Bambusa polymorpha

Burmese bamboo
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Monocots
Clade:	Commelinids
Order:	Poales
Family:	Poaceae
Genus:	Bambusa
Species:	B. polymorpha
Binomial name
	Bambusa polymorpha; Munro.
Synonyms
	Arundarbor polymorpha (Munro) Kuntze; Bambusa cyanostachya Kurz ex Gamble [Invalid] ;

Bambusa polymorpha, or Burmese bamboo, is a species of clumping bamboo native to Bangladesh, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, Java, and has been naturalized in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Ecuador.^[1]^[2]

Habit

It is a tall, grayish green colored bamboo species, which grows in thickets consisting of a large number of heavily branched, closely growing culms. It reaches a height of 10–30 m.^[3]

Appearance

Culms are green, covered with whitish brown hair, and become brownish green when drying. Young shoots are greenish brown in color. Branching occurs from the mid-culm to the top. Aerial roots reach up to few nodes above ground.

Young culm sheaths are greenish, which become yellowish brown when mature. Sheaths of growing shoots are golden yellow color, with cup-shaped blades. The sheath proper is 20–25 cm in length and 28–35 cm wide. Blade length is 5–10 cm. Auricles are equal, sickle-shaped, wavy, and curled. Upper surfaces of the sheaths are covered with brownish-black, closely pressed hairs. Lower surfaces of the sheaths are not hairy. Sheaths do not fall early, but blades fall.

Uses

In India, it is used for walls, partitions, troughs, and mats. In Myanmar, it is used for making house frames, wattle-and-daub walls, partitions, concrete reinforcement, and ceilings. The young shoots are eaten, and taste very bitter.^[4]