Bamboo is the fastest-growing plant on Earth. In fact, the Chinese moso bamboo can grow almost a metre in a single day.
What is bamboo?
Bamboo is a fast-growing grass with a hollow stem. Not only that, but it actually holds the Guinness World Record for fastest growing plant! It is native to many countries and most continents with humid and tropical climates, including Asia (most notably China), Australia, sub-Saharan Africa, and South America.
Side note: Our Yiyang Tongda Bamboo & Wood Products Factory is located in Yiyang city, and know as one of China top ten"Bamboo Hometown"
How can bamboo grow that fast?
Bamboo grows in dense forests where little light reaches the ground and there is strong evolutionary pressure to reach the sunlight as quickly as possible.
Bamboo shoots are connected to their parent plant by an underground stem, called a rhizome. This means the shoot doesn’t need any leaves of its own, until it reaches full height. Bamboo also grows with constant diameter. Unlike woody plants, bamboo doesn’t waste energy on growth rings that progressively thicken the stalk. It’s just a single stick, growing straight up.
The eco-friendliness of the bamboo plant
1. Repairing Damaged Soil:Bamboo plants can grow in infertile soil, and the bamboo plant’s nutrient-rich leaves will drop off during growth or harvest and fall onto the ground below, where they will decompose and transfer those nutrients into the soil.
2. Protect the earth:You probably know that all plants serve as the lungs of the earth. They take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen during photosynthesis, and humans and animals can breathe easier. But you might not know that bamboo actually takes in 4 times more CO2 than your typical plant and thereby releases more oxygen.
3. A rapidly renewable resource:Do you know how people are always saying that trees take hundreds of years to grow into forests? Well, it turns out that trees take the better part of a century to mature enough to be cut down for use as lumber for tables, chairs, floorboards, etc.
Bamboo is targeted as a sustainable material because it takes only five to seven years to grow. Perhaps the best quality of bamboo is that it does not have to be uprooted to be harvested. This means that the stalks can be cut and replenished without needing replanting – unlike other types of wood.
It also means that when bamboo is harvested, the plant doesn’t need to be uprooted.Other plants that do need to be uprooted (i.e., trees) will leave a massive hole in the earth that surrounding soil will fall into. This is not just unsightly; it’s also pretty dangerous for the surrounding area.
This will leave the land much less stable and allow topsoil to be easily washed away during heavy rain or blown away by strong winds. This soil erosion is dangerous because it can contribute to decreased soil fertility, lower water quality levels, and even mudslides.