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Golden bamboo (Phyllostachys aurea)

Golden Bamboo is extremely invasive in Australia and poses a substantial threat to the environment. It can escape gardens or spread in dumped garden waste containing rhizomes.

Key facts

Type: Weed, grass.

Native to: Temperate China.

Established in: QLD, NSW, ACT, VIC, SA.

Other names: Fish-pole Bamboo, Fishpole Bamboo.

Best time to act: Look for new shoots during the short spring growing season, and cut plants in early spring before new shoots appear.

Identification

  • A large perennial bamboo that can grow to 8 m tall, with branched, woody stems 20–30 mm in diameter.
  • Stems may turn yellowish or greyish with age, but can remain green in dense shade.
  • Lower stem sections are extremely shortened and asymmetrically swollen, forming a zigzag pattern.
  • It has a running underground rhizome that produces buds and roots.
  • Look-alike: Other Phyllostachys species, including those with brighter yellow stems, lack Golden Bamboo’s combination of a raised collar below the nodes and zigzag-shaped lower stem sections.
  • Look-alike: Black Bamboo has a different mature stem colour, while Giant Timber Bamboo has longer and wider stems.

Where it grows

In Australia, it is naturalised in several areas on the central and north coasts of New South Wales and at Moreton in Queensland.

Why it matters

  • It forms an impenetrable network of roots, heavy leaf litter and dense shade, threatening native ecosystems.
  • Infestations can restrict access to fence lines for maintenance.
  • Bamboo infestations can present a fire risk.

How it spreads

  • Erect shoots grow from rhizomes, forming loosely clumped shoots over large areas.
  • Rhizomes can travel under fences, asphalt and concrete for several metres before resurfacing.
  • Dumped garden waste containing rhizome fragments can spread it from gardens into bushland and other areas.

Control options

  • For manual removal, dig out the plant base and remove all rhizomes and roots; bag them and dispose of them carefully at the tip.
  • Monitor the site for new shoots over the next few seasons, and contain any plants that are retained.
  • Stems can be lopped and immediately painted with a registered herbicide; alternatively, cut plants to ground level for successive springs and remove new shoots before they exceed 30 cm.

Hygiene and washdown

  • Bag and dispose of rhizomes and roots carefully at the tip.
  • Do not dump garden waste containing rhizome fragments, as it can spread Golden Bamboo.
  • Inspect and clean vehicles, plant and footwear before leaving an infested area, paying attention to tyres, radiators, belly plates, tracks and floor mats.
  • Wash down at a designated bay where runoff is contained and can be monitored for seedlings.
  • Record each washdown so the client has evidence of clean entry and exit.

Classification by state

  • Australia (national): No national listing. Managed under state and territory law.
  • Queensland: Not prohibited or restricted. Not listed as prohibited or restricted matter in Queensland. Everyone must also take all reasonable and practical steps to minimise its risks (the general biosecurity obligation).
  • New South Wales: Not a priority weed. Not a state or regional priority weed in NSW. The general biosecurity duty applies: anyone dealing with it must prevent, eliminate or minimise the risk it poses.
  • Victoria: Not declared. Not declared under the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994. Other Victorian laws may still apply.
  • South Australia: Not declared. Not declared under the Landscape South Australia Act 2019. Other laws may still apply.
  • Western Australia: Not listed. Not found in the Western Australian Organism List. Check with DPIRD before moving or keeping it.
  • Tasmania: Not declared. Not a declared weed in Tasmania. Other laws may still apply.
  • Northern Territory: Not declared. Not on the NT A to Z weed list, and Weeds Australia does not list it as declared in the NT. Check the NT declared weeds list before moving or planting it.
  • Australian Capital Territory: Declared pest, prohibited. It is a declared pest throughout the ACT. Dealing with it, such as selling, moving or keeping it, is prohibited.

Legal obligations

Every state and territory places a duty on landholders and people working on land to prevent the spread of invasive species, such as the general biosecurity obligation in Queensland and the general biosecurity duty in New South Wales. Declarations and control requirements differ between states and local government areas, so check the current official list before work starts.

  • Queensland: Biosecurity Act 2014 (Qld), administered by Biosecurity Queensland (13 25 23)
  • New South Wales: Biosecurity Act 2015 (NSW), administered by NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development
  • Australian Capital Territory: Biosecurity Act 2023 (ACT), administered by ACT Biosecurity
  • Victoria: Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994 (Vic), administered by Agriculture Victoria
  • South Australia: Landscape South Australia Act 2019 (SA), administered by the regional landscape board

Sources