Bamboo leaves as food....

[HenOnAJuneBug]

you are correct...this black bamboo now is a forest around my house. I only planted a small clump about 15 years ago....it spreads like "wildfire". check this pic out from my deck - the foreground used to be a yard with grass...!

Does your black bamboo top kill in the winter there?

That looks like home. Spent many years in that area. Used to live in Sandy Mush.

 

[HenOnAJuneBug]

you are correct...this black bamboo now is a forest around my house. I only planted a small clump about 15 years ago....it spreads like "wildfire". check this pic out from my deck - the foreground used to be a yard with grass...!

Not many people have black bamboo in your area. You might be able to sell pots of it on Craigslist. I know because I got a lot of my bamboo from the Asheville/Hendersonville area and never saw any black bamboo.

 

[CindyinSD]

It’s probably safer to grow bamboo in a harsh winter environment. I did find some zone 4 varieties. Looks like all you’d have to do to drive back the encroaching jungle would be to pull back the mulch and keep the area plowed clear of snow (not always so easy) and pray for a full-force winter. No panda bears required. Still, I think the idea feels a bit risky.

 

[azygous]

I once lived in a house near the beach in Southern California. I had a Japanese garden with a lovely bamboo plant. Over the seven years I lived there, I watched with mounting alarm as it expanded its territory and slowly crowded out the other plants. It was a small ornamental bamboo, not the tall, woody variety.

Where I live now, all native plants compete viciously against one another for moisture, it being semi desert here, rainfall amounting to not very much, including snowfall. Any plants, including most tree species, have shallow roots to grab any moisture that dampens the soil and a default drought response when no moisture falls from the skies.

I don't think I would have Ernie's problem. Between chronic drought conditions and the chickens nibbling at it, bamboo wouldn't be very likely to turn into a jungle.

 

[CindyinSD]

I’d probably be lucky to get it to live through the summer. Doesn’t look like sun chokes will work either. They’d prolly grow, but they need 130 days to harvest. We get an average of 89.

 

[HenOnAJuneBug]

Between chronic drought conditions and the chickens nibbling at it, bamboo wouldn't be very likely to turn into a jungle.

Drought conditions might make it difficult to grow bamboo. You'd probably have to keep it watered.

 

[azygous]

Drought conditions might make it difficult to grow bamboo. You'd probably have to keep it watered.

You would be amazed at the setup I have to capture rain water and to store it so I can grow squash, herbs, and other veggies. I also use tricks such as cultivating the soil, planting the seeds, then covering the area with rocks to trap soil moisture. I would grow the bamboo in this manner.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

you are correct...this black bamboo now is a forest around my house. I only planted a small clump about 15 years ago....it spreads like "wildfire". check this pic out from my deck - the foreground used to be a yard with grass...! View attachment 1986905

shades of kudzu, Batman!

 

[ammyg]

I found this article on-line about a SE Asia Study that reported feeding chickens bamboo leaves will lead to increased growth and improved health. Supposedly, the bamboo nourishes their microbiome (a natural probiotic) and provides nutrients. I have a forest of bamboo and began cutting branches with young growth and feeding it to chickens. They LOVE it - they eat the leaves and then they also hide out in the limbs and climb around as the leaves die, so it's a natural "gym" in their coop run area.

Anyway I thought I'd share this and see if anyone else has experience feeding chickens bamboo.

peace and Happy Holidays !

Good to know. I have done bamboo in my yard and thought it would be great for them to hang out on. They ate the little numbs and seemed to really like them. I'll have to get more for them to eat and was thinking of gathering the dead leaves to use for there nest. They seem to really like that too.

 

[ErnieBerley]

Not many people have black bamboo in your area. You might be able to sell pots of it on Craigslist. I know because I got a lot of my bamboo from the Asheville/Hendersonville area and never saw any black bamboo.

hmmm... also sounds like a Herb Fest entry at the Farmer's Market in May !!! thnx