Used to by them at a local garden centre but it closed 2 years back. I have been finding it hard to get them to last longer than 3 years. So next load I buy of ebay in May I will drill into the base about 6 inches fill with mastic, and paint them half way up the cane with some old varnish I have in the shed just to see if it will stop them all breaking off at the bottom. Any one else finding the canes not lasting so long. :BangHead:
Mine are only used for one season, but we get ours from a stand of rampant bamboo in next doors garden. A couple of thousand a year, cut them green and let them harden for a couple of weeks. Then after use they get collected by the scouts for their guy fawkes bonfire. Better than buying bangers when the heat gets too it. Wasteful you might think but we need a fresh cane for every plant as we cannot sterilise them.
If I was you I would put an ad in your local rag and ask if anybody wants their bamboo thinned out.
Will try that this week ACE thanks :wave: