Why is my bamboo not growing quickly?

[redheadonatractor]

Hello,

I bought a load of green bamboo plants (at £25 a pop!) about three months ago. They've been planted in compost in big pots, I water them lots, they're in a sheltered space but one that gets sunshine everyday.

They are growing at a snails place! I need them big to block out annoying neighbours.

Any other suggested for plants that grow big quickly? I've got more pot space I can fill!

What's the name of them? There are different types of bamboo. Fargesia for example is clump forming rather than spreading, and doesn't grow as high as others.

It's Green Bamboo Phyllostachys bissetti

Please don't tell me I've spent loads of money buying the wrong sort

It looks like this, but half the size. I've put Miracle Grow on it once a fortnight too.

Should be fine, maybe your expectations are a bit unrealistic. The cold weather has put a pause on most growth in the garden this year, all the plants just seemed to hunker down and wait for things to warm up. If you need really fast growth, how about something like hops, you can grow them onto a trellis, but they will die back down over winter.. Then hopefully your bamboos can take over next year.

Maybe, thank you. Everything I read on here was to get bamboo but be careful because it spread wildly and quickly which is what I was counting on

Mine hasn’t started throwing up shoots. They sometimes get quite tall before you spot them.

I've got a couple of tall shoots (maybe 2/3 per plant?) that are bigger than the rest of it.

Bamboo grows from the roots, so each shoot will grow tall with leaves, but doesn’t branch out, as in a herbaceous plant. Some shoots are 5/6ft tall some just stay at 2/3 ft, all growing from the same plant.
As the plant matures it will thicken up.

I have a bamboo (don't know which sort - was a gift from another garden) which is in its second year and still small and spindly. It's parent plant is huge (like 10ft) wide and thick (impenetrable).

Unfortunately I think that 'fast growing' in garden terms is a bit of a misnomer in real terms. What is fast in garden terms I'm not fast in terms of providing near instant privacy/cover/shelter etc. The things that grow really fast usually die back in winter in this climate - or they become completely uncontrollable. In the long run you don't really want something that grows several feet and becomes super thick within months because it won't stop when it's gets to the size you want!

There’s a saying about bamboos:

The first year they sleep
The second year they creep
The third year they leap

This is definitely true for my bamboos but they are planted in the ground.

I inherited a tall growing bamboo last year, it has in fact shrunk over Winter a lot and now it is warmer has improved a little. I wanted it for screening also so I understand your disappointment.
I have two bushier types in pots also, they seem to do better.