- 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 flat grass-like roots (just like a lawn), but instead, hard woody stems grow!
- Bamboo cools the surrounding air in summer by up to 8 degrees! This acts like a natural air conditioner for the garden and all nearby buildings.
- Bamboo rarely flowers and seeds, only about every 100 years. When it flowers, every plant of the same species around the world blooms at the same time!
- Bamboo is edible, at least most of it (some taste terrible!) The new shoots are harvested while they are still soft. They are often used in Asian cuisine or for stir-fry dishes!
- The diet of a panda consists of 99% bamboo shoots, stalks, and leaves, which is 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 high near 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 survives water shortages, but when it is thirsty, it rolls up its leaves! They do this to protect themselves from the heat and wait for rain or water. After a few days of dryness, they drop some leaves to mulch themselves and reduce the number of leaves that need water!
- Bamboo poles are incredibly strong and stable (some are stronger than steel!) and are commonly used for construction around 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 preventing 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 secure and stable root structure, but also their symbolism for luck and wealth!
- Bamboo is naturally antibacterial and antifungal. Bamboo is used to make clothing, linens, toilet paper, and bamboo charcoal. Bamboo charcoal absorbs, cleans, and deodorizes the surrounding air.
- Thomas Edison used a carbonized bamboo filament in his FIRST successful light bulb!
- Bamboo is a very renewable plant; the natural leaf fall is so nutrient-rich that the soil "absorbs" these nutrients when the mulch decomposes, nourishing the bamboo and surrounding plants again! 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 are still growing.
- Bamboo absorbs 5 times more CO2 than the same amount of trees.
- Bamboo stalks can grow over 30 meters tall.
