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Glossary of Bamboo Terms & Bamboo F.A.Q.s Commonly Used Terms and Frequently Asked Questions about Bamboo.
Auricle: an ear-like appendage that occurs at the
base of some leaves.
Cilium (pl. Cilia): one of the marginal hairs bordering
the auricle.
Caepitose: growing in tufts, or close clumps, as in
bamboos with sympodial rhizomes.
Clone: all the plants reproduced, vegetatively, from a
single parent. In theory, all the plants from the same clone have the
same genotype (genetic inheritance).
Culm: the main stem of the Graminae (grasses). The stem
of a bamboo is also referred as a cane.
Culm Sheath: the plant casing (similar to a leaf) that
protects the young bamboo shoot during growth, attached at each node of
culm. Useful for distinguish species within a genus.
Cultivar: seedling sports from a species which have
multiplied from a single clonal source. A sport is a plant abnormally
departing, especially in form or color, from the parent stock; a
spontaneous mutation.
Gregarious Flowering: usually occurs when all plants in
a single clone (which has been repeatedly divided and distributed)
flower at about the same time.
Gutation: water expelled over night as droplets from
the tips of bamboo leaves. camera
Internode: segment of culm, branch, or rhizome between
nodes.
Leptomorphic: temperate, running bamboo rhizome. It’s
usually thinner then the culms they support and the internodes are long
and hollow.
Monopodial: describes the growth habit of the rhizomes
of running temperate bamboos. The main rhizome continues to grow
underground, with some buds producing side shoots (new rhizomes) and
others producing aerial shoots (new culms).
Node: the joint between hollow segments of a culm,
branch, or rhizome; the point at which a rigid membrane of vascular
bundles lends strength to an axis of bamboo by crossing it from wall to
wall.
Pachymorphic: describes the rhizomes of clumping
bamboos. They are short and usually thicker then the culms they produce.
These rhizomes have a circular cross-section that diminishes towards the
tips. The internodes are short, thick (except the bud-bearing
internodes, which are more elongated) and solid (with no cavities). See
also Sympodial.
Rhizome: a food-storing branch of the underground
system of growth in bamboos from buds of which culms emerge above
ground. Popularly known as rootstock, rhizomes are basically of two
forms: sympodial (tropical, clumping, Pachimorph) and monopodial
(temperate, running, Leptomorph).
Rhizome sheathe: husk-like protective organ attached
basally to each rhizome node.
Running: describes a bamboo whose rhizomes have a
markedly horizontal growth habit, and tend to develop along the surface
of the soil.
Shoot: the stage in the development of the bud before
it becomes a culm with branches and leaves.
Sulcus: a groove or depression running along the
internodes of culms or branches.
Sympodial: describes the growth habit of the rhizomes
of caespitose bamboos. The rhizomes emerge from the lateral buds of
other rhizomes, while the terminal buds produce new culms. See also
Pachymorphic.
Turion: the tender young shoot as it emerges from the
ground without branches or leaves.
Q. How do I find someone knowledgeable about bamboo to help
me?
- The best way to find someone is via the ABS chapter closest to you.
There may not be a chapter in your city, but the chapter may be able to
give you the name of someone near you. Here’s the list of ABS chapters.
Q. How do I care for my Lucky Bamboo?
- The first thing to say is that small green stems in small vases filled
with some rocks and a little water sold as Lucky Bamboo across the U. S.
are not bamboo at all. They are not even a grass and none of the advice
you might read on the ABS site will pertain to Lucky Bamboo. The plant
is actually a member of the Dracaena family, usually D. sanderana. It's
a common houseplant and you should be able to find care information
where you purchased it, from this Web site or from the book How to Care
for Your Dracaena.
Q. What kind of bamboo should I plant?
- If you are a beginner you probably should try to find a bamboo nursery
somewhere near you. A local nursery would be familiar with your climate
and soil conditions. If you can’t find one, then you can contact one of
the suppliers close to you, who are willing to ship bamboo, and ask for
advice. Be sure to tell them your hottest and coldest days, what your
soil is like and how much rain you get. Do you want plants for
decoration, a wind break, a privacy screen, to prevent soil erosion or
forage for animals? How tall would you like it to be? Do you have lots
of land that you’d like to fill with bamboo or do you have a small plot
and want it well-contained? Deciding this beforehand will help a nursery
suggest an appropriate variety.
Q. How can I find out what kind of bamboo I have?
- Bamboo is notoriously difficult to identify more specifically than the
species, unless there is something particularly remarkable about it.
There are, by some estimates, as many as 2,000 kinds identified so far.
Contacting a local chapter of the ABS and asking for help is probably
the best idea. Be ready to answer a few questions. Is the plant entirely
green? Are there any colors on the culms? Are the leaves variegated?
What’s the average size of the leaves? How many branches typically come
out of each node along the culm? How tall is it? How thick are the
culms? Is it growing in clumps or are the culms spread out over a large
area? Do the new shoots have a particular color? Sending along a
close-up photo of any distinguishing parts of the bamboo might help.
Q. Can I eat the shoots?
- Bamboo shoots are usually cooked before eating as some may contain
cyanogens. This is not a problem with most temperate bamboos, and most
can be eaten without cooking if they are not too bitter. The only
Phyllostachys known to have potentially toxic concentrations of
cyanogens is Ph. heterocycla pubescens, also known as Ph. edulis and as
Moso. Though it is the most important temperate bamboo for shoots, due
to it’s early season, its size and the amount grown, it is usually
somewhat bitter, and is always cooked before eating, Even though most
bamboo growers often snack on some of the shoots while working with
bamboo in the shooting season, eating a significant amount of raw shoots
at one time might not be advisable unless one is sure of their safety.
Properly prepared bamboo shoots are a safe, tasty and exotic addition to
the table. The Washington State Extension Service has prepared a
brochure about bamboo shoots (you will needAdobe Readerto view the file)
with nutrition, preparation and storage information. Bamboo foliage is
good fodder for some types of animals as well.
Q. I've heard that bamboo is the fastest-growing plant. Just how
fast does it grow?
- David Farrelly, in his The Book of Bamboo, says that bamboo has been
measured to grow 47.6 inches in a 24-hour period. Other sources specify
it was a Japanese scientist who measured the growth of a Phyllostachys
bambusoides. That must have been under ideal conditions of heat,
humidity and very fertile soil. But, in the less than perfect conditions
in my garden, I've seen new shoots of Phyllostachys nigra 'Henon' grow
about a foot a day. What's most remarkable is that eight-inch diameter,
60 to 80 foot tall bamboos have reached that height in one growing
season, which might have been as short as two months.
Q. Will bamboo grow where we have cold winters?
- There are bamboos that will grow, though perhaps not thrive, where the
winters sometimes reach -20° F. The
ABS
Species Source List has a list of cold-hardy species. Here are
interesting articles about growing bamboo in New England, in the
Northeast US and temperate bamboos.
Q. How do I take care of my bamboo?
- Taking care of bamboo is easy. If it seems to be doing well enough
without care, anything you add will be an improvement. Any fertilizer
(but not weed-n-feed types) that is sold for grass would be appropriate,
though manure from any animal, compost or fish fertilizer would be just
fine. Many bamboo people recommend organic, slow-release formulas.
Bamboo needs quite a bit of water so if you have a long dry spell during
the summer and the leaves curl, it’s past time to water. Some bamboos do
better in full sun, others in full shade. If you know what variety of
bamboo you have, you can check the
ABS
Species Source List for the bamboos Sun/Shade index. Don’t remove
the leaves that drop from the plant, it serves as mulch around the base
of the plant. The leaves contain silica that the plant will need for
future growth and it keeps down weeds. Bamboo culms (stalks) reach their
maximum height in the first growing season and then, each year after
that, usually add branches, until the culm is five to seven years old.
Then it should be thinned out of the grove. Use a fine-toothed saw for
large-diameter bamboo or sharp clippers for smaller-diameter culms. If
you notice light colored splotches on the tops of the leaves and silvery
spots on the bottom of the leaves, you have bamboo mites. These don’t
kill the bamboo, but they do make it look less beautiful. There are
insecticidal soaps, home-brew remedies and biological controls that
bamboo people try. If the discoloration doesn’t bother you, don’t do
anything. Here's the story about mites. If you bought “Lucky Bamboo,”
“Chinese Bamboo,” “Curly Bamboo” or “Water Bamboo” the plant you bought
isn’t bamboo at all, and not even a grass. Or, if the plant you bought
has been growing in a vase with just water and some rocks or marbles, it
is a Dracaena (probably Dracaena sanderiana but also possibly D.
deremensis or D. fragrans 'Massangeana', which is also called the corn
plant.) Consult your local nursery for care of these plants or look here
or here for care instructions. (For more detailed information see the
page on planting and care.)
Q. How do I propagate bamboo?
- Bamboo is usually propagated by digging up part of a clump of existing
bamboo and moving it elsewhere (see the next question.) The vast
majority of propagating is done that way and it results in most plants
of most varieties in the U.S. being clones. If you divide a bamboo plant
and put it in a new location, it usually doesn’t do much for the first
few growing seasons. The first two years it puts out roots in its new
location and usually by the third year it starts putting out larger
culms. By the fourth or fifth years it’s putting out culms as large as
that plant ever will in that location, with that much sun and that much
water in that kind of soil. Bamboo flowers only rarely, (sometimes
there’s more than a person’s lifetime between flowerings) and when it
does, it takes so much energy from the plant it often dies. People try
various things to save them, like cutting back the culms and fertilizing
generously, and sometimes that works. It can also be propagated via germ
plasm. A small number of cells are taken from some part of the plant and
grown in glass dishes. Ordinary people don’t do this, of course.
Finally, with some tropical species, it’s possible to bend a culm in an
existing clump of bamboo down to the ground, stake it and cover it
partially with soil. Be sure to cover several of the nodes of the culm,
as that's where it will form roots. Don't let the soil dry out
completely.
Q. How do I get seeds to plant?
- Bamboo flowers at irregular, and usually very lengthy, intervals. In
some varieties the intervals can be longer than 50 years. Bamboo seeds
are not readily available and there is no organized method for
distributing them when a variety of bamboo does come into flower. You
might ask at a bamboo specialty nursery if any bamboo has flowered
recently and if they have seeds available.
Q. How do I transplant part of a large clump of bamboo?
- Transplanting is hard work and involves digging a large chunk of root
ball out of the ground. Never transplant bamboo when it is shooting. Dig
bamboo either very early in the spring before there’s any chance of
shooting or wait for the growth period to be over late in the autumn.
You should look for a clump of culms that has come up in the last year
or so and which includes at least three or four healthy-looking culms. A
good size for the clump would be at least two feet in diameter. Bamboo
roots (rhizomes) are tough but must not be allowed to dry out even for a
few minutes. You may have to use a very sharp shovel, ax or saw to
separate the roots from the rest of the grove. If you will be
transferring the division by truck, then water the leaves and roots
well, wrap the whole thing in plastic and get it into the ground as
quickly as possible.
Q. My bamboo is growing where I don’t want it. What can I do?
- If bamboo has been planted without a barrier and is now growing where
you don’t want it, you have several choices. The choices all start out
with digging a trench about 3 feet deep around the area where you want
the bamboo to grow. You can then install rhizome barrier, pour concrete
at least three inches thick or fill the trench with loose gravel. If you
choose the loose rock fill, you will have to use a sharp spade at the
beginning of every growing season to cut down into the trench and sever
any new rhizomes (underground stems) that try to cross the trench. If
you choose barrier or concrete, you should leave an inch or two above
ground level to make it easier to find the rhizomes that try to escape
over the top of the barrier. Information on placing a barrier for bamboo
can be found in the magazine BAMBOO, published by the American Bamboo
Society: “Controlling Running Bamboo,” by Ian Connor and James Clever,
Vol. 27, Issue 1, Feb. 2006, p. 10-11.
Eradicating Bamboo - Sometimes a local grower will be interested in
digging bamboo out, especially if it is something a little unusual. You
may be able to find a local grower by asking a nursery where they get
theirs or from the
ABS
Species Source List, which has a section on bamboo suppliers across
the country. In removing bamboo, the first concern is to separate what
you want to eliminate from any portion that is to be retained; you must
cut all underground stems. The root clumps of bamboos are very dense and
woody. Some garden suppliers sell special tools for cutting through
these clumps. According to Bamboo for Gardens, by Ted Jordan Meredith
(Timber Press, 2001, p. 161-2): “The tool consists of a heavy metal rod
with a sharp, heavy cutting blade welded to the bottom of the rod. A
long, heavy, metal sleeve fits over the rod. The sleeve is lifted, and
dropped or thrust downward, pounding the cutting edge through the cake
of rhizomes. Reciprocating power saws and power digging tools are other
options”. Systemic herbicides can be used to kill bamboo, but this may
require several repeated treatments. Meredith says (p. 162): “cut the
aboveground growth to the ground. Water and fertilize to encourage the
rhizomes to generate new growth. As soon as the new shoots have leafed
out, stop all watering, fertilize very heavily with a high-nitogen
fertilizer, and spray with a strong herbicide. Remove the culms and
foliage once the herbicide has been fully absorbed. Remove all
subsequent shoots before they leaf out.”
Q. How do I preserve bamboo culms for craft work?
- The physical properties of bamboo make it a wonderful resource for
craft work. However, the initial challenge for the craftsman is making
sure the the culms will not be destroyed by beetles or fungal attacks or
ruined by cracks and splits. A few basic rules may help for a successful
harvest. Age, season of cutting, and post-cutting treatments are all
crucial aspects. The culms should be mature (four to eight years) and
should be harvested in the dry season. It is also recommended to harvest
in the “young” season, when the new shoots are at their maximum height
but have not leafed out yet. At this point mature culms are less
susceptible to pests attack because they are rich in fiber rather then
starch. Low moisture content also minimizes deterioration. Once the
culms are harvested they are best placed in a well-ventilated, covered,
shaded area, avoiding direct wind or sun as a quick drying may cause
splitting. Heating techniques are also used to “cure” the culms. In
addition culms can be coated with tung oil. Nevertheless, it’s suggested
that non-chemically treated culms are eventually destined to deteriorate
because of biological attacks, especially if outdoors and exposed to
rain. For this reason it is often recommended to treat culms with
chemical mixes based on boric acid, borax, (Tim-Bor) and insecticides.
Culms could be impregnated by submersion, or left standing in buckets
filled with the curing product. A very thorough review of bamboo
preservation techniques is covered in the Bamboo Preservation Compendium
written by Dr. Walter Liese and Dr. Satish Kumar. The book describes the
various pests and molds that afflict dried bamboo and the many
treatments used in construction and crafts.
Q. How do I work with bamboo in crafts?
- Nancy Bess provided this answer. “I am a basket maker and use a little
bamboo in my work; however, I have watched lots of Japanese craftspeople
at work, so I’ll share what I have learned. Also, there is a new book
that is out now from Carol Stangler. Called The Craft and Art of Bamboo
(Lark Books, ISBN: 1579901913), it covers lots of the questions having
to do with tools and procedures. I know she interviewed the Lingens who
are fence builders. I use a paint stripping gun to bend bamboo. The
pieces I use in the garden are about 3/4” wide and quite stiff. I pass
the gun back and forth (it will scorch if you hold it in one place) over
a four to five inch area -- you can actually feel the cell structure
break down -- practice so you can control how much and how sharp the
angle is. Where it cools down is where it stays. If you try bending
after a long period of soaking, then where it dries is where it stays.
Lots of craftspeople who make a product, make a jig (headless nails into
plywood works) into which they can drop the hot (or wet) bamboo. This
way they can produce identical pieces...if they want. Many Japanese
craftspeople use a heat source (boiling bath for some, gas oven for
others, hibachi for many) to help remove the oil that is in bamboo. They
roll the bamboo over (or in) the heat source and continually wipe the
surface with a clean rag, much like stripping furniture. The bamboo must
move continually or splotching occurs. Oil is removed to make the bamboo
less inviting to insects, to harden it and stabilize the color. Air dry
after - bamboo is a plant after all and loves to get mildew, etc.
Most craftspeople harvest bamboo when it is between two and five years
old. The tissue is too soft before two years and it starts to
deteriorate after five (some books say seven). Some craftspeople
(especially for fences, work baskets, etc.) use bamboo green. For high
quality products, the bamboo is aged. Dried in the sun, stored, oil
removed, air dried.”
Q. How do I let the world know about my wonderful bamboo
product?
- Well, if you are an ABS member,
please send information about what you sell or the service you provide
to the
ABS Species Source List Editor. Have a look at the current supplier
source list and send along the same kind of information for your
business. If you are not a member, please consider
joining the ABS and supporting our
efforts..
To raise a child it takes a village.
To plant bamboo it takes one person.
To keep it in control it takes Responsibility.
And good tools help.
So consider the ABS as a tool in your hands.
As a member you too can be part of the solution."
by: James Clever, ABS President 01/2013
With bamboo,
Earth Day is everyday. Consumes Pollution, Creates Oxygen & Supplies Renewable Resources."
by: James Clever, ABS President 03/2012
help@bamboo.org
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