A customer who bought bamboo from us in January recently went to a local flea market where she purchased a container of bamboo from someone who couldn’t say what kind of bamboo it was.  The customer then sent us the following picture of the bamboo along with an email asking us to identify the plant for her:

Buying bamboo from someone who isn’t certain what kind of bamboo they are selling is risky

My response:
It is definitely not Golden Goddess and there’s a good chance it is not a clumping bamboo at all.  When you buy bamboo from someone who has no idea what plant they are selling – especially if that bamboo is tantalizing inexpensive – you are very likely to be purchasing one of the many varieties of running bamboo, all of which are much easier to propagate than clumping varieties.  

Running bamboos are invasive and once established, they are very difficult to remove. 

Instead of planting in the ground what might turn out to be an unwanted running bamboo, you might try growing it in a large pot for one growing season.  After a year, you will be able to tell by its growth patterns whether it is a clumping or running bamboo.