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Bamboo Consulting with Bambu Batu
My name is Fred Hornaday and I've been active in the bamboo industry since 2006 when I opened America's first all-bamboo boutique in San Luis Obispo, California. Since 2020, I've been committed to promoting bamboo cultivation and value addition and expanding its...
Bamboo speciation clarification: Bambusa spinosa
Special thanks to Natalia Reategui, who contributed this article as a thoughtful response and addendum to an article that appeared previously here at Bambu Batu. In Thorny Bamboo: Bambusa blumeana and others, from last year (July 2022), Fred reflects on the identities...
Genus Chusquea: Solid bamboo of the Americas
If you tend to think of bamboo as a giant grass from Asia with hollow stems, and roots that will run rampant all over your well-tempered garden, then it's time to learn about the genus Chusquea. While most of those assumptions may be pretty accurate most of the time,...
The Sulcus Groove: Why bamboo feels groovy
If you've ever gotten up close and personal with some bamboo — and believe me, I have — there's a few things you'll notice. The handsome, upright stems, known as culms, have a smoothness that's uncommon in nature. Then, every 10 or 20 inches, there's a joint in the...
Oxytenanthera abyssinica: Bamboo of the savannah
Imagine the sound of bamboo leaves rustling in a gentle breeze, the hollow canes knocking together with soft percussion. Your imagination might also add a refreshing waterfall pouring into a tranquil lagoon. Such is the picture of an idyllic bamboo grove, flourishing...
Bamboo Morphology: 9 Parts of the bamboo plant
The more you know about bamboo, the more fascinating the plant becomes. From the strength of its fibers to the tenacity of its roots to the unpredictability of its flowering, this is a grass like no other. At the same time, from an anatomical and botanical...