Sasa tessellata

This small evergreen bamboo is bushy and compact, and displays beautiful trailing foliage with very large dark green, glossy leaves. Its thin green canes disappear under the luxuriance of the foliage. Low-maintenance and hardy, it thrives in light sun as well as dense shade, in any moist soil. A must-have for Japanese gardens!

Sasa tessellata is a dwarf bamboo, belonging to the family of Poaceae or Grasses, native to the humid forests of China and Japan. This modest bamboo displays thin and slender canes measuring up to 1.50 m (5ft) or even 2 m (7ft). Low-maintenance and fast-growing, it grows in spreading clumps, forming a beautiful rounded and compact bush, with an erect and trailing habit. It has the longest foliage of all bamboo species adapted to temperate climates. Measuring 30 to 60 cm (12 to 24in) long and 7 to 10 cm (3 to 4in) wide, its evergreen leaves are oblong, thick, and glossy dark green. The leaf edges tend to dry out in winter, giving this bamboo a variegated character during that season. The green canes, with a diameter of 1cm (1in), with persistent sheaths and covered with a waxy bloom, grow in spreading clumps and often have only one branch per node, disappearing and bending under the mass of luxuriant foliage.  

This bamboo is very easy to grow, robust, perfectly hardy, and truly undemanding, forming a dense clump with beautiful trailing dark green foliage. It is perfectly suited for small or large gardens. It thrives in any exposure, even intense shade, and tolerates some sun, very dry soils, and windy situations. Sasa tessellata can be used in multiple ways. It can be used in woodland areas as ground cover under trees such as Japanese angelica tree and Japanese maple; or integrated into a shrub border in shade or partial shade, alongside mountain laurels, sacred bamboos, and Leucothoe. It can also be used as a medium-sized hedge with virtually no maintenance. It can find a place in a rockery, on a slope, or isolated on a lawn. This dwarf bamboo is also perfectly suited for growing in a large container or planter, on a terrace or balcony. It can be paired with black bamboo and Metake bamboo, with different stems and foliage, for a highly successful tropical scene. With its exotic appearance, Sasa tessellata is the ideal bamboo to give a Japanese character to your borders thanks to its splendid luxuriant foliage, bushy and trailing habit.

In Asian cuisine, the large leaves of Sasa tessellata are used for steaming and wrapping food.