Seabreeze bamboo (Bambusa Malingensis) is an excellent choice to create a natural, living green privacy screen in your garden. A non-invasive clumping bamboo, it does not produce runners that spread across the garden. Seabreeze is a salt tolerant variety, grows to about 35 feet and will stand cold temperatures down to the 20s. This variety comes from southern China, and it grows in full sun and partial shade conditions.

The thick, tightly woven stems are 2-3 inches in diameter, and the growth pattern of the stems produce a natural security barrier as it is hard to walk through. The more sun this variety gets, the thicker and higher it will grow. It can easily be trimmed of larger stems and kept at a lower height if needed. If you wish to confine it to a smaller space, a simple root barrier can be installed and seems to work well keeping this bamboo in check. Seabreeze requires water, but its needs are met with much less water than other bamboo varieties.

If you are in search of a privacy planting to replace the old arecas and fishtail palms that have developed Ganoderma fungus and you have been told not to plant another palm in their place, you have been given good advice. The seabreeze bamboo, which is essentially a large grass, is not affected by the fungus and is a great replacement. Whether you need a privacy screen, a centerpiece specimen or a wind break, seabreeze bamboo can fill that need in your garden — and it is perfectly named for our island life.

In The Garden is a joint effort by all at the local garden center, at 3889 Sanibel-Captiva Road, Sanibel. For more information, contact 239-395-5859 or visit www.facebook.com/rswalshinthegarden.