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Lucky Bamboo Plant

Lucky Bamboo Plant
I hate Lucky Bamboo! This must be one of the most overmarketed plants in the world. It's actually a con. Firstly, it's not a bamboo. It's not even related. This "Lucky Bamboo" is actually from the Draceana family which is a tropical houseplant. This derivative of the Lily family orginated in Southeast Asia and I would make a "stab-in-the-dark" prediction that 1 in 5 houses in the Western world have at least one perched in their living room.

Secondly, I'm not sure it's "Lucky." I keep getting searches from the net arriving at my blog requesting tips for care of these plants. If it's so 'lucky' why do you need to care for it and why do they seem to shrivel up and die 3 months after you bought it?

I'm only joking. They're not my cup of tea but not everyone drinks from the same teapot. If you want some tips to look after them read on...

  • Don't prune them The leaves are actually the growing parts of the plant. As they mature they become the stalk and sprout new leaves. This is how they grow.
  • Keep them in low-light conditions these are tropical plants whose native habitat is at the rainforest floor where they don't see much light. If you expose them to too much sunlight they will burn.
  • Grow them indoors as above. Lucky bamboo will need to be kept indoors unless you have a well-established rainforest happening in your garden already.
  • Don't fertilise these plants don't require fertiliser. They don't even require soil. Just keep them in distilled or purified water and they will grow happily.




Posted by Stuart on March 7, 2006 6:03 AM | | Check to Subscribe to this Comment:


Comments

"...1 in 5 houses in the Western world have at least one..."

tsk tsk, Stu, I've told you a million times not to exaggerate. Really though, they sound pretty foolproof. I'd rather see them in their native habitat though. Somehow plants growing in houses have always made me a bit sad.

Posted by: Val | March 7, 2006 11:45 AM

As a Californian, I don't feel "Lucky Bamboo" is lucky for us because it's responsible for introducing a new pest, the Asian tiger mosquito. What's so lucky about
dengue fever, yellow fever, and encephalitis? Nothing! I will never buy "Lucky" Bamboo.

Posted by: Angela | March 8, 2006 1:04 AM

You're right Val. Maybe it's 1 in 6...

Posted by: Stu | March 8, 2006 4:07 AM

I didn't realise that Lucky Bamboo had introduced a new mosquito. Was it a quarantine mishap or have they just attracted them?

Posted by: Stu | March 8, 2006 4:16 AM

Definitely one of the 4 (or is it 5) houses that doesn't have a 'lucky bamboo'. Actually, I don't have any house plants at all. They are all allergic to me, well, to my treatment of them. I can kill a houseplant quicker than you can look at it. I have heaps of plants on my deck, and they survive (just), but invite one inside the house is to condemn it to an early compost heap.

Posted by: Alice | March 8, 2006 5:51 PM

I didn't realize these things weren't even bamboo. Not my taste either.

Posted by: nelumbo | March 10, 2006 11:37 AM

Inherited one of these plants from my mother in law when she moved out of state. I love plants of all types and have them all over my house but this one's growth is amazing. I had to research to find out WHAT it was in the first place but wow what an easy grower.

Posted by: bonnie | March 15, 2007 11:39 PM

Actually, not being bamboo is a good thing; bamboo sheds leaves like there's no tomorrow and creates a huge mess. At least this plant doesn't make a mess.

Just don't pimp it up with red or gold ribbon, thanks. :)

Posted by: Han | August 12, 2008 2:25 AM

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