Running bamboo is the type of bamboo that everyone knows about - it spreads to the neighbour's yard, pops up in the middle of the grass and is 'uncontrollable'. This is factual but the sinister reputation of running bamboo is caused by it being planted in the wrong application and after a few years wondering what went wrong! For example in a narrow garden bed right next to the neighbour's fence - being unrestricted it will naturally become invasive and problematic in this area! However on large acreage properties, in restricted contained areas or in pots, they can be extremely useful plants.

Running bamboo spreads from an underground rhizome which grow in unpredictable directions and up to as much as six metres in length. New bamboo shoots will then grow through the surface at varying intervals along the length of that rhizome to form the bamboo culms (poles). Running bamboo then send off further rhizomes, again spreading up to 6 mtrs in any direction beyond the original plant - producing the running bamboo grove. Think of this like an underground web of rhizomes that don't have a spacial limit.

Running bamboo can produce amazing groves, forests or when kept in pots be great screening plants. They are also very popular in cities where a lot of garden beds are already concreted around due to the buildings and roads, which forms a root barrier for them. Running bamboo are particularly useful in narrow spaces where you need extra height! With a root barrier, this prevents them from spreading... but the majority of people just need a clumping non-invasive bamboo!