Breeding system characteristics of woody bamboo species are still little known although this knowledge is important for research on genetic improvement and conservation of bamboo forests. The present study is the first report on variation in breeding system from mass and sporadically flowering bamboo populations. The results demonstrate that two Dendrocalamus species have a mixed mating system with self-compatibility, predominant outcrossing, and no agamospermy. Pollen limitation and scarcity of wild pollinators influence sexual reproduction in sporadically flowering populations of both species., An understanding of the breeding systems and pollination of agriculturally important plants is critical to germplasm improvement. Breeding system characteristics greatly influence the amount and spatial distribution of genetic variation within and amongst populations and influence the rarity and extinction vulnerability of plant species. Many woody bamboos have a long vegetative period (20–150 years) followed by gregarious monocarpy. Relatively, little is known about their pollination and breeding systems. We studied these characteristics in wild Dendrocalamus membranaceus populations and cultivated Dendrocalamus sinicus populations distributed in the Yunnan Province of China. Floral morphology, flower visitors and breeding system were studied from 2013 to 2015. Both bamboos were protogynous, but flowering periods of florets overlapped providing opportunities for self-pollination amongst florets, especially in D. membranaceus. There was no agamospermy in either species. Seed set of D. sinicus was low (0.42 ± 0.42 %) under natural pollination but higher (8.89 ± 2.55 %) after artificial xenogamy. Seed set of D. membranaceus was higher (7.49 ± 0.82 %) in mass flowering populations and 2.14 ± 0.25 % in sporadically flowering populations. The Asian honeybee Apis cerana could provide cross-pollination of D. membranaceus and D. sinicus, and flower visitation peaked at 1000–1200 h. Pollination limitation due to lack of pollinators or pollen was detected in the cultivated populations of D. sinicus and sporadically flowering populations of D. membranaceus. Pollination limitation was not obvious within mass flowering populations. Hand pollination could significantly increase seed set of these two bamboo species. Dendrocalamus membranaceus and D. sinicus were self-compatible and have a mixed-mating system with outcrossing being pre-dominant. Their seed production was limited by the quantity of pollen and pollinator activity. Honeybees were observed as effective pollinators.