Bamboo support, finished

Continuing with my permanent bamboo support project. Yesterday I got started by thinning out the grove and then sinking a few wooden posts as the backbone of the structure. The next step was to add the front posts and the crossbeams.

That sentence makes it sound so easy, but working with the leaning bamboo constantly straining against me made this a difficult task!

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So I used temporary supports, clamps, even ropes to try and make this a job that one person could finish. Not many intermediate photos, but here's what it looked like when halfway finished:

This is a beefy structure!

You can see the difference between the culms in front (contained) and those in back (still leaning freely):

Even more visible on the back side:

Here's the finished product:

I added some extra cross supports to hold the front and back beams together -- they carry most of the pressure from the culms and were already bowing outward:

Now the culms on opposite sides of the structure will supply the opposing force!

A final look, from a bit farther up the driveway:

To jog your memory, here's the "before" image again:

Such a big difference, and the structure adds extra interest.

I'll be staining the structure soon, and am contemplating adding a few more beams for decorative purposes. I'm going to take a break from this bear of a project though and enjoy the results for a little while.

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