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Fargesia nitida

Common name:	Fountain Bamboo	Family:	Gramineae
Author:	(Mitford.)Keng.f. ex T.P.Yi.	Botanical references:	11, 200
Synonyms:	Sinarundinaria nitida ((Mitford.)Nakai.), Arundinaria nitida (Mitford.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - C. and W. China in Szechwan and Kansu.
Habitat:	Damp semi-wooded regions[200]. Found at altitudes up to 3000 metres on the northern sides of mountains[195].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Cyperales. Renamed to Poaceae -- Grass family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen bamboo growing to 4m by 2m at a slow rate. It is hardy to zone 5. It is in leaf all year. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind. We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in full shade (deep woodland) semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Hedge, Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge, Deep Shade.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Basketry Hedge Plant support Wood.

The plant makes a good dense shelter hedge[162].
The canes can be used as plant supports, they can also be woven into hurdles etc and used in basket making, sieves, light construction and fencing[25, 195].

Cultivation details

Tolerates a wide range of soils and sites[200] but prefers a damp humus-rich soil in sun or semi-shade[1, 11]. Plants are best grown in the shade, their leaves curling up when in strong sunlight[200]. Dislikes drought[1]. A slow growing plant, it prefers a position sheltered from cold north and east winds[11]. This species is particularly sensitive to cold winds[162].
Most leaves are produced at the tops of the stems.
A very ornamental and hardy bamboo, tolerating temperatures down to about -25° c[1, 200].
The plant has a running rootstock but it only spreads slowly in the British climate and never becomes invasive. New shoots are produced from late May[25].
This species is notably resistant to honey fungus[200].
Plants only flower at intervals of many years. When they do come into flower most of the plants energies are directed into producing seed and consequently the plant is severely weakened. They sometimes die after flowering, but if left alone they will usually recover though they will look very poorly for a few years. If fed with artificial NPK fertilizers at this time the plants are more likely to die[122].

Propagation

Seed - surface sow as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse at about 20° c. Do not allow the compost to dry out. Germination usually takes place fairly quickly so long as the seed is of good quality, though it can take 3 - 6 months. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots once they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a lightly shaded place in the greenhouse until large enough to plant out, which could take 2 - 3 years. The plants only flower at intervals of several years and so seed is rarely available.
Division as the plants come into growth in spring. Take divisions with at least three canes in the clump, trying to cause as little root disturbance to the main plant as possible. Grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse in pots of a high fertility sandy medium. Mist the foliage regularly until plants are established. Plant them out into their permanent positions when a good root system has developed, which can take a year or more[200].
Basal cane cuttings.
Rhizome cuttings.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

Latin and Worldwide Common Names From Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database by M. H. Porcher et. al. 1995 - 2000 Landcare Systems Research Laboratory, Department of Crop Production,Institute of Land and Food Resources, The University of Melbourne, Australia.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

References for Arundinaria nitida (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database

References for Sinarundinaria nitida (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[25] Lawson. Bamboos. Faber 1968
Fairly comprehensive, it was once the standard work but is now rather dated. Deals with species hardy in Britain, giving cultivation details and some uses.

[122] ? The Plantsman. Vol. 1. 1979 - 1980. Royal Horticultural Society 1979
Excerpts from the periodical giving cultivation details and other notes on some of the useful plants. A good article on the flowering of bamboos.

[162] Grounds. R. Ornamental Grasses. Christopher Helm 1989 ISBN 0-7470-1219-9
Cultivation details of many of the grasses and bamboos. Well illustrated.

[195] Farrelly. D. The Book of Bamboo Sierra Club. 1984 ISBN 0-87156-825-X
Very readable, giving lots of information on the uses of bamboos, both temperate and tropical.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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