True Bamboo

• 1). Identify the type of bamboo you have. Temperate bamboos have a native dormancy period during cold winters. If grown indoors where the temperature won't get as cold, the plant will still experience a dormancy period and leaf drop will occur. Feeding should not be done during this dormancy period.
  
  
• 2). Use a high-nitrogen, low potash fertilizer (such as 30-10-10) for true bamboos.
  
  
• 3). Feed indoor tropical bamboo plants every time you water. Use a half-strength solution If the fertilizer you choose only provides instructions for feeding monthly.
  
  
• 4). Feed temperate bamboos during the growing season every time you water (with a half-strength solution) but do not feed during winter months. Decrease watering frequency during dormancy; water only to keep the soil from drying out.
  
  

"Lucky" Bamboo

• 1). Put lucky bamboo plants in 2 inches of filtered water (tap water has too many chemicals that can harm the plant).
  
  
• 2). Change the water once a week.
  
  
• 3). Use a liquid fertilizer formulated for aquarium plants or a weak solution of a water-soluble plant food, such as Miracle-Gro for water plants diluted to 1/10th the recommended strength.
  
  
• 4). Add the plant food once a month at a time when you change the water.