How to Bamboo!

 Hello folks! Today lets talk about how to Bamboo! I saw a couple days ago that Sobeys still has this glorious stuff on sale, so I thought I'd sneak in this how-to quickly while the product is available for cheap! :)

 

What you'll need to make yourself a pretty little bamboo plant is only 4 things. Lucky Bamboo shoots, rocks, a vase, and water. Pretty simple stuff! 

Lets start with the Bamboo. Did you know that Lucky Bamboo isn't actually bamboo at all? its a Lilly! And that explains why it grows so well in JUST water. I always wondered how it seems to thrive without soil.  Choose stems that are a nice deep green. Not a yellowy green. You can actually see both colors in my selection of bamboo because I was ignorant of this important detail when I bought mine. The straight shoots are much paler than the curly ones. I'm hoping some TLC will nurse them back to a deep green color! :)

 

Next you will want to check the roots of the bamboo. Look for shoots that already have some root growth happening. Preferably white-tan colored. These are already looking a bit old, But since the rest of the plant looks okay, I'm not too worried. You also want to check the leaf growth. make sure they aren't a) too pale or b) looking withered on the edges (which is sun burn). Lucky bamboo is a shade plant, that grows at the forest floor. So although it needs some light, it should be INDIRECT! Think about a brightly lit room's shadow spot... that's a good place for bamboo.  Still gets  some light, but not directly.

  

Okay! The rest of my supplies were from Dollarama. The Vases I wanted to use were $4. but if you want a shorter/wider vase with more stems in it, it'll be  cheaper for you. The rocks were $3 a box, and I only used juuuuust over 1 box for the two vases. 

 The other thing I did use (after a little research) is a drop of plant food. Only 1 drop per liter of water, even though the bottle says to use 7 drops per liter. The reason for this is that bamboo doesn't need much nutrients and you don't want to burn it by giving it too much. But a little bit, will keep it thriving and nourished.

tip: If you live in the city, it's a good idea to use either un-chlorinated water, or to let your water sit out for 24-48 hours to neutralize before using it in your bamboo (or any plants for that matter). Luckily, we are on a well water system so I don't have to worry about that! :)

 

Other than the ingredients, the rest is pretty simple! Start by putting in your bamboo sticks, and gently add your rocks. You do the bamboo first, so you don't tear the existing roots when you stab it into the rocks.  Once your rocks are in, just add water! :) you're done!  Change the water once a week, holding down your rocks with your hands as you dump the water. This will help to prevent algae growth.

Your bamboo will grow roots along the stem wherever it is submerged in the water. I chose to go with a 3 layer look. You can see the rocks, the water level, and then just dry stem within the vase. This will look pretty cool when it starts growing roots in that medium layer.

Your bamboo will continue to grow leaves. Apparently the way to make it grow in a spiral, is simply to keep twisting the vase gradually away from the sun. As the leaves and new stems grow, they will always grow towards the sun, and you can navigate the growth this way! :) Also, because Lucky bamboo is actually a Lilly, it's incredibly easy to propagate (that means make new plants, from cuttings of your old plant). You literally just need to cut it, and stick it in the water! So if your bamboo is getting too leafy for your liking, break off a branch of leaves, and stick them into the water! :)

Good luck!  (I dont really need to say that, since it's already lucky to start with! hehe!)