A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 how to cut bamboo so it doesn't yellow?

hey guys,
I want to make some bamboo arrangements, but it seems like every time I make a cut, the stalk ends up yellowing and softening.

anyone know how to cut the stalks so this doesn't happen?

the bamboo that you are cutting sounds like "lucky bamboo" which isn't bamboo at all, but rather a type of draceana. for true bambo, once you cut it, put it in a dry place for a few days or longer, and the stems will dry out nicely.

Hey Ms. Jiff, thanks for the read.

right yes, I just read that earlier this evening.
so with the draceana, can I do the same thing to stop it from yellowing? it's so detracting. there's got to be a way to do it, I mean the shops seem to be able to do it okay.

the only ones that yellow for me are the ones that are in water. if i cut them and they are in soil, they seem to be fine. i don't know...

don't you have to put the cuttings in water to root, or have you been able to get them to root in soil, as well?

i've actually done better rooting mine in soil.

I did a little experiment with my lucky bamboo. Cut it in half and put the top end(with leaves) in water and the bottom end(with roots) in soil. The top end gave out nice roots and the bottom one is developing leaves

heheh, that's a bit backwards, eh?

Jiffy -- I just spoke with a friend's mother who owns a flower shop. she asked her husband, Mr. Walker, and he said just what you said -- leave it out of water for a few days to dry out.

I will try that with a test stalk and report back.

Msg let us know how it works for you. I tried cutting my lucky bamboo too once. I lost both pieces. But I put both the bottom and top in water right away.

you know what, since these are pretty much a loss right now, I'm just gonna go ahead and snip them and set them aside and see what happens in a couple of days instead of experimenting on new ones.

be back soon...

any luck?

nah, they've started to turn yellow, too. upon closer inspection of the tips of the unmolested ends of the stalks I bought, it looks as though they have been sealed with something. I'll do some searching to see if I can find out what it is.

I have read that some people use a type of wax, but no specifics on what kind, exactly.