Chimonobambusa tumidissinoda

One of the earliest to shoot each season, Chimonobambusa tumidissinoda (syn. Qiongzhuea tumidissinoda) is known for its swollen nodes which are often twice the diameter of the rest of the cane. The species is a very fast spreader once established and seems to spread even in dense clay soils where other bamboo species struggle. When grown under dry conditions we've found plants tend to stay quite small, but when given regular watering they quickly grow skyward. The tips of new shoots bend before they even start to leaf out, and after the leaves emerge the canes arch towards the ground with the weight. Even though the culm walls are thick, the wood is soft and can't support much weight without bending over. Chimonobambusa tumidissinoda's arching habit is attractive when plants are given ample space to grow large, but smaller plants tend to look floppy. This is a very attractive plant when grown in containers.

Chimonobambusa tumidissinoda is reportedly damaged by temperatures around 10-15F, however we have had cold spells with low's around 10F and high's in the mid 30's several days in a row with no apparent damage. Our guess is that plants in containers are probably the most susceptible to the cold; many bamboo species that are otherwise hardy will die if their roots freeze. We've always kept our pottedtumidissinoda plants in a sheltered location amongst other plants just to be on the safe side.

'Chinese Walking Stick' gets its name because monks would use the mature canes to make walking canes. The location of several groves growing high up in Chinese mountains were kept secret by these monks, but the groves were eventually discovered. Chimonobambusa tumidissinoda has some of the best tasting new shoots and most of the secret groves were harvested to the point of annihilation after they were discovered.