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bamboo not behaving logically
dont know what type of bamboo it is, but it has small thin leaves is quite
common around the london area, and it has the characteristic of folding its leaves up very small and very quickly the moment the soil gets at all dry. my specimens have just flowered and i've just been told that it will now die. where is the logic in that? does that mean every speciment of this type will die? i had about five plants in pots in front garden and back garden and they have all died at the same time. Funnily enough about two of them still have some very tiny leaves about 20 leaves all told that are still green. should i hang on to see if they revive or just dispose of them now, which i would prefer to do if there is no chance of revival for them, since i could do with the extra room that they now occupy. thanks for any advice. |
bamboo not behaving logically
In message , johngood_____
writes dont know what type of bamboo it is, but it has small thin leaves is quite common around the london area, and it has the characteristic of folding its leaves up very small and very quickly the moment the soil gets at all dry. my specimens have just flowered and i've just been told that it will now die. where is the logic in that? does that mean every speciment of this type will die? i had about five plants in pots in front garden and back garden and they have all died at the same time. Funnily enough about two of them still have some very tiny leaves about 20 leaves all told that are still green. should i hang on to see if they revive or just dispose of them now, which i would prefer to do if there is no chance of revival for them, since i could do with the extra room that they now occupy. thanks for any advice. Many plants flower once and then die, including annuals and biennials. There are a number of perennial plants which are either monocarpic or have a tendency to monocarpy. Bamboos as a group are well known for being monocarpic, though I don't know whether this applies to all species. There is a trade off between producing more seeds, and saving enough resources to live another year. In the case of bamboos, with synchronised monocarpy, the advantage of producing more seeds is that there's too many seeds for seed eating animals to consume, so there's an improved chance of a seed germinating. Any bamboo plant which "defects" produces fewer seeds and has less chance of contributing to the next generation - any compensating seed production that it produces by flowering in a subsequent year is liable to be eaten, and therefore fail to actually compensate in terms of contribution to the next generation. A quick google finds citations that not all bamboos display this gregarious monocarpy. Unfortunately you need to ascertain which bamboo you have, and whether it displays this trait. -- Stewart Robert Hinsley |
bamboo not behaving logically
johngood_____ writes
dont know what type of bamboo it is, but it has small thin leaves is quite common around the london area, and it has the characteristic of folding its leaves up very small and very quickly the moment the soil gets at all dry. my specimens have just flowered and i've just been told that it will now die. where is the logic in that? There's a lot of logic in it. The purpose of the plant is to reproduce itself (rather than simply to grow). All annuals grow, produce flowers, produce seeds, die. Biennials grow one year, produce flowers then seed the next, then die (lettuce bolting is an example). There are many perennials in which the plantlet which has produced the flower spike dies, even if the rest of the plant continues. Animals can do the same. A lot of insects die off as soon as they've reproduced. The basic logic is that if there is an unfavourable season (eg cold winter, hot dry summer), it's a lot easier to survive it in seed form (or as an egg or chrysalis) than as a growing plant or an adult moving around. Other techniques are, of course, bulbs or hibernation. -- Kay |
bamboo not behaving logically
Stewart Robert Hinsley says...
Many plants flower once and then die, including annuals and biennials. Would it be worth while collecting any seeds from a gone- to-seed bamboo and sowing them? Do they need any special climate or care to germinate? I saw a huge bamboo clump at some famous country house on TV that was supposedly very old (may have been 50+ years but I can't remember) and the head gardener was quite sad because the clump was flowering and he would lose the lot. Would any young runners from the parent bamboo also die? -- David in Normandy. To e-mail you must include the password FROG on the subject line, or it will be automatically deleted. |
bamboo not behaving logically
In message , David in
Normandy writes Stewart Robert Hinsley says... Many plants flower once and then die, including annuals and biennials. Would it be worth while collecting any seeds from a gone- to-seed bamboo and sowing them? Do they need any special climate or care to germinate? He'd either succeed or he wouldn't. Advice on germinating bamboo can be found on the internet, but in addition to the usual caveats about believing everything you read on the internet, any advice found may not apply to all species. I saw a huge bamboo clump at some famous country house on TV that was supposedly very old (may have been 50+ years but I can't remember) and the head gardener was quite sad because the clump was flowering and he would lose the lot. Would any young runners from the parent bamboo also die? Some supposedly monocarpic plants (e.g. Agave, Yucca) also reproduce vegetatively, but the stereotype of the gregariously monocarpic bamboos is that the whole clump dies. The real life answer may well be that it depends on the species. -- Stewart Robert Hinsley |
bamboo not behaving logically
On 15 Feb, 17:46, Stewart Robert Hinsley
wrote: In message , David in Normandy writes Stewart Robert Hinsley says... Many plants flower once and then die, including annuals and biennials. Would it be worth while collecting any seeds from a gone- to-seed bamboo and sowing them? Do they need any special climate or care to germinate? He'd either succeed or he wouldn't. Advice on germinating bamboo can be found on the internet, but in addition to the usual caveats about believing everything you read on the internet, any advice found may not apply to all species. I saw a huge bamboo clump at some famous country house on TV that was supposedly very old (may have been 50+ years but I can't remember) and the head gardener was quite sad because the clump was flowering and he would lose the lot. Would any young runners from the parent bamboo also die? Some supposedly monocarpic plants (e.g. Agave, Yucca) also reproduce vegetatively, but the stereotype of the gregariously monocarpic bamboos is that the whole clump dies. The real life answer may well be that it depends on the species. -- Stewart Robert Hinsley I had 3 clumps of Bamboo that flowered 5 or 6 years ago, and I didn't collect the seed, but the sparrows had a great time. The clumps died but made a great frame for morning glory for a couple of years, then last year a small clump appeared , must have been some seed lying dormant. Do try to save some seed fromm yours. As for runners surviving, nothing comes through.Everything dies. They do say that when a variety flowers it does so all over the world at the same time. I do know that other clumps in this area, not related all died. David Hill Abacus Nurseries |
bamboo not behaving logically
"Dave Hill" wrote in message ... They do say that when a variety flowers it does so all over the world at the same time. Interesting...... I wonder if that's true? It would be nice if it was. Stephen |
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