BAMBOO

P R O T O Y P I N G | I D E N T I F I C AT I O N | K E Y S
 IDENTIFYING
BAMBOO ACCORDING
TO ITS PARTS
 BAMBOO RHIZOMES

• Length between culms and diameter

• Rhizome Habit

• Buds on rhizomes neck

• Position of roots
 BAMBOO RHIZOMES

• Length between culms and diameter

• Rhizome Habit

• Buds on rhizomes neck

• Position of roots
 BAMBOO CULMS

• Spacing of the culms

• Habit of the culms

• Sizes of the culms

• Occurrence of the nodes

• Surface of the nodes

 BAMBOO CULMS

• Color of the internodes

• Surface of the internodes

• Shape of the internodes

• Contents of the internodes when hollow

 BAMBOO LEAVES

• Habit of the leaves

• Color of the leaves

• Shape of the leaves (lance-shaped,

linear)

• Size of the leaves

• Vein structure
 BAMBOO BRANCHES

• Occurrence of the branches

• Habit and length of the branches

• Development of the branches

• Origin of the branches

• Number and arrangements

 BAMBOO BRANCHES

• Posture of the branches at node

(appressed, horizontal, angled upwards,
angled downward

• Modifications (developing spines)

BAMBOO CULM SHEATHS

• Duration of the culm sheaths on the culm

• Variability of the culm sheaths
• Color and pattern of the culm sheaths
when fresh
• Surface of the culm sheaths
• Posture of the culm sheath-blade
• Duration of the culm sheath-blade on the
sheath
BAMBOO CULM SHEATHS

• Duration of the culm sheaths on the culm

• Variability of the culm sheaths
• Color and pattern of the culm sheaths
when fresh
• Surface of the culm sheaths
• Posture of the culm sheath-blade
• Duration of the culm sheath-blade on the
sheath
BAMBOO INFLORESCENCE

• Habit (erect, lax, dropping)

• Occurrence (terminating leafy branches,

occurring throughout a leafless plant)

• Size

• Color (Green, straw-colored, purple)

 DIFFERENT
BAMBOO GENERA
IN THE PHILIPPINES
 DENDROCALAMUS BAMBUSA GUADUA

• 52 species • 149 species • 33 species

• Naturally occurs • Native to: • the largest
in: China, India, Nepal, Pakistan, India, Sri bamboos in tropical
Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri America
Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan,
Lanka, Burma, Thailand,
Bangladesh, Burma, • Stems can
Malaysia, Laos,
Thailand, Laos, reach up to 30m in
Kampuchea, Vietnam, The
Kampuchea, Vietnam, height and to 20cm in
Philippines, Indonesia, and
China etc. diameter
Papua New Guinea
 GIGANTOCHLOA NASTUS SCHIZOSTACHYUM

• 63 species • 25 species • 62 species

• Giant clumping • Genus of slender, • Tall or shrub-
bamboo erect, scrambling or climbing like tropical clumping,
• Native to: and sometimes climbing
bamboo
Malaysia, Singapore,
• Southern bamboos.
Brunei, Indonesia,
Hemisphere from • Usually occurs
Philippines, Burma,
Madagascar and Indonesia, spontaneous at low and
Thailand, Laos, Vietnam,
Papua New Guinea and the medium elevations up to
China, India, and
Bangladesh. Solomon Islands. about 1,000 m
 OTATEA PHYLLOSTACHYS PSEUDOSASA

• 10 species • 63 species • 20 species

• • Small to medium
name derives from • comes from
running bamboo, originating
the nahuatl otatl, meaning 'phyllon', meaning leaf,
in Japan, China, and Korea
"bamboo" and 'stachys', meaning
• Generic name
• Native to: Mexico, spike
derives from the Greek word
Honduras, El Salvador and "pseudos", false, and the
possibly Nicaragua and Costa Japanese word "sa-sa" for
Rica small bamboos
 CHIMONOBAMBUSA INDOCALAMUS THYRSOSTACHYS

• 42 species • 33 species • 7 species

• • The genus
• Running bamboos Native to:
Thyrsostachys is in the
with swollen nodes China, Japan, Vietnam
family Poaceae in the
• Grow native in and Sri Lanka.
major group Angiosperms
China, Burma, Vietnam and (Flowering plants)
Japan
 MELOCANNA SASA ARUNDINARIA

• 2 species • Also called • Genus of bamboos and

• Genus of Asian broad-leaf bamboo, a canes in the grass family (Poaceae),

genus of running found in temperate areas.

clumping bamboo in the grass
• are woody perennials and
family bamboo
range in height from 0.5–8 metres
(1.6–26 feet).
• Sexual reproduction is rare,
and colonies typically die after
flowering and producing seed.
 KEY FOR THE
IDENTIFICATION OF
DIFFERENT BAMBOO
GENERA
 RHIZOME
a. Species with sympodial, clump-forming type of
rhizome
• Guadua
• Bambusa
• Dendrocalamus
• Gigantochloa
• Thyrsosastachys
• Nastus b. Species with monopodial, non-clump-forming or
• Melocanna running type of rhizome
• Schizostachyum • Phyllostachys
• Sasa • Pseudosasa
• Arundinaria • Shibataea
• Otatea • Chimonobambusa
• Hibanobambusa • Indocalamus
 THORNS
a. Member species with thorns:
• Guadua – all species with thorns
• Bambusa - some member species with thorns

b. Member species without thorns, very big in height

and diameter, young culms are covered with light to
Guadua
dark brown, velvety to rough hairs:

• Dendrocalamus
• Gigantochloa
• Thyrsosastachys

Bambusa Blumeana
 SIZE
a. Very big in height and diameter, young culms
are covered with light to dark brown, velvety to
rough hairs
• Dendrocalamus
• Gigantochloa
• Thrysostachys

Gigantochloa
 SIZE
b. Member species are medium to small in
size; thin to thick walled culms, green, with or
without purplish to brown lines or covered with
yellowish stiff hairs; have many branches of
unequal sizes; leaves are big and wide to very
narrow • Otatea
• Nastus • Hibanobambusa
• Melocanna • Phyllostachys
• Schizostachyum • Pseudosasa
• Sasa • Shibataea
• Arundinaria • Chimonobambusa Gigantochloa
• • Indocalamus
 SMALL TO MEDIUM SIZE BAMBOOS
• Nastus - member species are medium in
size; thin-walled, young culms are green, purplish
to brownish, especially on the basal portion;
branches many of unequal sizes

• Member species are medium to small in

size; thin to thick-walled; young culms are green,
covered with whitish waxy powder or yellowish
stiff hairs; branches many of unequal sizes;
leaves are big and wide or very narrow

Nastus
 SMALL TO MEDIUM SIZE BAMBOOS
. Member species are medium in size; thin to
thick-walled; young culms are green, covered with
whitish waxy powder or yellowish stiff hairs;
branches many of unequal sizes; leaves are
green, big and wide to long and narrow with
striations

Melocanna
• Melocanna
• Schizostachyum

Schizostachyum
 SMALL TO MEDIUM SIZE BAMBOOS
Member species are generally small, culms are
green, with or without striations; culm sheath with
or without striations; leaves are small or big with
or without striations; leaf sheath is light green to
pinkish with light brown bristles

• Arundinaria
Arundria
• Otatea
• Hibanobambusa
 CULM
a. Culms are green; leaves are small to very
narrow, green or with striations; leaf sheaths
are light green to pinkish

• Arundinaria - Culms are green; leaves are

green, linear or with striations; leaf sheath is light
green with light brown bristles Otatea

• Otatea - Culms are green, leaves are Arundria

green and very narrow, leaf sheath is pinkish

 CULM

b. Hibanobambusa - culms have white striations,

culm sheath has striations, leaves are big with
prominent striations

Hibanobambusa
 CULM SHEATH AURICLES

a. Dendrocalamus - culm sheath auricles are

thick, young culms of member species are
covered with light to dark brown velvety hairs,
node is prominent with aerial

Dendrocalamus
 CULM SHEATH AURICLES
b. Culm sheath auricles are low, firm, distinct, rim-like or
small and inconspicuous

• Gigantochloa – culm sheath auricles are low,

firm, rim-like; back of culm sheath has dark hairs; young
culms of member species are covered with light to dark Gigantochloa

brown rough hairs; node is not prominent

• Thyrsostachys – culm sheath auricles are small
or inconspicuous, leaf blade is glabrous, back of culm
sheaths has short appressed light hairs

Thyrsostachys
 CULM SHEATH
a. Melocanna – culm sheaths have 1 or 2
transverse corrugations at the top portion, culm
sheath blade is erect, culms are loose

b. Schizostachyum – culm sheaths do not have

corrugations, culm sheath blades are erect or
reflexed, culms are densely tufted
Melocanna

Schizostachyum
 INTERNODE

a. Phyllostachys - internodes flattened or grooved

at one side, in line with the branch complement;
branches two of unequal sizes

Phyllostachys
 INTERNODE

b. Internodes not flattened, branches more than

one, some thicker than the culms

• Pseudosasa
• Shibataea
• Chimonobambusa
• Indocalamus

Pseudosasa
 BRANCHES
a. Pseudosasa - branches 4-8, culm sheath
persistent and longer than the internodes;
leaves linear lanceolate

b. Branches typically three; culm sheath

deciduous, not longer than the internodes; leaves
broadly lanceolate to lanceolate
Pseudosasa
• Shibataea
• Chimonobambusa
• Indocalamus

Chimonobambusa
 LEAVES
a. a. Leaves 3-4, green, broadly lanceolate to
lanceolate, pubescent beneath to glabrous on
both sides

• Shibataea - leaves 3-4, green, broadly

lanceolate, face different from part to part,
pubescent beneath
• Chimonobambusa - leaves 3-6, green,
Shibataea
lanceolate, glabrous on both sides,
sometimes have white striations

Chimonobambusa
 LEAVES

Indocalamus - leaves 3-4, light green, rough on the

surface and chartaceous, 13.5 - 23.5cm
long, 4.5 - 5.6cm wide

Indocalamus