I love bamboo, though it is not for the casual gardener. It is tough, aggressive and unruly. It can literally take over your yard and your neighbors. The running forms of bamboo can not just be placed in the ground without proper barriers put in place. Even with barriers, it is guaranteed to escape. I use 18" metal roof flashing around my yellow-groove bamboo grove. A lower form of running bamboo, that I planted a couple years ago, I thought would be contained by a concrete walkway. Before I knew it, it was running up on the other side of the walk. This local gardener has put together a nice tutorial on pruning bamboo rhizomes (runners)....which is supposed to be done this time of the year. Read it HERE.