Whorled bamboo, Giant stripy bamboo
Gigantochloa verticillata

Family: Poaceae

What it is like

Gigantochloa verticillata is an evergreen Bamboo growing to 15 m (49ft) by 6 m (19ft) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. The flowers are pollinated by Wind. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 15

Where it is found

Not known in a truly wild location.

Unknown - the plant is only known in cultivation and its origins are obscure.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Brunei, China, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, SE Asia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam

How it is used

Food

Rating: 3

The young shoots are eaten as a vegetable, especially those of less robust forms.

Medicine

Rating: 0

Other

Rating: 3

The canes are used for building material, water pipes, furniture, household utensils, chopsticks and toothpicks. They are also used to make basketry (although Gigantochloa apus is preferred), and musical instruments (although Gigantochloa atroviolacea is preferred). The culm can range in length from 7 - 30 metres, they are 5 - 13 cm in diameter at the base, with internodes 40 - 60cm long and a thick wall up to 2 cm wide. The canes are green to yellow-green, yellow striped, initially with scattered appressed brown hairs on the upper parts, glabrous and smooth when older. The culms might be used to make charcoal. The energy value for charcoal made from the culms is about 30 000 kJ/kg.

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.

Charcoal: Used for fuel, drawing, deodorant, filter, fertilizer etc.

Fodder: Food given to the animals (including plants cut and carried to them) rather than forage for themselves.

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

Pipes: For carrying water etc.

Teeth: Plants used to clean and care for the teeth.

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

Fodder: Bank: Fodder banks are plantings of high-quality fodder species. Their goal is to maintain healthy productive animals. They can be utilized all year, but are designed to bridge the forage scarcity of annual dry seasons. Fodder bank plants are usually trees or shrubs, and often legumes. The relatively deep roots of these woody perennials allow them to reach soil nutrients and moisture not available to grasses and herbaceous plants.

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.

Regional Crop: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.

Fodder: Bank: Fodder banks are plantings of high-quality fodder species. Their goal is to maintain healthy productive animals. They can be utilized all year, but are designed to bridge the forage scarcity of annual dry seasons. Fodder bank plants are usually trees or shrubs, and often legumes. The relatively deep roots of these woody perennials allow them to reach soil nutrients and moisture not available to grasses and herbaceous plants.

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.

Regional Crop: These crops have been domesticated and cultivated regionally but have not been adopted elsewhere and are typically not traded globally, Examples in this broad category include perennial cottons and many nuts and staple fruits.

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 perhumid tropics growing at elevations from sea-level up to about 1,200 metres. It is found in areas with an annual rainfall in the range of 2,350 - 4,200 mm, an average temperature of 20 - 32°c and average relative humidity of over 70%. In Indonesia (West Java), the culms grown on hill slopes ( at elevations of 500 metres with an annual rainfall of around 4,200 mm) are stronger (higher specific gravity, bending and tensile strength) than culms grown in valleys. Grows best on sandy loams and alluvial soils. One year after planting of a cutting, 7 - 10 culms have emerged. Per year, about 8 - 9 culms per clump reach full size. 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. A young culm grows fast, attaining full height in 3 - 4 months with an average growing rate of 3.4 cm per day. Bamboos in general are usually monocarpic, living for many years before flowering, then flowering and seeding profusely for a period of 1 - 3 years before usually dying. Flowering occurs when the clump is 50 - 60 years old; it flowers gregariously, after which the clump dies. First harvesting may start 3 years after planting, preferably in the dry season. It is recommended to harvest only 3-year-old culms and to cut just above the ground. To promote regeneration, it is recommended to earth up and to mulch the base of the harvested culms. The annual yield of mature culms from a plantation with 275 clumps per ha (6 m x 6 m) is estimated at 1,650 per ha or about 6 culms per clump. If converted to charcoal, about 18% good charcoal and 4% brand and broken charcoal are produced310]. Traditionally, the culms are left leaning upright against a tree for some days before being used. Sometimes culms are first soaked in running water or mud for some time. Experiments with preservation by soaking in a chemical solution of e.g. Caustic soda or boric acid show promising results.

Propagating it: Gigantochloa pseudoarundinacea is only propagated vegetatively by rhizome, culm or branch cuttings. Cuttings from flowering clumps should be avoided because they will start flowering soon after planting. Culm cuttings have shown a survival rate of nearly 100%. In Indonesia, the best time for planting is in the rainy season from December to March. Recommended spacing is 8 m x 8 m, and high rainfall areas are preferred.

Best place to grow:

Habit: Bamboo

Hardiness: 10-12

Growth: Fast

Soil: Light (sandy), medium

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Awi andong, Awi gombong, Awi temen, Bamboo andong, Bamboo ater, Bambu belang raksasa, Buluh Jawa, Clumping bamboo, Kayali, Pereng keles, Pring legi, Pring surat, Wa-pyu

Synonyms

Arundo maxima Oken Bambos verticillata Poir. Bambusa excelsa (Roep. ex Trin.) Miq. Bambusa pseudoarundinacea Steud. Bambusa verticillata Willd. Gigantochloa pseudoarundinacea (Steud.) Widjaja Melocanna excelsa Roep. ex Trin. Nastus verticillatus (Willd.) Sm.