Giant Thorny Bamboo
Bambusa bambos

Family: Poaceae

What it is like

Giant Thorny Bamboo, Bambusa bambos, is a large, clumping bamboo characterized by spikes present on its bright green stems. It is fast growing and can reach up to 30 m high. It is used as food, medicine, and various other purposes. Young shoots of this plant is cooked and eaten as vegetable. The whole plant contains high level of silica and is used in Ayurvedic medicine. Different plant parts also exhibit medicinal properties. The root is used for joint pain and general debility; the leaves against menstrual pain and worms, and to strengthen stomach function; the young sprouts against nausea, indigestion, and wound infection; and the plant juice for osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. B. bambos is often planted as wind-breaks around farms. The stems have wide range of uses and leaves are used for thatching.

Bambusa bambos is an evergreen Bamboo growing to 30 m (98ft) by 25 m (82ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. The flowers are pollinated by Wind. Suitable for: medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid and very alkaline soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.

Height (m): 30

Where it is found

Found most abundantly in mixed moist deciduous forest, and not so commonly in mixed dry deciduous forest and in semi-evergreen forest, growing best along river valleys and in other moist conditions, on hills at elevations up to 1,000 metres.

E. Asia - southern China, Indian subcontinent, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed.

Countries/locations it is found in

Found In: Asia, Australia, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, North-eastern India, Pacific, Philippines, SE Asia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.

How it is used

Food

Rating: 3

Edible portion: Shoots, Seeds, Sap, Cereal. Young shoots - cooked. They are often cooked in two changes of water to remove the bitterness. The sugary sap is made into a drink. Seed. Chemical composition: Seeds per 100 g edible portion. Water 8 g, Protein 13.5 g, carbohydrates 73 g, fibre 1 g, fat 0.4 g, ash 1.7 g, calcium 87 mg, P 163 mg. Shoots per 100 g edible portion. Water 87-88 g, protein 3.9-4.4 g, fat 0.5 g, carbohydrates 5.5 g, fibre 1 g, ash 1 g, Ca 20-24 mg, P 40-65 mg, Fe 0.1-0.4 mg Vit A 76 IU, Vit B1 0.16 mg, Vit B2 0.05 mg Vit C 0.3-0.5 mg The energy value is about 185 kJ/100g. Young shoots contain HCN so should be cooked.

Sap: usually of trees and usually but not always used as a drink.

Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.

Drink: not including plant saps, tea or coffee substitutes.

Medicine

Rating: 3

The plant contains high levels of silica and is used in many ways in Ayurvedic medicine. The root is astringent and cooling. It is used to treat joint pain and general debility. The leaves are antispasmodic and emmenagogue. They are taken internally to stimulate menstruation and to help relieve period pain. They are also taken to tone and strengthen stomach function; to expel worms; and have the reputation of being aphrodisiac. The young sprouts, harvested as they emerge from below soil level, are taken internally to relieve nausea, indigestion and wind. They are applied externally as a poultice to help drain infected wounds. The juice of the plant is rich in silica and is taken internally to aid in the strengthening of cartilage in conditions such as osteoarthritis and osteoporosis.

Antibilious: Corrects the secretions of bile.

Antispasmodic: Relaxes muscular spasms and cramps, calming nervous irritation.

Aphrodisiac: Increases the sexual appetite.

Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.

Digestive: Aids digestion.

Emmenagogue: Promotes or increases the menstrual flow. In early stages of pregnancy it can induce an abortion.

Skin: Plants used in miscellaneous treatments for the skin.

Stomachic: Aids and improves the action of the stomach.

Other

Rating: 5

Other uses rating: Very High (5/5). Agroforestry Uses: One of the best bamboos for windy sites due to the strength of the culms, it is often planted to form wind-breaks around farms - when planted as a hedge around a farm or field, it requires little care. Planted along rivers in order to check floods. Other Uses The stems have a huge range of applications, being manufactured in different ways to make items as diverse as scaffolding, rafts, furniture, paper and dozens of other items. They are used to make the sails of ships, as well as their masts and rigging. Almost every article of furniture in houses, including mats, screens, chairs, tables, bedsteads and bedding, can be made from the stems. Household utensils, and even coarse underclothing, are made of this material. The whole stems are employed in shipbuilding, the construction of bridges, water pipes etc. Buckets, pitchers, flasks, and cups, are made from sections of the stems. Baskets, boxes, fans, hats, and jackets are made from split bamboo stems. Ropes and Chinese paper are made from the fibres in the stems. A Chinese umbrella consists of bamboo paper, with a bamboo handle and split bamboo for a frame. All sorts of agricultural implements, appliances for spinning cotton and wool or for reeling silk are often constructed entirely from bamboo. Very many articles of household use or decoration made from bamboo have become articles of commerce. So many and varied are the uses that it is possible to mention here only a part of them!. Traditionally, when making paper, the stems are split into lengths of 90 - 120cm and placed in a layer in a tank. This is covered with lime, and alternate layers of bamboo and lime are so placed until the tank is full. Water is run in to cover the whole, and this is then left for three or four months, by which time the bamboo has become rotten. The soft bamboo is pounded in a mortar into a pulp, mixed with water, and then poured on square, sieve-like molds. The sheets are allowed to dry on the mold, then placed against a hot wall, and finally exposed to the sun. The leaves are used for packing, as a filling for mattresses etc.

Basketry: Plant used in making baskets and other items such as chairs. Includes plants that are only used as an ornamental addition.

Biomass: Provides a large quantity of plant material that can be converted into fuel etc.

Containers: Plants, such as gourds, that can be used as containers. Does not include baskets or containers made from wood.

Fibre: Used for making cloth, rope, paper etc.

Furniture: A few miscellaneous uses that do not fit easily into other headings.

Paper: Related to the entry for Fibre, these plants have been specifically mentioned for paper making.

Shelterbelt: Wind resistant plants than can be grown to provide shelter in the garden etc.

Soil stabilization: Plants that can be grown in places such as sand dunes in order to prevent erosion by wind, water or other agents.

String: Plants that can be used for string or can be easily made into a string. See also Fibre. Plants for ropes may be included.

Wood: A list of the trees and shrubs that are noted for having useful wood.

Industrial Crop: Biomass: Three broad categories: bamboos, resprouting woody plants, and giant grasses. uses include: protein, materials (paper, building materials, fibers, biochar etc.), chemicals (biobased chemicals), energy - biofuels

Management: Managed Multistem: Regularly removing some multiple stems. A non-A non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Minor Global Crop: These crops are already grown or traded around the world, but on a smaller scale than the global perennial staple and industrial crops, The annual value of a minor global crop is under $1 billion US. Examples include shea, carob, Brazil nuts and fibers such as ramie and sisal.

Other Systems: Multistrata: Multistrata agroforests feature multiple layers of trees often with herbaceous perennials, annual crops, and livestock.

Other Systems: Strip intercrop: Tree crops grown in rows with alternating annual crops.

Management: Managed Multistem: Regularly removing some multiple stems. A non-A non-destructive management systems maintaining the soil organic carbon.

Other Systems: Multistrata: Multistrata agroforests feature multiple layers of trees often with herbaceous perennials, annual crops, and livestock.

Other Systems: Strip intercrop: Tree crops grown in rows with alternating annual crops.

Carbon Farming: Plants that can be a critical part of the solution to climate problems. The Carbon Farming Solution - Eric Toensmeier.

Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.

How it is grown

A plant of the humid tropical lowlands, where it can be found at elevation up to 1,000 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 22 - 30°c, but can tolerate 8 - 36°c. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 1,200 - 2,500mm, but tolerates 700 - 4,500mm. Prefers a position in dappled shade, but also grows in full sun. Grows best in a fertile, moist soil. Prefers a pH in the range 4.5 - 6.5, tolerating 4 - 7. A fast-growing species, it forms a clump of stems up to about 5 metres tall within 7 years from seed and reaches full size after about 20 years, by which time there will be 25 - 50, perhaps even 100 culms Twelve-year-old clumps are regarded as mature. Bamboos have an interesting method of growth. Each plant produces a number of new stems annually - these stems grow to their maximum height in their first year of growth, subsequent growth in the stem being limited to the production of new side branches and leaves. In the case of some mature tropical species the new stem could be as much as 30 metres tall, with daily increases in height of 30cm or more during their peak growth time. This makes them some of the fastest-growing species in the world. Undisturbed clumps are almost impenetrable after some years because of the interlacing thorny branches. The plant flowers gregariously over a region at intervals of 16 - 45 years. A complete flowering period of the whole clump takes as long as 3 years. This flowering is followed by the profuse production of seed, after which the old clump dies. Production: A clump from seed reaches about 5 m high in 7 years. It achieves full growth of 25-50 stems in 20 years. A 1000 seeds weigh 11.6 g. Flowering occurs between 16-45 years.

Propagating it: Seed - it has a short viability of less than 3 months in normal storage. Surface sow in containers as soon as it is ripe, preferably at a temperature around 20°c. Do not allow the compost to dry out. Germination rates in excess of 80% can be expected, so long as the seed is of good quality, with the seed sometimes sprouting in as little as 5 - 10 days, though it can take 3 - 6 months. Prick out the seedlings into containers when they are large enough to handle and grow on in a lightly shaded place until large enough to plant out. Division as new growth commences. Take divisions with at least three canes in the clump, trying to cause as little root disturbance to the main plant as possible. Grow them on in light shade in pots of a high fertility sandy medium. Mist the foliage regularly until plants are established. Plant them out into their permanent positions when a good root system has developed, which can take a year or more. Plants can be propagated vegetatively by rhizome, culm and branch cuttings. The propagules are raised in a nursery and after they have produced roots and developed rhizomes they are planted out in the field during the rainy season in pits filled with a mixture of compost and soil.

Best place to grow:

Habit: Bamboo

Hardiness: 10-12

Growth: Fast

Soil: Medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: Semi-shade, no shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

Plant has spines or sharp edges; use extreme caution when handling

Possibly invasive in Cuba

Its other names

Local names

Giant Thorny Bamboo, Bambusa bambos. Other Names: Bambu duri, Bans, Biduru, Bonga-vedura, Kalak, Kanta bans, Ketua, Kotoha, Kya-kat-wa, Moongil, Naw mai phai paa, Phai-pa, Phaix pax, Pring ori, Russei khlei, Russei prei, Schee, Thorny bamboo, Tre gai rung, Tre laf ngaf,

Synonyms

Arundarbor agrestis (Lour.) Kuntze Arundarbor arundinacea (Retz.) Kuntze Arundarbor bambos (L.) Kunt

Giant Thorny Bamboo Bambusa bambos