Black bamboo, Purple bamboo
Phyllostachys nigra

Family: Poaceae

What it is like

A large bamboo grass. It grows 1.5-3 m high and spreads 1.8-3 m wide. It can be 10-15 m tall and spread 6-15 m wide. It forms clumps. The canes arch over. The canes are green in the first year then turn mottled to almost black. The canes are hollow and can be 3 cm thick.

There are about 80 Phyllostachys species.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It is frost hardy. In Hunan in China it grows in open forests on slopes and in valleys between 1,100-1,200 m above sea level. It suits hardiness zones 7-10. Mt Cootha Botanical Gardens. Wittunga Botanical Gardens.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Australia, China, Hawaii, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pacific, SE Asia, Tasmania, USA, Vietnam

How it is used for food

The shoots are eaten cooked but the water needs to be changed after 8-10 minutes.

Edible parts

Shoots

How it is grown

It is usually grown by division of the underground rhizomes.

Its other names

Local names

Bambu hitam cina, Hainan bamboo, Kuro-chiku, Whangee, Zi Zhu

Synonyms

Arundinaria stolonifera Kurz; Bambusa nigra Lodd. ex Lindl.; Phyllostachys boryana Mitford; Phyllostachys filifera Mc Clure; Phyllostachys fulva Mitford; Phyllostachys nana Rendle; Phyllostachys nigra Munro var. nigra Bean; Phyllostachys nigra Munro f. nigra Schelle; Phyllostachys nigra - many forms and varieties. Phyllostachys nigripes Hayata; Phyllostachys nigropunctata Mitford; Phyllostachys punctata (Bean) A. H. Lawson; Sinoarundinaria nigra (Lodd. ex Lindl.) Ohwi ex Mayeb.;