April  3,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTIGULTORE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
295 
Hardy  *  Bamboos. 
The  transformation  that  has  been  effected  in  gardens  during 
the  last  ten  years  through  the  inclusion  of  large  numbers  of  trees 
and  shrubs  hitherto  but  imperfectly  known  is  very  marked, 
especially  where  a  leading  feature  lias  been  made  of  hardy 
Bamboos.  In  the  garden  they  are  conspicuous  by  reason  of  their 
distinct  habit  and  appearance,  there  being  no  other  plants  to 
serve  a,s  a  connecting  link  between  them  and  other  shrubs.  After 
the  stiff  and  formal  appi'arance  common  to  many  gardens  by 
dirtied,  while  December  and  January’s  winds  and  frosts  make  no 
appreciable  difference  to  their  appearance,  and  it  is  not  until  the 
cold  east  winds  of  February  and  March  put  in  an  appearance  that 
tlie  leaves  take  on  a  rusty  hue. 
Arundlnarias. 
The  numerous  species,  with  their  varied  characters,  offer  a 
wide  selection,  in  which  the  most  fastidious  may  find  something 
to  please  him,  whilst  a  lover  of  them  as  a  whole  would  he  hard 
put  to  to  say  whether  he  preferred  the  stately,  upright  branches 
of  Arundinaria  Simoni,  the  dwarfer  shoots  of  A.  anceps,  the 
graceful  branches  of  A.  nitida,  the  pendant  wand-like  shoots  of 
Laelia  Digbyano=purpurata  var.  King  Edward  VII,  (See  iiage  294.) 
reason  of  closely  pruned  Hollies  or  Laurels,  stiff  looking  Aucubas 
and  Conifers,  and  other  things,  the  light  and  feathery  plumes  of 
the  Bamboos  came  as  a  relief,  and  the  result  has  been  to  relieve 
many  a  shrubbery  of  its  stiffness,  and  also  to  give  to  lawns  innu¬ 
merable  quite  a  tropical  appearance  by  a  judicious  system  of  ' 
massing,  and  to  provide  a  rival  for  the  Weeping  Willow  for  I 
clothing  the  banks  of  streams  and  lakes. 
In  addition  to  their  being  used  in  conjunction  with  other 
shrubs  for  general  effect.  Bamboos  are  peculiarly  adapted  for 
planting  together,  so  as  to  form  what  is  popularly  termed  a 
Bamboo  garden;  These  gardens  are  now  found  in  many  places 
of  note,  and  are  particularly  beantiful  in  midwinter,  looking  fresh 
and  green  when  everything  else  is  at  its  worst,  for  although 
throughout  summer  the  beauty  of  Bamboos  is  very  noticmble,  it 
is  perhaps  in  the  dreary  winter  months  that  they  are  most  fully 
appreciated.  The  foggy  days  of  November  do  not  appear  to  dirty 
the  Bamboos  to  the  same  extent  as  many  other  evergreens  are 
many  of  the  Phyllostachys,  or  the  large,  distinct  foliage  of 
Bambusa  palmata  to  anything  else. 
Conspicuous  among  the  many  hardy  species  are  the  following: 
Arundinaria  anceps,  a  pretty,  graceful  habited  species,  quite 
distinct  from  anything  else.  It  grows  about  7ft  or  8ft  in  height, 
and  suckers  freely.  In  loose  ground  the  rhizomes  spread  to  a 
considerable  distance  from  the  parent  clump,  and  in  a  few  years 
from  planting  handsome  colonies  are  made.  This  Bamboo  is  par¬ 
ticularly  well  grown  at  Orwell  Park,  Ipswich.  There  the 
Bamboo  garden  is  situated  in  a  shallow  valley,  through  the  centre 
of  which  a  stream  runs.  The  soil  is  light  and  rich  and  covered 
with  a  good  turf.  The  Bamboos  are  planted  in  the  turf  and 
allowed  a  certam  amount  of  freedom.  In  this  position  A.  anceps 
is  quite  at  home,  and  is  the  most  striking  of  all  the  Bamboos 
cultivated  there. 
A.  Hindsi. — Very  distinct  in  habit  and  foliage  is  this.  It 
grows  from  9ft  to  10ft  in  height,  and  the  stems  are  peculiar  by 
