Introducing Bamboo: Genus by genus

Bamboo is more than just an amazing plant. It’s more like an entire family, made up of nearly 2,000 plants. But technically, according to the botanical taxonomy, bamboo is actually a sub-family within the grass family, Poaceae.

The subfamily Bambusoideae includes 3 tribes, roughly 100 genera, and approximately 1,400 species of bamboo. Botanists don’t always agree on the classifications, so the numbers can vary. Furthermore, many species have multiple cultivars, or subspecies, so the total number of bamboo varieties is probably closer to 2,000.

In the following directory, we’ll break down the multitude of bamboos, genus by genus, to see how they all fit in the great web of life. Three separate tables, one for each bamboo tribe, will cover the most important genera of bamboo, according to the classifications that most botanists agree on.

NOTE: Many of the most popular and most important genera on these tables will include a link to a more in-depth article focussing on that particular genus.

Botanical taxonomy of bamboo

Before we launch into the genera (plural of genus) and species of bamboo, it’s useful to see where bamboo fits into the overall classification system.

Kingdom: Plant
Phylum: Angiosperms (flowering plants, as opposed to Gymnosperms, such as conifer trees)
Class: Monocots (their seeds contain one embryonic leaf, as opposed to Dicotyledons with two)
Order: Poales (includes grasses, sedges and bromeliads)
Family: Poaceae, aka Graminieae (grasses)
Subfamily: Bambusoideae (the bamboo family)
Tribes: Arundinarieae (temperate woody bamboo), Bambuseae (tropical woody bamboo), and Olyreae (herbaceous bamboo)
Sub-tribes: some botanists use this division to divide the bamboo tribes into smaller units.
Genus and Species: these are the two divisions that give us the binomial nomenclature, or scientific names of the plants, such as Phyllostachys nigra or Bambusa oldhamii.

Tribe Arundinarieae: Genera of temperate woody bamboo

Primarily native to China and the Far East, but also in Africa and North America, temperate bamboos can generally tolerate colder temperates. They come in all sizes, from towering giants to dwarfish ground covers. The majority of Arundinarieae bamboos have running rhizome systems (as opposed to clumping), enabling them to spread and proliferate quickly.

However, a handful of temperate bamboos have clumping rhizomes, making them difficult to classify. Not everyone accepts the genus Borinda, for example, which can belong to either tribe. Also, Yushania has pachymorph (clumping) rhizomes, but with longer necks and a spreading habit, so botanists aren’t quite sure where to place it. Such bamboos grow in what we call “open clumps”.

Genus	Native habitat zones	Running or Clumping	Notes and characteristics
Acidosasa	China, Vietnam	running	known for edible shoots, sweet and sour
Arundinaria	North America	running	3 American species, other species are questionable
Bashania	China, Vietnam	running	cold hardy, mountain varieties
Borinda	Himalayas, S China	clumping	close relation to Fargesia (questionable)
Chimonobambusa	China, Japan, Himalayas, Vietnam	running	unusual culms, square and knobby
Drepanostachyum	Himalayas, China, India	clumping	close relation to Himalayacalamus
Fargesia	China, Vietnam	clumping	extremely cold hardy
Himalayacalamus	Himalayas	clumping	medium sized ornamentals
Indocalamus	China, Vietnam, Japan	open clumps	smaller plants, larger leaves
Phyllostachys	China, Vietnam	running	hardy, vigorous, in all sizes
Pleioblastus	China, Japan	running	smaller plants, often striped
Pseudosasa	China, Japan, Vietnam	running	small to medium sized
Sasa	Japan	running	small plants, broad leaves
Sasaella	Japan	running	smaller plants
Semiarundinaria	China, Japan	running	tall and widespread
Shibataea	China	running	small and ornamental
Sinobambusa	China, Vietnam	running	medium sized plants
Thamnocalamus	Himalayas, Madagascar, S Africa	clumping	close relative to Fargesia
Yushania	Himalayas, Africa, China	open clumps	mountainous, formerly in Bambuseae tribe

Tribe Bambuseae: Genera of tropical woody bamboo

Found throughout the tropic and subtropic climate zones of the earth, tropical bamboos can be among the most impressive varieties. For the most part, they grow with a clumping habit, and are far less prone to becoming invasive. We find native populations in Asia, Africa, Australia and the Americas, as well as such far flung corners as Madagascar and New Guinea.

Genus	Native habitat zones	Running or Clumping	Notes and characteristics
Arthrostylidium	Central America	clumping	climbing growth habit
Bambusa	China, Taiwan, India, SE Asia, N Australia, New Guinea	clumping	huge variety, 150 species
Borinda	Himalayas, S China	clumping	disputed classification
Cathariostachys	Madagascar	clumping	2 species, threatened by deforestation
Cephalostachyum	Asia, Madagascar	clumping	small, medium sized plants
Chusquea	Central and South America	clumping	open clumps, solid culms
Dendrocalamus	India, SE Asia	clumping	giant timber varieties
Dinochloa	SE Asia, Philippines	clumping	climbing, zigzag culms
Gigantochloa	China, India, New Guinea	clumping	giant timber types
Guadua	Central and South America	clumping	giant timber types
Melocanna	India, SE Asia	clumping	mass flowering event
Olmeca	Mexico	clumping	open clumps, fleshy fruits
Neomicrocalamus	southern China, northern India	clumping	climbing habit
Otatea	Mexico, Central America	clumping	small, ornamentals
Oxytenanthera	sub-Saharan Africa	clumping	drought tolerant
Schizostachyum	Asia, New Guinea, Madagascar	clumping	medium to large
Thyrsostachys	China, SE Asia	clumping	large timber types

Tribe Olyreae: Tropical, herbaceous bamboo

This small tribe is more closely related to the tropical Bambuseae. They are something of a novelty and grow almost exclusively in the tropics of the New World, especially in the Amazon basin. Typically, they grow in the shady undergrowth of the jungles and rainforests. Unlike their woody cousins, these bamboos have soft, tender culms, and look more like small shrubs. They do not exhibit the same kinds of roots systems as their more developed relatives.

Botanists recognize 3 sub-tribes of herbaceous bamboo, and a total of 21 genera. Several of these genera are monotypic, meaning they only contain one species. These compact, exotic varieties have not been naturalized beyond their native habitats and are not grown by nurseries.

Genus	Native habitat	Sub-tribe	Notes
Agnesia	Brazil, Colombia, Peru	Olyrinae	monotypic (only one species)
Arberella	Central and South America	Olyrinae	includes 7 species
Buergersiochloinae	South America, Africa, Madagascar	Buergersiochloinae	monotypic
Cryptochloa	throughout Latin America	Olyrinae	8 species
Diandrolyra	Brazil	Olyrinae	3 species
Ekmanochloa	Cuba	Olyrinae	2 species
Eremitis	Brazil	Parianinae	monotypic
Froesiochloa	Brazil, the Guianas	Olyrinae	monotypic
Lithachne	Mexico to Paraguay, and Cuba	Olyrinae	4 species
Maclurolyra	Panama, Colombia	Olyrinae	monotypic
Mniochloa	Cuba	Olyrinae	monotypic
Olyra	Neotropics and Africa	Olyrinae	24 species
Pariana	Latin America	Parianinae	29 species
Parodiolyra	South America	Olyrinae	6 species
Piresiella	Cuba	Olyrinae	monotypic
Raddia	Brazil, the Guianas	Olyrinae	9 species
Raddiella	Panama, South America	Olyrinae	8 species
Rehia	Brazil, the Guianas	Olyrinae	monotypic
Sucrea	Brazil	Olyrinae	3 species