Food Plants International - Plant Fact Sheets Bambusa bambos - Giant Thorny Bamboo, Spiny Bamboo

Edible Portion: Shoots, Seeds, Cereal

A densely tufted bamboo. The culm or stem is 30 m tall. It is 1`5-18 cm across. The wall is very thick. The internodes are 20-40 cm long. The stem is bright green. The nodes are slightly swollen. The lower nodes can have aerial roots. There are branches from the nodes. The lower branches have spines which curve backwards. The sheath of the stem is 15-35 cm long by 18-30 cm wide. It is wrinkled at the top. It is brown and hairy when young. It falls off as the branches develop. The leaf blade is sword shaped and 6-22 cm long by 1-3 cm wide. The flowering stalk is at the end of the leafy branches. After the bunch flowers, seeds are set and the clump dies.