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bamboo |
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bamboo, plant of the family Gramineae (grass grass, any plant of the family Gramineae, an important and widely distributed group of vascular plants, having an extraordinary range of adaptation. Numbering approximately 600 genera and 9,000 species, the grasses form the climax vegetation (see ecology ) in great ..... Click the link for more information. family), chiefly of warm or tropical regions, where it is sometimes an extremely important component of the vegetation. It is most abundant in the monsoon area of E Asia. Bamboos are the the largest grasses, sometimes reaching 100 ft (30 m). The stalks are round (rarely square), jointed, sometimes thorny, and hollow or solid with evergreen or deciduous leaves. Some types die after fruiting and some do not flower until they are about 30 years old. In many places bamboo is used as wood for construction work, furniture, utensils, fiber, paper, fuel, and innumerable small articles. Bamboo sprouts are eaten as a vegetable, and the grains of some species are also utilized for food. The bamboo has long been used for decorative purposes, both in gardens and in art. In the United States the native bamboo is a cane cane, in botany, name for the hollow or woody, usually slender and jointed stems of plants (particularly rattan and other bamboos) and for various tall grasses, e.g., sugarcane , sorghum, and also other grasses used in the S United States for fodder. ..... Click the link for more information. . The most common bamboo is Bambusa arundinacea. Bamboo is classified in the division Magnoliophyta Magnoliophyta (măg'nōlēŏf`ətə) ..... Click the link for more information. , class Lilopsida, order Cyperales, family Gramineae. BibliographySee F. A. McClure, The Bamboos (1966). bambooAny of the tall, treelike grasses, found in tropical and subtropical to mild temperate regions, that make up the subfamily Bambusoideae, family Poaceae (or Gramineae). Bamboos are giant, fast-growing grasses with woody stems. A few species of the genus Arundinaria are native to the southern U.S., where they form dense canebrakes along riverbanks and in marshy areas. The woody, hollow aerial stems grow in branching clusters from a thick rhizome, often forming a dense undergrowth that excludes other plants. All parts of the bamboo are used, for purposes including food, livestock fodder, fine-quality paper, construction materials, and medicines. Bamboos also have ornamental use in landscape gardens. bamboo 1. any tall treelike tropical or semitropical fast-growing grass of the genus Bambusa, having hollow woody-walled stems with ringed joints and edible young shoots (bamboo shoots) 2. the stem of any of these plants, used for building, poles, and furniture 3. any of various bamboo-like grasses of the genera Arundinaria, Phyllostachys or Dendrocalamus bamboo [bam′bü] (botany) The common name of various tropical and subtropical, perennial, ornamental grasses in five genera of the family Gramineae characterized by hollow woody stems up to 6 inches (15 centimeters) in diameter. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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