- Bamboo is the fastest growing land plant in the world... only the giant seaweed in the ocean grows even faster!
- Bamboo is a giant grass! It is not a tree. Bamboo grows with shallow grass-like roots (just like a lawn), but grows hard woody stalks instead!
- Bamboo cools the surrounding air by up to 8 degrees in summer! This acts as a natural air conditioning system for the garden and any nearby buildings.
- Bamboo rarely flowers and seeds, only every 100 years or so. When it does flower, every plant of the same species around the world flowers at the same time!
- Bamboo is edible, at least most of it (some taste awful!) The new shoots are harvested while they are still soft. They are often used in Asian cuisine or for wok dishes!
- A panda's diet consists of 99% bamboo shoots, stalks and leaves, so about 12-38 kg per day! The other 1% consists of meat and other plants.
- Bamboo cleans the air up to 30% more effectively than any other plant! Our brain literally gets an oxygen rush around bamboo! This makes you happier and relieves tension and headaches!
- There are over 1,500 species of bamboo in the world! Pandas only eat 42 out of 1,500 species!
- Bamboo is mostly drought tolerant and can survive a lack of water, but when it's thirsty, it curls its leaves! They do this to protect themselves from the heat and wait for rain or water. After a few days of drought, they drop some leaves to mulch themselves and reduce the number of leaves that need water!
- Bamboo poles are incredibly strong and sturdy (some are stronger than steel!) and are widely used for building all over the world! Thin poles make good stakes in the garden or for weaving furniture. Larger poles are often used for scaffolding or building frames!
- Bamboo is one of the best plants for soil stability and to prevent soil erosion.
- During earthquakes in Asian countries, people flee to bamboo groves and forests as these are considered very safe places. This is due to their very safe and stable root structure, but also to their symbolism for luck and wealth!
- Bamboo is naturally antibacterial and antifungal. Bamboo is used to make clothing, linen, toilet paper and bamboo charcoal. Bamboo charcoal absorbs, purifies and deodorizes the surrounding air.
- Thomas Edison used a charred bamboo filament in his FIRST successful light bulb!
- Bamboo is a very renewable plant; the natural leaf fall is so nutrient rich that when the mulch decomposes, the soil "absorbs" these nutrients, re-feeding the bamboo and surrounding plants! Bamboo mulch can also be used in compost bins and is an excellent weed control method!
- Bamboo grows all over the world, even in very cold and very hot countries! There are native species on all continents except Europe and Antarctica, where non-native species still grow.
- Bamboo absorbs 5 times more CO2 than the same amount of trees.
- Bamboo trunks can grow over 30 meters high.
