Just Say No to Abuse Declaring War on Terrorism. Yes, bamboo is a grass. There are over seventy genera and between seven hundred and a thousand species of this most versatile of grasses. The culms display a variety of colors from gold to black, some with stripes .
Foliage can vary from narrow to wide to feathery in various shades of green and gold.
Most bamboo come from warm climates, but a surprising number are hardy to USDA zone 7 and some to zones 5 and 6. Many prefer shade or part shade. Some of the non-hardy types can be grown in containers indoors. Beyond the somewhat confused and confusing botanical classifications, bamboo are either clumpers or runners. Clumping bamboo is better behaved although it will expand in diameter.