Bambusa wenchouensis
(T. H. Wen) P. C. Keng ex Y. M. Lin & Q. F. Zheng
Wen zhou dan zhu
What to Eat
Edible parts: Shoots
The yound shoots are bitter, but edible after treatment. This treatment is most likely to comprise of boiling up the shoots and changing the water 2 - 3 times until the bitterness has been sufficiently reduced.
Where to Find It
It is a subtropical plant. It grows near river banks and around villages between 200-500 m above sea level in Fujian Province in China.
Asia, China,
How to Identify
A bamboo. It grows 12-16 m high. The culms are 8-12 cm across. The internodes are 37-50 cm long. The leaf blade is 9-16 cm long by 1-2 cm wide.
How to Grow
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. Many bamboo species are monocarpic, living for many years before flowering, then flowering and seeding profusely for a period of 1 - 3 years before usually dying.
Names & Synonyms
References (2)
- Flora of China Vol. 22, p 32 and Flora of China. www.eFloras.org
- J. Bamboo Res. 1(1): 32. 1982.
