Anyone ever had a bad experience with a bamboo nursery?

stevelau1911 · 05-29-2010, 01:42 PM

Very Important!!!! PLEASE DO NOT BUY BAMBOOS FROM BAMBOO PLANTATION

Hello everyone. I've purchased a few bamboos from bamboo plantation which were clearly over-grown in their pots, look root-bound, rhizomes looked dried up, and the leaf buds are starting to wilt. No new leaves or shoots are being generated. They are either on the verge of death, or dead. Another one was topped and put up many survival shoots, but still looks like crap. Anyways on the phone, he guaranteed that they would all put up shoots and do very well because he said they were established plants. Well, now it seems like he's going to avoid my every attempt to contact him and he is refusing to give a refund or replacement. Has anyone else ever had this experience?

I never expected something like this from a commercial nursery. I mean, even my bare rhizome propagations from earlier this spring are putting out good growth so I would expect a bamboo from someone who has been growing bamboo much longer than I have to produce something

If you are ever considering buying bamboos, please get it somewhere legit like bamboogardens, or better yet needmorebamboo if you are in the midwest. As a bamboo collector, I don't want anyone else to have to go through the same thing. I hope this post can at least save someone from such a bad experience.

Here's the email he sent back to me after rejecting every phone call and voice message I've sent for the past week.

Quote:

1)To answer some questions, the potting soil is a blend of peat-moss, compost, and mulch which I use on all my bamboos and they were definitely not over-watered. I've been growing bamboo since 2008 so I know how to handle them.

(
1 - Each plant needs to be addressed separately since the symptoms are different between plants.

2 - Is the potting soil well draining or is it mucky? You can determine this by flooding the pot and observing the drainage. Does it drain readily or does the water sit on top of the soil for more than a few seconds?

3 - The propinqua has brown edges on the leaves, this could indicate some water damage. If the soil is mucky then pathogens can build up in the soil without adequate drainage and cause root rot. This can be determined by smelling the soil does it have a sour smell?

4 -- How much fertilizer and what type was used in the pot?

5 - The soil has to be loose and well draining. If it isn't then I would suggest using a professional potting mix if you want to grow them in containers. Or plant them in the ground.

)

2)There was no root pruning at all, I grow and sell bamboos I would know better.

( Were any roots in the propinqua separated or loosened? Rhizome cuttings taken? )

Both the Decora and the Makinoi are definitely dead and I know they were definitely not over-watered or under-watered because the new leaf buds have been drying up and they show no signs of putting up any new shoots. I felt the root balls and the rhizomes where definitely drying up. I also know it is not a lack of care because all of my other bamboos from other sources have put up shoots. Even though the culms look green, by any chance if they do recover, that will take several years. Both decora and makinoi are definitely dead.

(
1 - How can they be definitely dead if they still have color in the culms and leaves?

2 - What other bamboos are doing is irrelevant to the issue, lets focus on the plants you are having a problem with.

3 - If the leaf buds are drying up and the root ball is drying up then that is an indication that the plant may need water - don't you think? Are the leaves curling any when the root ball is dry?

4 - If the potting soil is WELL draining and the bamboo was heavily rooted then you will need to penetrate the root ball with water until it has a chance to put feeder roots into the surrounding soil. Do this by flooding the pots 2 or 3 times and then putting a slow drip on the center of the root ball so that a lower volume of water penetrates the root ball to hydrate it. Otherwise water flows around the root ball and the plant doesn't get enough water, even though it may look like you are watering it heavily.

5 -

)

You told me that they would make new shoots, take off and do fine so I went ahead and bought them from you, but I feel like you violated the deal when they started looking bad, and the propinqua beijing is also putting up only survival shoots which are even smaller than the shoots my rhizome divisions are making.

(
I didn't violate any deal - These are well rooted bamboo plants, there is no reason that they shouldn't grow with proper care.

If they are not growing correctly then a growing condition is preventing them form doing so. They are simply a giant woody stemmed grass. Its not complicated rocket science.

Again lets focus on the plants that may or may not have a problem and not other plants.

)

I want either a refund or viable replacements of these plants and I can't seem to reach you by phone either so I want to hear an answer. I can show better pictures if you don't believe me.

( Please don't call me. Every time I talk to you on the phone and try to advise you on something, you won't listen to what I'm telling you.

Please only respond by email. That way we both have a written reference that can be referred to with less miss understanding.

I shipped you plants that were alive and well rooted. I have no control over the conditions that they are grown under. I can advise you on determining and correcting any problems you may encounter. But you will have to provide me with detailed, accurate information to determine the cause of any problems.

I don't provide a try it before you buy it service, shipping is far too expensive. The 14 day exchange policy assures that plants aren't damaged in transit.

There won't be a refund or exchanged, lets just get your plants on track.

It doesn't take years for bamboos to recover from problems, as long as the problem is corrected.

Pictures would be very helpful. A full picture of the problem plant, then closeup pictures of the branch buds and leaves will help a great deal.

)

If you read the invoice accompanying the plants you will notice that replacements are provided for 14 days AND only if the plants haven't been pruned or repotted, or transplanted.
So are you saying you're going to sell me some dead plants that you said would grow well and they end up looking like crap?

(
They weren't dead when you received them or else you would have told me.

How can they end up looking like crap if they were already dead?

Lets just focus on your plants shall we? There is absolutely no reason to stress out over these plants.

Of course I have the pictures of what you might expect if you buy from bambooplantation. These are supposed to be decora and makinoi, but due to how crappy they look, they could be any green phyllostachys if they ever survive. They were cared for the same exact way as how all my other bamboos were so they aren't dying due to lack of care.

Here's at least how good I believe a bamboo should look if someone is going to sell it. It's just a rhizome division from my Bissetii last spring.

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