Phyllostachis is a genus of bamboo belonging to the Poaceae family. Phyllostachis aura or Golden Bamboo is a plant with suckering rhizomes. Its rigid shoots, light-green change to straw-yellow in the sun. Phyllostachys nigra is one of the largest bamboos. Very hardy, it resists temperatures as low as -20°. Its brilliant green shoots take on a black colouring with age. Phyllostachys is mainly used in the border alongside water but also as a windbreak or screen.