Here’s a little plant trivia for you scholars out there–what’s the fastest growing plant on the planet? You probably guessed it–bamboo! If you thought that question was easy, it’s even easier to grow bamboo. In its natural habitat, bamboo can grow up to 3 feet per day! While hardy outdoor bamboos are expensive and hard to procure in Bend, indoor varieties like lucky bamboo are easier to come by and typically don’t grow out of control in your house. 

Now don’t get upset when we tell you this, but lucky bamboo isn’t actually a true bamboo. It’s actually a part of the dracaena family–Dracaena sanderiana to be exact. Just by looking at it, you’d never tell the difference. It has those famous horizontal joints circumambulating the canes and flags of green foliage on top. Lucky bamboo is easily trained and shaped, as you’ll often see them braided, latticed or even swirled in a corkscrew!

Care instructions are almost too easy to even bother documenting. Dracaena sanderiana is aquatic, so it can literally grow in water and nothing else! We recommend filling a glass vase with a few inches of pebbles. Stick a few stalks of bamboo in and secure them in place with a few more handfuls of rocks. Pour in your water just until the roots are submerged. Put it in a location that gets indirect sunlight and consider dropping some fish fertilizer in the water monthly during the spring and summer. If you prefer to pot it in soil, it’ll be just as happy. Water weekly and watch it grow!