Phyllostachys violescens - The combination of very early shooting and weak cold tolerance may keep this bamboo from being a reliable zone 6 species. Some clones are very colorful - with yellow/cream vertical stripes or dark purple/brown vertical bands on the culms. Mine is green thus far. The one in the photo below has been container grown to this size and has not yet endured an Indiana winter. Voles destroyed a smaller plant that was put out in 2006. My plant tends to have curled leaves one of several traits suggesting that Violescens may actually be a form of Phyllostachys praecox.  This plant has displayed great vigor having arrived as a small mail order plant in the spring of 2006, quickly up-potted to a 15 gallon container and then producing the 8-10 foot culms in the following spring of 2007.

     This is yet another bamboo that has been ravaged by voles and they have really kept if from becoming well established. The vole damage also impacts winter performace so it is hard to say for sure but I would guess that this bamboo begins to sustain leaf damage when temps start to go below +5F. In the spring of 2010 it did show a nice upsize among the 2-3 new culms it produced.