How to Plant Bamboo for Privacy

Choose a sunny location and measure off the space allotted for planting. Calculate the number of plants you will need to fill the space, using the mature height and width information for the bamboo species you select.

Decide how tall you want the screen to be at maturity and whether you want clumping bamboo or running bamboo. Clumping bamboo will spread only to the mature height and width listed in the species information. Running bamboo will spread until something stops it. Running bamboo, which is used most often for screening, must be contained in the area where you want your screen, or it will spread throughout your yard.

Purchase enough high density polyethylene plastic, 60mm thick and 30 inches wide, to reach around the perimeter of your planting bed. Dig a trench 28 inches deep around the proposed site. Place the plastic into the trench with 2 inches sticking out above ground. Secure the overlapping ends of plastic and back fill, packing the soil you have previously removed from the trench tightly against the plastic. Make sure no sharp objects, such as rocks or tree roots, threaten to cut the plastic.

Determine the USDA hardiness zone where you live before purchasing bamboo, since not all species will grow in all zones (see Resources). You can buy bamboo at garden centers or online. Bamboo for screening comes in several varieties which vary in height, form and color.

To plant your bamboo, dig a hole as deep as the container and twice as wide. Add a mix of half soil and half compost to the planting hole. Remove the plant from the pot and place in the hole with the top of the plant level with the surrounding soil. Fill in around the plant and water thoroughly. Make sure the bamboo does not dry out for the first year; curling leaves mean a thirsty plant. Do not fertilize for the first year, but after that, a high-nitrogen fertilizer applied according to package directions, will spur growth.