Garden Designers & Landscape Gardeners
Garden Buildings in South & East England

X Hibanobambusa tranquilans 'Shiroshima'
Left - a tropical looking mass of broad leaves growing in a dense clump with only a few glimpses of it's culms, usually only reaching 3m tall. The leaves have random stripes of white cream and mid green making a striking looking clump, you can also see some leaves in this photo are predominantly white. 
This photo courtesy of Ned Jaquith and Sheewash Bamboo nursery who are copyright holders, see their link on our resources page.
Right - this photo shows H.tranquilans the species with plain green leaves and it's variety 'Shiroshima' growing beside it. This is a running bamboo and when growing in favourable conditions it will spread vigorously throwing out many running shoots in all directions each season. It is possible to control a clump fairly easily though as the rhizomes stay close to the surface and are no thicker than the slender culms. It appears not to like dry or compacted soil, as it has not spread under a regularly used path in the Carribean Home From Home garden in London, where we keep it trimmed back to a 1.2m hedge. It grows there in front of a clump of Phyllostachys nigra where it's leaves are contrast well against it's black culms.
This photo courtesy of needmorebamboo.com copyright holders, see their link on our resources page
 

The shoots and leaves of this bamboo can develop pink and red tints when growing vigorously or in full sun.
This photo courtesy of Ned Jaquith and Sheewash Bamboo nursery who are copyright holders, see their link on our resources page.