little care and, most of all, surprise and delight the people who view them. Too long the exclusive pleasure of those with tropical and subtropical gardens, this hand-picked selection allows gardeners in cooler climes to experience the wonder and infinite variety of these magical plants.Besieged by winter wet, summer drought and bitter, drying winds, Paul Whittaker's garden has been a rigorous testing ground. In the first part of the book his compelling anecdotes, experiences and case histories illuminate how bamboos perform in different places, draw attention to their idiosyncratic nature, and highlight their geographical origins. A further section describes the bamboo's unique physical structure and growing habits. These fascinating insights give you the knowledge you need to choose the right bamboo for your site and grow it successfully.At the heart of the book are detailed plant descriptions that join with striking photographs and evocative illustrations to highlight each plant's characteristics. Culms available in all the colors of the rainbow may also be striped, grooved, wrinkled or knobbled. Leaves range from glaucous needles to huge plates of deep green with striking variegations. There are bamboos perfect for creating shady groves and hedges, and others that deserve stand-alone treatment as specimen plants. Here you will find everything from the elegant, willowy "Fargesia rufa to the bold, tropical looks of "Sasa palamata f. "nebulosa. Using bamboos to best effect in the garden, propagation, aftercare and their resilience to pests and diseases complete the guidancefor gardeners.The distillation of years of hands-on growing experience, this is the ultimate bamboo reference book for cool-climate gardeners. Enthusiasts will delight in the variety of new possibilities for their collection and gardeners everywhere will be captivated by the charm bamboos bring to countless different garden situations. |
Contents
Foreword by Roy Lancaster O B E V M H FI Hort | 10 |
A New Acquaintance | 20 |
Definition history and culture harvesting | 26 |
Copyright | |
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Common terms and phrases
arching areas Arundinaria aureocaulis average Bambusa Bambusa multiplex Bashania Borinda branches buds Chimonobambusa quadrangularis China Chusquea culeou clumping cold culm colouring culm of Phyllostachys culm sheaths culms emerge cultivar dark dense Drepanostachyum Fargesia murielae Fargesia nitida flowering foliage forms full sun Gansu genus growing growth Habit Hardiness Height Himalayacalamus Indocalamus internodes juvenile leaf leaves leptomorph light shade mature plant maximum diameter nigra f nodes old culms older culms pachymorph pale green Phyllostachys aurea Phyllostachys aureosulcata Phyllostachys bambusoides Castillonis Phyllostachys edulis Phyllostachys nigra Phyllostachys sulphurea Phyllostachys vivax Pleioblastus argenteostriatus Pleioblastus fortunei Pleioblastus pygmaeus pruning Pseudosasa japonica rarely rhizome roots Sasa Sasa kurilensis Sasa palmata Sasa veitchii Semiarundinaria fastuosa Shibataea Shibataea kumasasa shoots Sichuan Sinobambusa soil species specimen Spread striping sun or light temperate bamboos temperate gardens Thamnocalamus crassinodus thick culms thin tidy tolerant usually variegated winter woodland woody yellow young plant Yunnan Yushania zone 6 Aspect