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20 FUN FACTS
ABOUT BAMBOO
Bamboo is the FASTEST growing land plant in the world... the only thing that grows quicker is giant sea kelp in the ocean!
Bamboo is a giant grass! It is not a tree. Bamboo grows with shallow grass like roots (just like lawn), they just grow hard woody culms instead!
Bamboo cools down the surrounding air by up to 8 degrees in summer! This acts as a natural air conditioning for your garden and any buildings in proximity.
Bamboo rarely flowers and seeds, only about every 100 years or so. When it does, every plant of that same species seeds at the exact same time across the globe!
Bamboo is edible, well, most of them (some taste horrible!) The new shoots are harvested while they are still soft. They are often used in asian cuisine or stir frys!
A panda's diet is 99% made up of bamboo shoots, poles and leaves, around 12-38kg every day!
The other 1% is made up
of meat and other plants.
Clumping bamboo purifies the air up to 30% more effectively then any other plant! Your brain literally gets an oxygen high around it! This makes you happier & relieves
tension & headaches!
There are over 1,500 species of bamboo in the world! Australia has around 400 and we specialise in the top 50 species that suit home gardens the best! (And pandas only eat 42 species out of 1,500!)
Bamboo is mostly drought tolerant and will survive lack of water, but if they are thirsty they will curl up their leaves! They do this to shy away from the heat and await rain or water. After a few days of being dry, they will drop some leaves to self mulch and reduce the amount of leaves needing hydration!
Bamboo poles are incredibly strong and sturdy (some are stronger then steel!) and are often used for construction and building throughout the world! Thin poles are good stakes in the garden or for weaving furniture. Larger poles are often used for scaffolding or building frames!
Bamboo is one of the best plants to use for soil stability and to prevent soil erosion. Perfect for protecting a riverbank, creek or dam walls, steep garden beds etc.
During earthquakes in Asian countries, people run into bamboo groves and forests as they are known as very safe places. This is due to their very safe and stable root structure but also their symbolism for luck and fortune!
Bamboo is naturally anti-bacterial and anti-fungal. Bamboo is used to produce clothing, linen, and bamboo charcoal. Bamboo charcoal absorbs, purifies & deodorises the surrounding atmosphere.
Bamboo leaves are made into a delicious tea! It tastes similar to green tea and is comparable with nutritional benefits.
Thomas Edison used a carbonized bamboo filament in his very FIRST successful lightbulb!
Bamboo is such a regenerative plant; with the natural leaf drop being so nutrient-dense that the soil 'absorbs' these nutrients as the mulch breaks down, feeding the bamboo & surrounding plants again! Bamboo mulch can also be used in compost bins and is an excellent weed barrier!
Bamboo grows all over the world, including really cold and really hot countries!
All continents have native species, except for Europe and Antartica, where non-native species still grow.
Bamboo comes in many different shapes, sizes and colours! There is green, black, brown, gold, blue, white, grey, orange, purple, red, variegated, and even stripey!
Bamboo POPS! Bamboo is not a flammable material, it does however make a loud popping sound in a fire due to the air pocket between nodes. The very first fire crackers made in China were created out of bamboo.
Snakes don't like bamboo! Snakes are known to like warm, silent places to sleep in. Bamboo mulch is too loud for them to slither through, too cold (due to the air purification) and often the stems are too slippery to climb! They much prefer the bark of tree branches or a nice sunny rock.