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Poaceae FAMILY

Drepanostachyum falcatum

Drepanostachyum falcatum

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Bamboo
GrowthSlow

Drepanostachyum falcatum is only reliably hardy in the milder areas of the temperate zone, being able to tolerate short periods with temperatures down to about -6°c[1, 2, 3, 4]. Prefers an open loam of reasonable quality and plenty of moisture in the growing season[1]. Requires a sheltered position[3]. A very ornamental plant[1]. Plants flower quite frequently in cultivation and often produce viable seed[2]. When they do come into flower most of the plants energies are directed into producing seed and consequently the plant is severely weakened. They sometimes die after flowering, but if left alone they will usually recover though they will look very poorly for a few years. If fed with artificial NPK fertilizers at this time the plants are more likely to die[5]. The rootstock is caespitose, new shoots are produced from late spring to early summer[3]. This species is notably resistant to honey fungus[6].

Propagation

Seed - surface sow as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse at about 20°c. Do not allow the compost to dry out. Germination usually takes place fairly quickly so long as the seed is of good quality, though it can take 3 - 6 months. Grow on in a lightly shaded place in the greenhouse until large enough to plant out. Seed is rarely available. Division in spring as new growth commences. Take divisions with at least three canes in the clump, trying to cause as little root disturbance to the main plant as possible. Grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse in pots of a high fertility sandy medium. Mist the foliage regularly until plants are established. Plant them out into their permanent positions when a good root system has developed, which can take a year or more[6]. Basal cane cuttings. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Drepanostachyum+falcatum>

Pollinators

Wind

References

  1. [1]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  2. [2]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  3. [3]Bamboos. — Lawson. · Faber · 1968 · ISBN - ↩︎Fairly comprehensive, it was once the standard work but is now rather dated. Deals with species hardy in Britain, giving cultivation details and some uses.
  4. [4]Ornamental Grasses. — Grounds. R. · Christopher Helm · 1989 · ISBN 0-7470-1219-9 ↩︎Cultivation details of many of the grasses and bamboos. Well illustrated.
  5. [5]The Plantsman. Vol. 1. 1979 - 1980. — ? · Royal Horticultural Society · 1979 · ISBN - ↩︎Excerpts from the periodical giving cultivation details and other notes on some of the useful plants. A good article on the flowering of bamboos.
  6. [6]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  7. [7]Flowers of the Himalayas. — Polunin. O. and Stainton. A. · Oxford Universtiy Press · 1984 · ISBN - ↩︎A very readable and good pocket guide (if you have a very large pocket!) to many of the wild plants in the Himalayas. Gives many examples of plant uses.
  8. [8]Plants and People of Nepal — Manandhar. N. P. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 2002 · ISBN 0-88192-527-6 ↩︎Excellent book, covering over 1,500 species of useful plants from Nepal together with information on the geography and peoples of Nepal. Good descriptions of the plants with terse notes on their uses.
  9. [9]Useful Fiber Plants of the World — Dodge C.R. · USDA; Washington. · 1897 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ ↩︎A rather dated, but very comprehensive catalogue of fibre plants from around the world. The book can be downloaded from the Internet.
  10. [10]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  11. [11]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  12. [12]Bamboos of Nepal — Stapleton. C. · The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew · 1994 · ISBN 0947643680 ↩︎An excelllent little booklet that looks in some detail at the native bamboos of Nepal, including looking at their uses.
  13. [13]The Book of Bamboo — Farrelly. D. · Sierra Club. · 1984 · ISBN 0-87156-825-X ↩︎Very readable, giving lots of information on the uses of bamboos, both temperate and tropical.
  14. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎