Lostandfounds Fascinating Bamboo Fence Thread

[nigelandjan]

Looks good now mate , but will it stay within your confines ? or take over your neighbours garden ?

[Kwang]

Judging by the responses of some in the know TD members, there may be trouble ahead

[Bangyai]

For fencing, Thais more commonly use ' moke ' which is dirt cheap, looks o.k. and has fragrant flowers as a bonus.

Having said that , Ms Bangyai is sick of the sight of it and banned it from our new house.... hence the use of bamboo.

Can you post a pic for us please....... the moke that is, not the missus! I'm going to need a pool screen in future and all ideas/pics are appreciated. Personally love red bamboo.

When first planted close together they look a bit untidy and sparse :




These have just been planted in our village




However, after time and some pruning they thicken up to make a passable hedge :





Not as pretty as bamboo but hardy and cheap , about 50 - 60 baht per plant, cheaper in bulk.


There is another plant commonly used for hedging which is a lot thicker and slightly more expensive but I don't know its name. The roots are bigger and it makes a very thick bushy hedge impenatrable to the eye. I'll try to find out its name.

[Lostandfound]

There is another plant commonly used for hedging which is a lot thicker and slightly more expensive but I don't know its name. The roots are bigger and it makes a very thick bushy hedge impenatrable to the eye. I'll try to find out its name.

Be useful to know. Meanwhile, I'll keep you posted on how the bamboo turns out. This variety is used in Australia for borders, I reckon I'll be OK for a year or two with it. They put bagged soil around and on top. The ground is sandy, well drained and good for bamboo. They like organic mulch, so I reckon some buffalo shit spread on top once they've settled should keep them green and healthy whilst I'm letting the building.

[nigelandjan]

so I reckon some buffalo shit

Well if you have difficulty in finding bull crap you can always come back here mate , there's always plenty floating round

[Borey the Bald]

.

For fencing, Thais more commonly use ' moke ' which is dirt cheap, looks o.k. and has fragrant flowers as a bonus..

The tree below the Thais refer to as mouk or mouk nhai:



There is a related tree, Wrightea pubescens, which they also call mouk.

[Ceburat1]

Hok-Kian makes a nice hedge. Not expensive. Plant only a few inches apart and takes about a year. I have this across the front and one side of my property. I interplanted it with Borganvilla. Now four years old. Hok-Kian is 5-6 feet tall and you almost cannot see thru it. A two foot layer of flowers on top from the Borganvilla.

[ubuibi]

i really like the bamboo but dont like the constant leaf shedding i find bamboo needs a lot of constant cleanup as the leafs just dont stop falling, but having said that perhaps there are strains that dont have that problem perhaps someone knows which ones they are?

[Yasojack]

i had the same idea, as i hate walls, my wife was dead against it, as mentioned it spreads, and is a bitch to remove, but will be interested to see how it goes, as i am still thinking about it.

Anyone have any ideas of stopping it spreading?

[Bangyai]

Anyone have any ideas of stopping it spreading?

Plant in large pots then put the pots in the ground. Or put in a planting box thus :

[Yasojack]

When they grow to big i would imagine the pots would break?

[Necron99]

Two basic types of bamboo species,running and clumping. The latter does not spread invasively.

Clumping Bamboo

[Bangyai]

When they grow to big i would imagine the pots would break?

Not really . Those black plastic ones are pretty strong. If for example you use a 10 inch pot , that will not only stop the roots spreading horizontaly but will limit them from further growth. What does tend to happen is that a root will go down through the hole in the bottom of the pot searching for water. This is not so bad as its easier to cut if you want to move the plant later. Inevitably, after several years the vertical root will branch out and start to run but the pot slows it down a lot.

[Bettyboo]

Lostandfounds Fascinating Bamboo Fence Thread

Thats quite a cheap way of hiding a crappy concrete wall, may try some of that on my land.

I'm thinking the same; if I was to put a wall around the 3 rai we're gonna build on it'd cost more than the house; this is a nice idea, and provides a pleasant environment for cobras to breed; just need a woodpile and a pond for the king cobra to live.

[Yasojack]

We tried growing a hedge we bought from a nursery, told they grown from seeds bought a shit load of the hedges, and planted them, and yep i got ripped off, they were from grown from off cuts, seriously look at the bamboo though, may even protect a little from the sun.

[Lostandfound]

i had the same idea, as i hate walls, my wife was dead against it, as mentioned it spreads, and is a bitch to remove, but will be interested to see how it goes, as i am still thinking about it.

Anyone have any ideas of stopping it spreading?

[nigelandjan]

The front of your place looks very tidy and nicely finished off now Bangyai

[Yasojack]

Bangyai yep that will stop it from spreading, though do they have Pandas for sale in Thailand ?, or is that a silly question

[Ceburat1]

The only way to prevent spreading is not to plant to start with. My one rai was part of a bamboo farm before. We had to have a machine to remove the clumps and roots that were every few meters apart. For a natural fence - one that does not cost a fortune search out the plant shops/plant places or find some one who knows what and how to plant. To plant a fence that requires no maintenance or makes no mess - sorry you live on the wrong planet.

[superman]

Do you have to worry about it spreading out of control?

My concern as well. Bamboo is a bastard to get rid of. Plus it attracts Cobras that like to nest in it's base

The aggressive and invasive nature of bamboo can make it undesirable to many gardeners. Once established, bamboos create a strong and complex network of plants making the emergence of new culms unpredictable. Removing a well established grove can be a daunting task. Simply cutting the shoots and culms at ground level will not suffice for effective bamboo removal. Rhizomes will continue to travel underground in search of new territory to colonize. The entire rhizome system must be removed or destroyed to completely stop the emergence of new shoots. In this article we have outlined several methods of bamboo removal for both running and clumping bamboo types. If you are only looking to control the spread of bamboo plant, check out our article on controlling bamboo.
Removal of Clumping Bamboo

Clumping bamboos stay confined to the area in which they were first planted, and are not considered invasive. This makes removal fairly simple in theory. There are 2 basic steps to follow.
1. Remove Exposed Culms (Canes) - Start my cutting the culms at close to ground level. This can be done with standard garden shears, or a chainsaw for larger plants. The purpose of this step is to give yourself an open space to work with. Once removed, the canes can be discarded, saved, or burned.
2. Dig Out Root System - Depending on the size of the plant, this is often more difficult than it sounds. The roots and rhizomes of most clumping bamboos are short and thick, making them difficult to dig out. Start by digging around the outer edges of the plant while going as deep as possible. It is helpful to use an axe or sharp garden spade to break up the main root system. Once the system has been sufficiently broken apart, simply dig out the remaining material. Finish off the process by examining the hole to make sure all rhizomes have been removed.
Removal of Running Bamboo

Running bamboos are invasive and can be highly difficult to remove. They have the ability to spread over wide areas and are connected by a system of underground stems, or rhizomes. In order to fully remove running bamboo, the entire rhizome system must be destroyed or contained. For well established groves it is recommended to make removal a seasonal practice, rather than trying to completely remove the plant in one swift blow. The rhizome system is typically too resilient and complex to remove in a single season. Patience is perhaps the most useful tool for the removal of running bamboo. The following removal method is a long term strategy that can be employed over the course of several years. This strategy works by exhausting the energy stored in the plants rhizomes.
1. Isolate Desired Areas (Optional) - This step is NOT required if your goal is to completely eradicate the bamboo. Unlike most plants or trees, each culm in the grove is belongs to the same organism. If there is a portion of the grove you would like to keep it must be isolated by severing its rhizome connection to the rest of the grove. The rhizomes are generally close to the surface and can be severed with a sharp garden spade. Start by marking out the desired perimeter. Once marked, you can sever the rhizomes by plunging the spade through the soil along the entire perimeter. This will effectively isolate your desired plant from the remainder of the grove. Keep in mind that this will need to be done every year to prevent the bamboo from spreading outside your desired area.
2. Remove Exposed Clums (Canes) - Cut the culms at ground level. You want to remove every culm in the undesirable grove; be as thorough as possible. The point of complete removal is to prevent the bamboo from gaining energy from photosynthesis. Because the the grove is one single organism, it has the ability to spread its nutrients and energy gained from photosynthesis over wide distances. Complete removal will cause the bamboo to rely on energy stored in the rhizomes.
3. Destroy Future Growth - This is where the patience comes into play. You will need to monitor the area periodically to see if any new shoots have emerged, most frequently in the springtime. Immediately destroy the new shoots by simply stomping or cutting them down. The bamboo will be using the energy stored up in the rhizomes to send these new shoots through the ground. Consistently thwarting the plants efforts will cause it to exhaust too much energy and die. The length of time needed to kill the plant will depend on the species, climate, and its level of establishment

[hillbilly]

We eventually got rid of ALL of our bamboo upcountry. Just to much trouble. Having said that we still have a stand of golden bamboo at our home in BKK. Many Thais believe it brings good luck. It is a pain in the ass that requires a great deal of trimming once a month.

[SEA Traveler]

Looks nice now but what will it be like when the bamboo has grown to 7 metre and splayed out?

Neighbor of mine has 20 meters or so of bamboo growing as a fence. Every once in a while they have someone make a straight trim across the top to keep it maintained at about 2 1/2 meters. Looks rather nice after the top and sides are trimmed.

[superman]

Looks rather nice after the top and sides are trimmed.

So does my missus bush.

[SEA Traveler]

Looks rather nice after the top and sides are trimmed.

So does my missus bush.

so superman, your not naturalist and prefer the denuded bush?

[Lostandfound]

Looks nice now but what will it be like when the bamboo has grown to 7 metre and splayed out?

Neighbor of mine has 20 meters or so of bamboo growing as a fence. Every once in a while they have someone make a straight trim across the top to keep it maintained at about 2 1/2 meters. Looks rather nice after the top and sides are trimmed.

Thanks for that - it was the way I saw it originally. Now I wake up in cold sweats dreaming of cobra nests, wading knee deep in detritus and triffid like invasions of the stuff.