Greetings!

A pal of mine has a problem with his bamboo (growing in a container)
and since he knows I am a keen outdoor and indoor gardener, he asked
my advice. The problem is that I have never grown bamboo, so I have
no insight. However, methinks, I reckon someone in this newsgroup may
have some insight I can pass on.

Two relevant pieces of info that I do not possess are (1) the variety
of the bamboo and (2) whether he is growing it inside or outside (I am
virtually certain, though, that it is outside on his mostly sunny
patio, sheltered from wind). He lives in Southern California, USA,
only about a quarter mile from the ocean.

Here is how he describes the situation:

Beginning of pasted-in description of problem

"I'm having a fit trying to keep our new bamboo bush alive. All the
leaves have turned yellow/brown over the past two months and fallen
off. Too much water....? It's a freakin bamboo! Shouldn't it be able
to swim? Too little water.....? Western Garden says it doesn't need
too much.... Its container drains well but I have noticed lots and
lots of ants crawling in and around this plant whenever we soak it (no
ants on neighboring plants).

I just had a closer look at the bamboo - I got home early today and
the sun was still out. Each major bamboo stalk (about 15 total)
ascends with nodes along the way where multiple branches, or shoots if
you will, splay out in all directions. These nodes I will call
armpits. The armpits on our plant have gradually darkened with some
kind of residue or mold. Now on top of the black residue are smaller
white patches of residue that look like mineral deposits but may have
no mineral elements whatsoever. What lead me to a closer look at the
armpits is a steady trail of ants. It appears that the ants find
something of immense value in these armpits where they congregate en
masse. Do you think it is a mold and if so have you any experience
with a black/white mold?"

end of pasted-in description of problem

Well, now you know as much about the situation as I do. Any advice at
all is much appreciated!

Chuck