I wanted something very tall and slender to sit in a sort of alcove that separates my office window from the living room.  It should rise many feet above the house and so be visible as a vertical element from many places in the garden.

So… I finally settled on Phyllostachys spectabilis – a very yellow, ‘crook-stemmed’  bamboo that gets to be about 25 – 30’ high.  It’s a running bamboo, but fortunately it has nowhere to run.  Its sheltered alcove has a concrete house on three sides and should be easy to control on the fourth side.

It’s actually at the beginning of a slightly shady garden, and at its feet will be some huge yellow Hostas (Sum & Substance)

and some sun accepting ferns (Cinnamon Fern).

A wonderful yellow and green combination.