Height: Up to a metre

This low, dense-growing species has large leaves that produce a remarkable faux-variegated effect in winter. Each leaf withers elegantly around the margin so that it becomes artistically fringed with a white border. In spring fresh leaves replace the old growth. In its native Japan (where it grows on mountain sides below 1,000 metres) this bamboo is often used in landscaping. The plants are clipped fairly low so that the leaves hover over the ground in a starry mantle. In winter the whitened leaf-edges brighten dull areas and contrast well with darker plants. Like all its family members this is a keen runner making it useful for groundcover and as a weed suppressor. It also makes an interesting containerised specimen, especially when its big, generous leaves are complemented by smaller-leaved bamboos.