What actually is bamboo?

Would you be shocked to know that bamboo is not actually a tree? Although bamboo grows high and is similar in looks to a tree, it is in fact a giant grass. Just like your lawn at home, bamboo grows with very shallow roots meaning it doesn't need a lot of soil to start its growing cycle.

Bamboo is naturally evergreen which gives it its unique versatility. This is what gives its unique ability to be used in so many situations.

How bamboo is grown

bamboo is grown in many areas around the world in warmer tropical and subtropical climates. With its ease of growing and shallow roots, you could pretty much grow bamboo anywhere, except the colder snow-covered parts of the planet!

All that is needed for bamboo to grow is a sunny area with rich well drained soil. The roots will embeb themselves in the soil quickly but they will spread out to ensure that they can gain as much nutrients from the surrounding soil as possible. When the leaves start to fall from the bamboo, leave them on the soil to compost as this will drive more good nutrients onto the surrounding soil.

So, with a brief overview of bamboo and how its grown, lets look at why it is one of the best, and eco friendly options to use. We have put together a top 6 of the most important, and exciting things to know about bamboo.

Bamboo is a fast growing plant

It has actually been confirmed that bamboo is the fastest growing plant of the planet. This unique and amazing feature alone is why bamboo is so eco friendly and sustainable. A bamboo plantation can easily be replenished in a matter of months whereas repopulating a forest area will take decades of growth for any other tree.

With this extremely fast growing cycles, bamboo can easily enable us to stop deforestation and start using eco friendly bamboo resources without killing our planet.

Bamboo cleans the air

Like all plants, CO2 is consumed and oxygen released. Bamboo however, takes this up a few notches! Bamboo is a significant oxygen releasing plant and naturally cools the air around it while releasing very high levels of oxygen into the atmosphere. In the fight against climate change we need all the help we can get at the moment.

Any bamboo plantation will greatly reduce the carbon footprint of the planet while offering a sustainable and natural product for us to use in many applications. Bamboo is not only a hard durable wood, but it can be processed to make textiles and clothing. This opens up a whole new world of possibilities for not only production of new products, but also for natural recycling of them afterwards.

It is said that a bamboo forest can be a very beneficial place for your health. With not only the natural antibacterial side of bamboo being a great advantage, the oxygen levels are said to rejuvenate and relax anyone who spends time there. Sounds like somewhere i would really like to be!

Great gardening resource

For many years, a lot of people will have been using bamboo in their garden and not really realising it. Not only is the use of bamboo leaves in compost a great addition to your soil, the fact that your runner beans are usually held up with bamboo canes is a dead giveaway!

Bamboo, is strong and also very weather resistant. As above, using bamboo canes for holding up you runner beans, or your tomatoes has been something that growers have been doing for years. They are strong enough to support the weight of the plant as it grows while the canes will not rot throughout the constant watering sessions and natural rain.

Take a look at the handles on some of your gardening tools. I bet there are some that are made of bamboo and you didn't even realise it!

Bamboo is a natural alternative to wood

Every household around the world is likely to have some element of wood in it. Whether this is for the construction of the property of simply for furniture or decor inside the house. The wood used for these items would have taken decades, if not centuries in some cases to grow. With the ever growing population there will come a time when natural tree wood is no longer sustainable.

Bamboo on the other hand is the complete opposite. With its super quick growing cycle a bamboo forest can be easily replenished while still delivering the needs of the population.

• When processed, bamboo can be naturally harder than some of the toughest woods, like oak. This gives bamboo a great rating for strength and durability.
• Bamboo in general is less expensive that other woods. Bamboo can be processed quickly and wit hits long lasting durability it can be a lng term investment for many
• Bamboo is very strong. It is naturally a dense material giving it a very strong usability. With it also being flexible and resistand to rotting, unlike other woods, it wins hands down against most other natural options.

Did you know that you can eat bamboo?

There are many benefits of bamboo through out daily life in all areas around the world. But did you know that bamboo also has natural dietary benefits when eaten?

Young, new growth bamboo can be harvested for food. Next time you go to the supermarket, have a look to see if you can see bamboo shoots or dried bamboo canes? You may also see bamboo tea available on the shelves, give it a try!

Some of the benefits of eating bamboo are

• It can reduce blood pressure
• contains vitamin a to help support the natural immune system
• contains vitamin e which is an antioxidant for the body
• helps facilitate metabolism
• lowers fluid retention within the body to help reduce swelling

Using bamboo in construction

Would you trust a house that was built on bamboo stilts? Would you trust a scaffolding tower constructed from bamboo? Common misconceptions is that bamboo is a plant, therefore it is weak. Well i can confirm that this is completely wrong.

When you look around the world, mainly the Asian areas you will very often see houses built alongside riverbanks. These houses will usually be built on stilts to allow for the rising of the river at certain times of the year. Why do they do this? Well its simple, bamboo is extremely strong. In some case it can be stronger that steel. With bamboo also being very resistant to rotting, it makes it the perfect, durable and sustainable product to do this.