Bamboo grove

The bamboo grove with its hundreds of stalks consists of a single bamboo plant, which has been growing here since the 1890s. Over the course of time, the plant from the sweet grass family has formed a huge ‘tuft of grass’ via its underground runners, which now covers an area of more than 300 square metres.

This species of bamboo – Phyllostachys viridiglaucescens – is native to the Chinese provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang. It can grow up to 12 metres tall there. As one of the hardiest species of leaf bamboo, it is well suited for cultivation in Central Europe.

The species is characterised by its initially white-powdery shoots, which are edible and very tasty when young. Older culms have a white wax ring below the nodes. The stalks are formed underground and appear the following spring. They grow several centimetres a day and reach a height of up to eight metres in the Garden within a few weeks.

The young bamboo shoots are easily damaged when stepped on. Therefore, the bamboo grove is fenced off to protect it from the feet of the thousands of visitors.