How to Grow Bamboo from Seed
Buy or make a mini-greenhouse with peat pellets as the planting medium., Put a layer of pellets into a flat bottomed cake pan., Put the pellets back into the mini-greenhouse., Soak your seeds in about 85° F (30° C) water for 24 hours., Use a skewer...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Buy or make a mini-greenhouse with peat pellets as the planting medium.
"Jiffy" makes one that holds 72 pellets and costs about $5 US.
Nurseries or garden supply stores may have other options too. -
Step 2: Put a layer of pellets into a flat bottomed cake pan.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and pour the water slowly over them to expand them.
Boiling water not only works better to expanding them, but will have some sterilization value to lessen the rate of seedling failure.
Repeat this step until you have all the pellets you need ready. , Depending on how wet they got, you may need to leave the top off for a couple of days to let them dry out a little.
Sogginess is not good, and the pellets hold water really well.
The ideal is for the pellets to be damp, but not wet. , Make sure it doesn’t get too hot, as temperatures over 105° F (40° C) can kill your seeds.
Cooler temperatures however, will not hurt the seeds, but may delay germination by a few days. ,, Because bamboo seeds are rare and expensive, you don't want to risk having two sprout in the same pellet and have to lose one of them. , 1/8 to ¼ inch (2 to 5 mm) is enough. , An east-facing window is good if the weather outside is cold, or a moderately shady area outside if the weather is good.
NOTE:
Wherever you put it, it should not get too much direct sun.
Even a mini greenhouse can quickly get up to seed killing temperatures in hot direct sun. , Before the seeds sprout, they can survive getting too dry once or so.
But as soon as they sprout, they can die in a matter of hours if they dry out.
If the peat pellets start getting too dry, use a spray bottle to dampen them again.
You may need as much as a whole squirt per pellet to dampen to the interior of the pellet. , Different species have different germination rates, so don’t get disappointed too soon. ,, Transplant all of the healthy sprouts into 4 US-quart (4,000 ml). (or half-liter) pots using the next few steps.
But don’t discard the rest of the seeds yet, as we will jar a few more into action by changing the conditions for them. , This makes a potting mix with very high drainage that is good for bamboo. ,,, Because of the really good drainage, don’t worry too much about over watering. , These seedlings are now well on their way.
You will likely lose another 10% of them for no apparent reason at all, but the rest will have a good chance at making it to maturity. , Store it for future use if you want, but these seeds and seedlings have no more use for it. ,, Space them roughly evenly, and keep them the same side up as before… Seeds to the top. ,, Because of removing the dome and the increased sun, expect to need to water nearly every day.
It is probably helpful to switch to a regular watering can at this point, as you can give it a more normal dose of water. , As these start to look ready, take them back to step 12 and get them transplanted. -
Step 3: Put the pellets back into the mini-greenhouse.
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Step 4: Soak your seeds in about 85° F (30° C) water for 24 hours.
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Step 5: Use a skewer or chopstick to open and rough up the top part of the peat pellets.
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Step 6: Put only one seed in the middle of each pellet.
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Step 7: Add a small amount of “seedling mix" type potting soil over the top of your seeds.
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Step 8: Put the mini greenhouse in a location where it will get medium shade.
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Step 9: Check on the greenhouse daily
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Step 10: as the peat pellets can dry out quickly once the water from main soak evaporates.
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Step 11: You may see a sprout within 10 days from planting
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Step 12: though the bulk of germination will occur after at least 15 or 20 days.
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Step 13: If any of the sprouts get tall enough to touch the plastic dome lid while others are still getting started
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Step 14: prop the lid up as necessary to prevent the leaves from touching it… Any leaves resting against the lid will quickly rot and risk killing the seedling.
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Step 15: After about 30 days
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Step 16: most of the seeds that are going to sprout with this method will have done so.
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Step 17: Mix a good potting soil with about 50% small bark-chip mulch.
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Step 18: Put a little (1/2 inch or 1 cm minimum) of this potting mix into the pots.
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Step 19: Move each pellet that has a sprout into a pot and fill around it so that the pellet is buried at least ¼ inch below the potting soil.
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Step 20: Give the pots a good dose of water.
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Step 21: Set these pots in an outdoor location that gets about 50% shade and that never gets full hot direct sun for more than a few minutes at a time.
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Step 22: Go back to the tray of remaining un-sprouted seeds and put the plastic lid aside.
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Step 23: If your mini-greenhouse tray has a removable plastic liner that helps organize the pellets
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Step 24: take it out and make several drainage holes in the bottom of the unlined tray.
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Step 25: Put all of the pellets back in without the liner.
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Step 26: Fill in around the pellets with seedling mix type potting soil
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Step 27: and mound it up to cover the top of the pellets by about ¼ inch (5mm).
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Step 28: Place this tray outside in the medium to full sun
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Step 29: checking it daily to keep it damp but not too wet.
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Step 30: Hopefully
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Step 31: you will see a whole new set of seedlings start to come up over the next few weeks.
Detailed Guide
"Jiffy" makes one that holds 72 pellets and costs about $5 US.
Nurseries or garden supply stores may have other options too.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and pour the water slowly over them to expand them.
Boiling water not only works better to expanding them, but will have some sterilization value to lessen the rate of seedling failure.
Repeat this step until you have all the pellets you need ready. , Depending on how wet they got, you may need to leave the top off for a couple of days to let them dry out a little.
Sogginess is not good, and the pellets hold water really well.
The ideal is for the pellets to be damp, but not wet. , Make sure it doesn’t get too hot, as temperatures over 105° F (40° C) can kill your seeds.
Cooler temperatures however, will not hurt the seeds, but may delay germination by a few days. ,, Because bamboo seeds are rare and expensive, you don't want to risk having two sprout in the same pellet and have to lose one of them. , 1/8 to ¼ inch (2 to 5 mm) is enough. , An east-facing window is good if the weather outside is cold, or a moderately shady area outside if the weather is good.
NOTE:
Wherever you put it, it should not get too much direct sun.
Even a mini greenhouse can quickly get up to seed killing temperatures in hot direct sun. , Before the seeds sprout, they can survive getting too dry once or so.
But as soon as they sprout, they can die in a matter of hours if they dry out.
If the peat pellets start getting too dry, use a spray bottle to dampen them again.
You may need as much as a whole squirt per pellet to dampen to the interior of the pellet. , Different species have different germination rates, so don’t get disappointed too soon. ,, Transplant all of the healthy sprouts into 4 US-quart (4,000 ml). (or half-liter) pots using the next few steps.
But don’t discard the rest of the seeds yet, as we will jar a few more into action by changing the conditions for them. , This makes a potting mix with very high drainage that is good for bamboo. ,,, Because of the really good drainage, don’t worry too much about over watering. , These seedlings are now well on their way.
You will likely lose another 10% of them for no apparent reason at all, but the rest will have a good chance at making it to maturity. , Store it for future use if you want, but these seeds and seedlings have no more use for it. ,, Space them roughly evenly, and keep them the same side up as before… Seeds to the top. ,, Because of removing the dome and the increased sun, expect to need to water nearly every day.
It is probably helpful to switch to a regular watering can at this point, as you can give it a more normal dose of water. , As these start to look ready, take them back to step 12 and get them transplanted.
About the Author
Katherine Mendoza
Dedicated to helping readers learn new skills in practical skills and beyond.
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