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Bambusa vulgaris

Common name: Common bamboo · Golden bamboo · Feathery bamboo

Bambusa vulgaris is a giant tropical clumping bamboo with smooth, glossy green culms up to 10 cm in diameter, and is probably the most widely cultivated bamboo in the world. Its exact wild origin is uncertain because it has been grown and spread by people for millennia, though it likely comes from southern China and mainland Southeast Asia. It is now pantropical, grown for screens, windbreaks, construction poles, and edible shoots, and its golden form 'Vittata' (painted bamboo), with yellow culms striped in green, is a favorite ornamental.

Fun facts

  • Bambusa vulgaris flowers only after intervals of decades, and it almost never sets viable seed, so it is spread entirely by human-planted divisions — one reason botanists still debate where it is truly native.
  • The cultivar 'Vittata' (painted bamboo) has bright golden-yellow culms randomly striped with deep green, and is one of the most planted ornamental bamboos in the tropics.
  • A dwarf form called 'Wamin' (Buddha's belly bamboo) has short, swollen internodes that make each culm look like a row of stacked bellies.
  • Its young shoots are edible after boiling to remove bitterness and cyanogenic compounds, and its strong, straight poles have long been used for scaffolding, fencing, and rafts.

Care summary

Sun Full sun to partial shade; best growth and culm color in full sun
Water Water regularly while establishing; tolerates brief dry spells once mature
Soil Rich, moist, well-drained loam; adapts to most soils
Hardiness Zones 9–12
Mature height 10–20 m (33–65 ft)
Pet safe Generally considered non-toxic to cats and dogs
Difficulty Moderate
Propagation By clump or culm division; rarely sets seed

Make your own Common bamboo · Golden bamboo · Feathery bamboo profile

Common problems

    • Grow in pots to bring indoors
    • Mulch heavily over the roots
    • Cover clumps on freezing nights
    • Cut back frost-damaged culms in spring
    • Blast aphids off with water
    • Spray with insecticidal soap
    • Wash sooty mold off leaves
    • Hose foliage down regularly
    • Treat with horticultural oil
    • Remove heavily infested leaves
    • Remove oldest culms at the base
    • Thin clumps every few years
    • Cut out weak or dead canes
    • Keep young, vigorous culms only