6 lovely ideas for pairing bamboo

In a Japanese or Zen garden

Japanese garden is probably the first image that comes to mind when thinking of bamboo. Whether you choose a very mineral style or a lusher, greener oriental eden, bamboo is a fixture in the zen realm of Asian gardens.

Many ornamental foliage plants can accompany it, such as Japanese maples, Japanese grasses (Ophiopogon and Hakonechloa), ferns. Also opt for a few shrubs that flower in succession from spring to summer, such as an azalea, Hydrangea involucrata (‘Yoraku Tama‘), or an Edgeworthia with late-winter flowering. If space allows, add Nandina domestica ‘Gulf Stream’ for attractive new then autumnal colours on evergreen foliage, and perhaps a few Aspidistra, very useful at bamboo bases in slightly drier spots.
This type of garden suits semi-shade to full sun; position maples and grasses in the shadiest spots possible.

Japanese garden also implies mineral decor, stones or rockwork, and mosses. A sōzu, the Japanese balancing bamboo water fountain, or a stone Japanese lantern are perfect to complete the Japanese atmosphere. Here, we emphasise bamboo’s exotic quality by adding this water fountain operated by a balancing mechanism made from hollow bamboo culms.

Fargesia robusta ‘Campbell‘, Prunus incisa ‘Kojo No Mai‘, Pieris ‘Katsura‘, Carex muskingumensis ‘Oehme‘

Discover Japanese garden in our articles: Create a Japanese or zen garden and 7 plant combinations for Japanese gardens.

In an exotic setting

Although Japan and China remain closely associated with bamboo, this sizeable grass actually occurs in many tropical and subtropical countries. It adds an unparalleled exotic touch, which is worth accentuating with other large or unusual plants. Large leaves and deeply divided foliage will mainly form an exotic border, or take their place within an exotic-style garden.

For a decidedly jungle look, a Phyllostachys bissetii makes a striking focal point. The following plants are all suitable alongside it: Cycas revoluta, Fatsia japonica, or as in our example, a Fatsia polycarpa ‘Green Fingers’, a little less common, a Geranium maderense or the Geranium palmatum, Hibiscus syriacus, which is very hardy, and the blue ‘Blue Bird’, Schefflera, and even a Japanese loquat can find a place there.

Phyllostachys bassetti, Hibiscus syriacus ‘Blue Bird’, Cycas revoluta, Geranium maderense and Fatsia polycarpa ‘Green Fingers’

In a contemporary garden

Versatile, bamboo has long found its place in modernist and contemporary gardens: landscapers who love its verticality and unique aesthetic make it one of the must-haves of design schemes.

This departs from the two previous worlds to bring a generous mass of bamboo beside buildings with very sober architecture, either planted in the ground or grouped in planters. Here Phyllostachys will therefore be preferred, provided they are ringed with a rhizome barrier at planting, or non-spreading bamboos such as les Fargesia robusta ‘Wolong’
Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’, Panicum virgatum ‘Northwind‘, Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ and Eremurus himalaïacus join them for graphic accents.

You can also include other plants with interesting verticality such as horsetails or Lysimaques ephemerum in moist ground, green blooms such as the Kniphofia ‘Percy’s Pride’ or dark ones like a hardy geranium phaeum, for unusual pairings. Also consider globe-shaped flowerheads such as Allium, a hardy banana like the unbeatable ‘Basjoo’, Dianella as an alternative to Phormiums… Choices are truly varied!

Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’, Fargesia robusta ‘Wolong’, Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’, Eremerus himalaïacus and upright Panicum ‘Northwind’

In a small garden or on a terrace

By choosing suitable species and varieties, you can grow and enjoy a few well-managed bamboos thriving in a small garden. They are also very effective as a privacy screen on a large terrace. Opt for clump-forming, highly ornamental bamboos rather than very tall species or varieties.

Surround them with other pots of attractive, architectural foliage plants that will thrive in part shade to full sun and do well in containers : an Hosta plantaginea ‘Grandiflora‘ that tolerates sun well, producing large, highly fragrant flowers, a Cordyline ‘Peko’, striking for its variegated, striate foliage, and an Agapanthus ‘Purple Cloud’, of a deep blue. Don’t hesitate to include a fern such as Aspelinum scolopendrium undulatum, also called hart’s tongue, for its long glossy fronds.
You could add a handsome dwarf hydrangea, an Ilex crenata ‘Gem’, a glabrous holly that will form a neat evergreen ball. Complete with some unusual bulbous plants for spring: in sun the tulips ‘Magic Wings’, elegantly refined, or Camassias that will precede the intense blue of Agapanthus.

Potting bamboo is always a little tricky, because people tend either to overwater or to forget them in large tubs: follow our advice in How to water a bamboo in a pot properly?
→ Read also: Dwarf bamboos ; 6 bamboos to grow in pots, The ABC of pot planting.

Bamboo accompanied by Agapanthus ‘Purple Cloud’, d’Hosta plantaginea ‘Grandiflora’, d’Ilex crenata ‘Gem’, d’Asplenium scolopendrium undulatum, and Cordyline banksii ‘Electric Flash’

In a sensory garden

The typical rustle of bamboo foliage and culms in the wind is a soothing sound, often sought after in zen and Asian-inspired settings. This sound quality, both relaxing and lulling, encourages large bamboos to feature in gardens designed for the five senses — hearing, smell, taste, touch and sight. Choose plants that complement large bamboos and enjoy the same exposure and soil type:

For sound, alongside Phyllostachys nigra, chosen for its height and the blackness of its culms, add, for example, (Miscanthus transmorrisonnensis, ‘Sarabande’, etc.) or a trio with a Miscanthus collection.

Sight would be suggested by exceptional or unusual blooms and foliage: outstanding hydrangeas (Hydrangea heteromalla, Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Snowflake’), a Tetrapanax ‘Rex’, an XXL Monstera on display in summer, etc.

Touch would enter with the downy foliage of a large Hydrangea aspera ‘Villosa’, the fronds of a giant fern (the royal fern), or, if climate permits, a tree fern.

Smell would be present for several months with the delightful spring fragrance of clematis armandii, whose exuberant, almost exotic habit pairs well with bamboo — it can even climb through bamboo! A Chinese vine, Wattakaka with its sweet scent, or the more heady fragrance of Holboellia traversii will take over in late spring, and a gardenia is also worth considering for summer bloom.

For taste, finally, accompany bamboos with a few Asian edibles: Japanese ginger ‘Dancing Crane’, Curcuma longa, prolonging the illusion of a garden from elsewhere.

Phyllostachys nigra, Hydrangea aspera ‘Villosa’, Japanese ginger ‘Dancing Crane’, Miscanthus transmorrisensis, Clematis armandii and Tetrapanax papyrifera ‘Rex’

Minimalist duo in a large garden

Majestic and minimalist: it’s also how we like to see bamboos strut their stuff in a large garden.

For this setting, favour exceptional bamboos — tall, giant or with coloured culms. All that remains is to plant a massed border, repeating it all around the bamboo bed: aspidistras, Japanese (forest) grasses, ferns, Sarcococca hookeriana… Admittedly you will have to wait a few years for these perennials or shrubs to reach their full size, but the result is worth the wait, isn’t it?

→ Also read: Giant bamboos; 6 bamboos with coloured culms and How to create a bamboo hedge?

Here, only aspidistras edge the bamboos.

There, ferns line the path in front of the bamboos.