How to Start Another Bamboo Plant From Existing Plant

Bamboo plants are hardy, attractive tree-like plants that can grow up to two feet a day. A garden filled with bamboo can provide privacy, shade and an exotic touch. If you're interested in growing bamboo in your yard, you may have already noticed that bamboo seeds aren't readily available in most nurseries. Taking clippings from a healthy bamboo plant is a way to skip the search for seeds and literally start growing your bamboo garden overnight.

Hand saw

Bucket

Liquid fertilizer

Organic compost

Prepare the ground where you will plant your bamboo by mixing the soil with organic compost (this can be from your own kitchen). Bamboo plants are sensitive to high levels of chemicals.

Fill your bucket almost to the brim with water. Add about half a cut of liquid fertilizer.

Choose a bamboo plant to take a clipping from. Ideally, you want a clipping from a bamboo plant that is at least a year old. Unfortunately it's almost impossible to tell how old a bamboo plant is from looking at it. If you know the owner of the plant, ask them to give you an estimate, or just take a clipping from a plant that looks healthy.

Hold the bamboo plant firmly with one hand and use your hand saw to saw through the plant with the other hand. Bamboo plants are divided by joints, called "nodes." You want to have two nodes in your clipping with about an inch of the in between space ("internode") left on either side.

Soak bamboo clippings in the bucket with the water and liquid fertilizer for about two hours. This gives them a little extra boost before they go into the ground.

Plant bamboo clippings vertically in your yard or in a heavy pot, burying them about a node and a half deep into the soil. If you are planting multiple bamboo clippings in your yard, be sure to give each clipping at least a foot of space to develop its roots. Most bamboo species thrive in humid heat and will do best in the sun.

Water your bamboo clippings through the top opening. Make sure the soil around the bamboo is moist but not overly wet. You may need to water them this way every day until their roots have developed.

You can grow your bamboo clippings in a pot and then transfer them outside. If do this, it's best to wait about four months until the clippings have grown strong roots.

Himalayan Weeping Bamboo and Ghost Bamboo are two of the hardier species of bamboo. Himalayan Bamboo in particular does well in cold weather and shade.

Cut bamboo can be very sharp. A thick pair of gardening gloves will protect your hands from getting sliced.

Bamboo plants can become infected with disease. A thin layer of natural clay smoothed over the top opening of your bamboo clipping can act as a disinfectant.