Learning About The Bamboo Plant

In the world of plants, Bamboo is certainly one of the most useful to mankind. Unlike trees, bamboo grows at an astonishing rate of up to 2 inches per hour. This makes it the world’s fastest growing plant.BambooImage by completebamboo

Even though their height can be enormous, they are not part of the tree family species. In fact, they are evergreen grasses. Currently, there are over a thousand species and nearly a hundred different grass subgenera. As different species can be used for different things, this variety helps to ensure the lasting survival of a bamboo plant.

This fast growing rate makes bamboo plants invaluable in eastern regions such as India, China and Japan. As the bamboo plants are used as food, wood and fuel, the fast growing rate makes this renewable resource a cornerstone of those societies. When handled correctly, bamboo is one of the more durable woods used and this is what allows it to be a resourceful solution in many different ways.

One of which, is that it is cultivated has a highly desirable wood product. Because of it’s accelerated growth rate and durable qualities, bamboo is often used as a wood based product for both the interior and exterior of many homes, this offers endless possibilities for architects and interior designers. In addition to construction material for homes, bamboo is also used on smaller wood products people use on a daily basis, such as chop sticks, tables, cutting boards, sushi bowls and other kitchen accessories.

When bamboo plants are young, the shoots can be eaten from many different varieties. It is important to note, that not all species of bamboo shoots can be ingested. The giant bamboo, as an example, contains cyanide within the shoots. Cyanide can be lethal to humans.

Many types of animals survive by eating bamboo. The giant panda has a strict diet consisting only of bamboo leaves and stalks.

Bamboo is one of the most valuable resources we have today, however, there have been some challenges to cultivating it. In South Asia, there are several factors bamboo farmers have to confront and one of which is the massive blooming season. In certain regions, such as the Bay of Bengal, the flowering and fruiting seasons only come once every few decades. This mass blooming and fruiting cases severe consequences to human populations nearby. Rats are attracted to the fruit as it falls to the ground. In many cases these rats are known to carry diseases that are very harmful to humans. Famine often will follow this type of disease in these areas and once it begins to spread, many human deaths can occur. As the bamboo populations require the fruiting season for survival, they cannot be simply destroyed to prevent the rat swarms, however, new technologies solutions to this devastating problems are underway.

Because of its versatility, bamboo is grown and harvested in many different regions throughout the world. Some of the major bamboo resources are cultivated in East Asia, South America and in some African regions. Many people only think of Bamboo in it’s relation to the panda bears, however, bamboo also offers many other valuable resources for human consumers, ranging from top quality building materials to a unique food source.