B MULTIPLEX ALPHONSE KARR

Possible height in Southern California within 3 years = 15'
Possible ultimate height in Southern California = 20'
Height in habitat = 35'
Loses leaves around 15 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit.
Loses canes around 0 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit.
Rhizomes die around -10 to -5 degrees Fahrenheit.
If growing in the ground it can grow in full sun or partial shade.
A clumping bamboo - rhizomes will not run sideways.
Minimum soil depth required for a healthy plant = 12"
Rhizome depth in moist soil = 4"
Fibrous root system depth in moist soil = 24"
3/4" diameter decorative yellow culms with green stripes, originally from China. New shoots are often pink or red. Wonderful hedge, bonsai subject, pot or tub specimen, friend & companion for the anti-social, depressed & angry as well as someone who just wants a pretty plant. The erect culms are ornamental, leaf-free for the bottom half & form dense clumps of slightly arching branches covered with leaves toward the top.
This plant is very popular in the U.S., it being the best hedge bamboo for a 10-20' high barrier in a warmish climate. In California it takes 6 years in the ground & a lot of water for the plant to get above 15' in height, but we have a few projects where it has got up to 20' in Los Angeles. Numerous growers in Florida have assured us it doesn't get above 12' in Florida.
As winter temperatures get lower the plant adapts by becoming more & more deciduous. Joe Le Vert in Augusta, Georgia has plants which survived -3 degrees F. in the winter of 1990-91. The culms & leaves all shriveled & died but the plant came back 100% next spring. Lily Ricardii in Mendecino, California has a healthy 3-year old plant that is only 8' high. Her temperature ranges from 17-65 degrees F. year-round. She loses leaves in winter but they come back in spring. Ants & mealy bugs can often be seen on the plant, but do no discernable harm.
Just plant 2-4' on center & in a few years you won't be able to see anything from the ground up except Bamboo.