Bamboo Dreams

The grove I hope to grow

Detail of the variety I bought

Aoth's "bamboo" self portrait

Villa santi resort

I have always loved bamboo in landscaping. The scenes in the bamboo grove in House of Flying Daggers were just too beautiful. So I was quite happy to get the one pot of bamboo they had at the garden center, from which I hope to have a grove in a few years. The first two pics are of the variety I got-fully grown at the garden centre. The other two pics are of bamboo in the landscaping at the Villa Santi resort, Laung Prabang, Laos.
When I read/heard about the invasiveness and “escape” of bamboo I was surprised, as in the Caribbean we have had no such experience. Then I learned that the bamboo referred to was temperate running bamboo, not the non-invasive, ornamental tropical bamboo plants that grow only in a clumping manner.
In Trinidad and Guyana, Hindus use bamboo to construct wedding tents, and it was also used as posts and scaffolding during house construction.
While most people in the West may see bamboo as a landscape plant, in the past bamboo was central to life in many cultures, especially in Asian countries. Bamboo was used to construct houses, make furniture, dishes and utensils and mats for flooring, beds, and covers. Bamboo was also used for animal cages and pens and for fences. Bamboo was and is still used to make musical instruments and fishing rods. The shoots of his bamboo is also eaten, and is now a delicacy.