Which bamboo is it? And did you have a drought this summer and not water? Or did your bamboo flower earlier on, either this year or last?

thanks for your reply. not sure which bamboo it is sorry, i know thats not much help but we never had a drought this year and i always water well. it did not flower, the only thing i have done to it is re pot it when it started to look sad, thinkin it could be root bound!! could i have killed it by doin this!! should i cut it right down and give it some TLC and see what happens??

Ah, I didn't realise it was in a pot - did you check the compost around the roots for invaders, i.e., vine weevil, chafer grubs, root aphids, etc.? And is the new growth appearing further away the same bamboo? If it is, I think I'd be inclined to turn the pot out again, and see if its possible to cut off (with a good amount of roots) the new growth and pot that up separately, having checked the roots and compost thoroughly first. It's not a variegated (yellow and green) leaved bamboo is it?

thanks for your reply. yes it used to have green/yellow leaves, looked lovely!! i will check the soil again.The new growth is just behind the main plant so i will take the new growth out if i can! Do u think i should plant it directly in the ground if all roots etc look ok??

I'm just wondering if its Pleioblastus auricomis - this one doesn't get very tall, but will run if put into the soil, so would need containing in the ground with a barrier inserted vertically all round down to 18 inches. Can you google for pics of the one I named - if it is that one, it should be cut to the ground in autumn every year anyway. What I'm wondering is if it suffered badly during last winter, it being so severe, and your plant particularly vulnerable in a pot which, for all we know, may have frozen solid, causing damage to the roots - the side growth may be the only bit left that's healthy enough to grow.

hi, ive googled the above and its not that one, ive looked up a few on google and it is very much like one called Phyllostachys aureo koi - Golden Bamboo.so i'm hoping you can advise on this one! many thanks again

Ah, a running invader! I'm not sure about cutting it to the ground, really, but even if you did do that, should be in spring, not now. Strikes me that the original clump must be dying back, assuming the separate growth is the same. I'd be inclined to ditch the dodgy clump and just keep the newer, healthier one. If you do put it in the ground, it will need a root barrier. I'd also query what size pot you have it in currently in terms of depth and width?

hi, i will take out the dying clump and keep the new growth, as you suggested. the pot is a very big one so i dont think its the size, it grew ok in the previous pot which was smaller and i wish i'd left it alone now but hey, thought i was doing it a favour by given it more room! many thanks for your relpy and i will keep you updated as to how its doin.