Do Bamboo Hedges Make Good Privacy Screens and Noise Buffers?
Do Bamboo Hedges Make Good Privacy Screens and Noise Buffers?A reader who lives in a cold climate asked, “I recently moved into an old farmhouse that is near a main road and I’m looking for natural ways to buffer the noise from passing traffic. I’ve heard bamboo is good, but I’m wondering if you have any suggestions”? Here was my response….Answer: “Yes, bamboo can be an excellent choice, not only as a noise buffer, but also as a privacy screen. The ideal way to buffer street noise is to interpose a solid (or nearly solid) mass between your home and the street. A bamboo hedge can form just such a mass, because bamboo’s canes grow together so densely, by nature. No traditional hedge would allow you to erect so much mass, so quickly. “A word of warning, though: when you buy plants for your bamboo privacy hedge, make sure the plants are labeled as “clumping” bamboos, as opposed to “running” bamboos. The latter give bamboo a bad name, due to their proclivity to spread out of control! “One
