New bamboo shoots and rhizomes tips sometimes show signs of distress by turning brown.
This is a course for concern because the shoots are unlikely to recover. So, what are the main causes of bamboo shoots turning brown?
Maintain soil moisture
New bamboo shoots and rhizome tips will struggle to grow, turn brown and die where it's too dry.
The browning of bamboo shoots indicates a lack of nutrients and water.
Maintain soil moisture and add fertiliser to promote the growth of the new bamboo shoots and rhizome tips.
Reduce competition
The new plants in confined spaces like the pots are competing with the old plants for what nutrient is available.
In such competition, the older plants always have the advantage over the new plants because they have well-established clumps or root systems.
They absorb the nutrients resulting in the browning of the new shoots or rhizome tips.
The best thing to do is to remove the old bamboo stems in early Spring or late Summer to promote new growth.
The new shoots will be ready in time for the next growing year. (Read about how to cut rhizomes and culms).
Dry summer affected bamboo
The record temperature in the summer of 2022 affected the new bamboo shoots.
In fact, the matured bamboo plants did okay, but the new shoots that came out that spring turned brown and never recover.
There was a horse-pipe ban, there was nothing we could do to protect the new shoots.
Interestingly, I added mulch in spring that year and it does wonders to the bamboo.
Immediately after the dry spell, it rained for 3 days and this video shows what happened towards the end of summer.
Watch this!
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