FLOW 1. 1: 1 \<: <>K THK B\MB<)<) 



BAMBOOS 



The Grain 



in. 







i ami appears like a groat scaly cone, dad in lar^e ombnicing sheaths. 

 Solid -stemmed bamboos are, as a rule, much smaller than hollow ones, 

 Imt tiamtioo culms may bo said to rani/e from the thickness of ;i go. 

 ijiiill to more than a foot in diameter. Until the branches have been 

 fnllv developed tin- culm is not mature. The branches are produced from 

 In-low upwards, and with their appearance the stem gradually matures. 

 I deal has boon written as to the rate of growth of the shoot, but 

 up to the present exact and definite figures, even for the important species, 

 i he obtained. It is probable that an average of three inches per day 

 onld not overstate the growth of the young shoots of the more important 

 amboos. This seems also, in the majority of species, to take place chiefly 

 at niirht and to continue for a month pretty uniformly, being increased if 

 aything by fine clear days, and retarded apparently by damp and cloudy 

 eather. The period of sprouting is generally about the beginning of the 

 ins. Repeated cutting of bamboo-shoots considerably weakens the 

 ;k, while the cutting of full-grown haulms does no more injury than 

 owing does to grass. Indeed it is believed that too much cutting of 

 oots results in early flowering of the stock, and in most cases death to the 

 plant. This fact has an important bearing upon the question of the 

 pplication of the bamboo for the manufacture of paper, since young and 

 ot mature culms are necessary for that purpose. The number of snoots 

 ro'luced yearly from each clump varies according to the vigour of the 

 individual and the peculiarities of the species. It is believed that the 

 larger species produce 12 to 20 and the smaller 30 to 50. If we assume 10 

 a year, that would mean 300 culms in 30 years, which is the mean age of 

 most species. The greatest possible variability exists in the colour and 

 markings of bamboo culms. Some are pale-coloured, others dark-green, 

 bluish, others yellow, or again others are variegated. Solidified buds 

 are sometimes developed into formidable recurved spines, or below the 

 sheath a whorl of rootlets are produced which harden into spinescent 

 bodies. These are popularly called the spiny bamboos. For the purpose 

 of live fences the spiny bamboos are specially valuable, such as K. ft rim - 

 (tiiitH-cu and li. Illiun<'<in<t. The last mentioned is split and made 

 into mats and sugar sacks in Java. Most bamboos show a tendency to 

 flatten above the nodes ; especially is this the case with .rhi/l/ostfirtif/s. 

 the genus that affords the " square " bamboo of China. The Whangee 

 nes are obtained from 1*. nifjra. [Cf. Or. Comm., 1813, ii., 545 ; 

 obson-Jobson (ed. Crooke), 1903, 969 ; Kew Mus. Guide, No. 2, 78.] 

 Durability of the bamboo depends, in the first instance, upon the culms 

 ing cut when mature. Specific peculiarities render some culms more 

 urable than others, as, for example, the thickness of the woody shell, and 

 he amount of silicious matter deposited within the tissue. In this latter 

 espect bamboos vary exceedingly. Long immersion in water greatly 

 enhances the durability, rendering the stem less liable to the attacks of 

 '"sects, owing to the sap, which they are fond of, being quickly extracted. 

 Flowering of the Bamboo. A great deal has been written regarding 

 this exceedingly curious and interesting subject. All the species com- 

 mence to flower when in full leaf, but as the inflorescence expands the 

 leaves as a rule fall off, until when in complete flower the clump or certain 

 portions of it are leafless. In some cases special flowering culms are 

 produced, at other times every culm flowers, the flowering portion of the 

 entire clump dying off after the seed has been matured. In a few instances 



107 



Produced from 

 below upwards. 



ll.it/- ul iJr-i-Ath. 



Period of 

 Sprouting. 



Bamboo as a 

 Paper Material. 



Yield. 



Colour and 

 Markings. 



Spiny Bamboos. 



Whangee canes. 



Square 

 Bamboos. 



Specific 

 Peculiarities. 



Seasoning. 



Flowering. 



