Indocalamus tessellatus (Sasa tessellata) “Giant Leaf” – INT

Description

Big Leaf Bamboo! This has the largest leaves of any bamboo in cultivation, sometimes up to 2′ long by 4″ wide. A very hardy plant, but  leaves may shred a bit in heavy winds. It tolerates lower light levels than any other bamboo. Planted in total shade it forms an attractive 3′ tall mounded ground cover. In bright light to filtered sun it may grow to 7′ tall. This plant also makes a nice tropical-looking house plant. Hardy to -10 degrees.

Fun Facts: These large leaves are used in cooking to wrap food, much like banana leaves or corn husks. Tesselation, the word from which the name is derived, is a fine, cross veining in the leaves which creates a gridlike pattern. This tessellation is associated only with cold hardy bamboos (tropical bamboos are never tessellated.)

• Origin: China
• Minimum Temperature: -10 F.
• Size in climate of origin: 7’ tall, 0.50” diam
• Sun/Shade: Bright indirect light down to deep shade  (1-2)
• Recommended Uses: Low screen, specimen, ground cover, border, accent plant in pots
• Description: Has the largest leaves of any bamboo in cultivation, sometimes up to 2′ long by 4″ wide. It tolerates lower light levels than any other bamboo. Planted in total shade it forms an attractive 3′ tall mounded ground cover. In bright light to filtered sun it may grow to 7′ tall. This plant also makes a nice tropical-looking house plant.  Hardy to -10 degrees.
• Shooting Season: Spring
• Recent Synonyms: Sasa tesselata

Care

• Ideal growing conditions: Shade or filtered sun, plenty of water and humidity, good drainage.
• Acceptable growing conditions: More sun ok in winter and early spring.  May be grown indoors, since it does well in low light situations.
• Recommended polyethylene plastic root barrier in average soils: 24” x 40 mil

Size

• Size Locally in open ground: 7’ tall, 0.50” diam in bright light; 3’ tall in deep shade.