Resource Considerations

Originally from the humid, tropical regions in Southeast Asia, bamboo grass has grown to be quite adaptable. Different species of bamboo are native to diverse climates around the world—from sub-Saharan Africa to northern Australia and South America. Bamboo’s rapid regeneration and ability to be cut without killing the plant have earned it kudos within environmental circles. Here are some top reasons that bamboo resource will save the planet:

1. Amazing Growth Rate

Growing at an impressive rate of up to 3.5 feet per day, it’s truly a sustainable resource. To put that into perspective, an average oak tree grows about twelve inches annually, meaning the bamboo plant grows over 1,000 times as fast as oak and most other hardwoods!

2. Renewable resource

Depending on the species, bamboo can be harvested in 3-4 years. Hardwoods like oak take 60 years to restore. Almost 1 million acres of forests are lost each week worldwide to deforestation. Bamboo’s versatility as a substitute for hardwoods offers a chance to dramatically reduce that figure and protect the forest resources.

3. No Pesticides and fertilisers

As a grass, bamboo is extremely adaptable and resilient. Bamboo doesn’t require petrochemicals or artificial pesticides, making it both cost effective and toxin-free. Bamboo can also sequester nitrogen and cultivation does not add chemicals to the environment.

4. Absorbs Greenhouse Gases

As it grows and photosynthesize, bamboo absorbs carbon dioxide (CO₂) and emit oxygen (O₂) more efficiently than most hardwood trees. By sequestering carbon, plants reduce the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide, which is the main contributor to climate change.

5. Soil Protection

Once hardwood forests are clear-cut and the stumps are burned to provide fertilizer and space for growing crops, erosion inevitably occurs as the topsoil and nutrients are washed away by rainfall. The eroded soil then clogs rivers and streams and affects the lives of people and animals living downstream. Bamboo roots remain in place after harvesting where they prevent erosion and help retain nutrients for the next crop.

6. Versatile

Unlike wood, bamboo has no rays or knots, allowing it to withstand high amounts of pressure. The dense fibres in bamboo can give the plant extreme flexibility, allowing it to bend without breaking. Bamboo can replace the use of wood for nearly every application. From paper, flooring, kitchenware like cutting boards, as well as fences, furniture, and much more.

7. Economic Development

In less developed countries where unemployment leads to civil unrest, bamboo production and the manufacturing of bamboo products provides job opportunities in areas that desperately need social and economic stability.

Culture and Aesthetics Value of Bamboo

Bamboo has a long history of economic and cultural significance, primarily in East Asia and South East Asia where it has been used for centuries for everything from building material to food to medicine. The lightness, strength, flexibility and cylindrical structure of bamboo is suited to functionality as well as artistic applications, it has been used to craft instruments for Buddhist rituals, tea ceremonies, flower arranging and, in recent times, contemporary works of art and design.

In traditional Chinese culture, bamboo is a symbol of oriental beauty. It represents the character of moral integrity, resistance, modesty and loyalty. It also stands as an example of loneliness and elegance, among others. This value becomes one of the major themes in Chinese painting, calligraphy and poetry. For thousands of years, generations of artists praised bamboo in the name of this spirit. Because of its sturdy root structure, it is a symbol of prosperity in Japan. Simple and unadorned, the bamboo is also symbolic of purity and innocence. “Take o watta youna hito” in Japanese literally translates into “a man like fresh-split bamboo” and refers to a man with a frank nature.

In recent years, bamboo art has gained a growing popularity in Western society and, with some pieces selling for tens of thousands of pounds. This intricate art form uses the versatile bamboo material to give rise to all sorts of fantastic creations. Taking its inspiration from the ancient art of bamboo weaving, it’s not just about the creation of functional items such as mats or baskets. Rather, contemporary bamboo artists and craftspeople create a range of surprising and mesmerizing artworks, from delicate sculptures to beautiful, dynamic pieces. Due to its unique features of bamboo, a material that has many opposing qualities — it’s simple but also really strong; it can be both powerful and delicate, bamboo is apt for more abstract expressions for contemporary artists.

Modern Application of Bamboo

Bamboo Furniture

Compared with wooden furniture, bamboo has stronger physical and mechanical properties. Therefore, under the same load-bearing strength, bamboo furniture can meet the strength requirements with a smaller size, making the overall appearance of the furniture lighter and more compact.  Bamboo’s moisture and heat absorption properties are better than wood, it can adjust the environmental humidity and feels warm in winter and cool in summer.

Many people do not know that bamboo has the function of absorbing ultraviolet rays. If bamboo furniture is used, the eyes will feel comfortable when living indoors, which can prevent the occurrence and deterioration of eye diseases such as myopia. In addition, bamboo has good sound absorption and sound insulation characteristics, which can effectively eliminate noise and make the room appear more peaceful.

Bamboo furniture has a fine grain and is available in many stains and finishes. Your style doesn’t need to be compromised when you add fashionable bamboo furniture and accessories to your home. The current bamboo furniture incorporates state-of-the-art creativity and design, which not only retains the beautiful patterns of bamboo wood, but also has a simple and practical appearance, which meets the aesthetic needs of modern people.

Bamboo home furniture comes in more varieties of styles and finishes than before. Furniture designers are using bamboo in innovative designs, either in all-bamboo or composite materials. You can find bamboo chairs, bamboo tables, bamboo bar stools, and bamboo bookshelves, just to start. They even make bamboo beds and bamboo sheets.

Bamboo in Construction

Bamboo’s strength, flexibility, and ready availability have made it a dominant building material throughout much of the world for centuries. As it is light and tough with elasticity and bearing capacity, bamboo is an ideal structural material and is used for the construction of scaffolding, bridges and structures, houses. Today, some group in Asia, like the Dai people in Laos, still live in the two-storied bamboo stilt houses — the upper floor of the house contains bedrooms, kitchens and balconies, and the ground floor is used to house poultry and domestic animals. As an elegant material with an extremely low carbon footprint, bamboo architecture is growing in popularity. It can be used in all kinds of things, including exterior sheathing, structural spines, interior screens, ventilation systems, canopies, stairs, ceilings, and walls in modern construction. With the world increasingly concern of environment, we may expect to see more of this sustainable and renewable building material in our future homes.

The most common use of bamboo in Western construction has, by far, been as a flooring material. As an attractive and sturdy alternative to hardwood flooring, bamboo is tough to beat. According to Pacific Northwest green building supplier Ecohaus, bamboo—one of the firm’s top selling flooring options—is harder, more moisture resistant and more stable than even oak hardwoods. Today, bamboo flooring is available in various styles and colours. Its eco-friendly nature, sustainability, durability, and perfectly pleasing aesthetics contributed to making bamboo flooring widely accepted, not only in the US but all around the world. The bamboo flooring industry is rapidly evolving as people are choosing an environmental-friendly flooring option as going green is the new trend!

Bamboo Houseware

In addition to the large pieces of furniture, bamboo can be used to make many household objects that we commonly use in life. Bamboo can withstand everyday use and far more resistant to damage than traditional hardwoods. When made into cutting boards, bamboo can take the beating of repeated knife use and still remains its charm, and bamboo is gentler on knife blades than other woods. Bamboo has the characteristics of moisture absorption and corrosion resistance, so it is suitable for use as serving/tea tray, plate/bowl, bathroom stands, kitchen racks and utensils. Bamboo kitchenware are also thought to be safer and more hygienic than wooden ones because bamboo does not absorb liquids easily and it has mild natural antimicrobial properties. A cluttered desk not only affects work efficiency, but also makes you feel bad. A compartmented bamboo storage organizer can cleverly use the space to arrange everything from mails, cosmetics and mobile phones to stationery and bath items.

Compared to wood and plastic, you will find bamboo houseware really easy to clean and maintain. Generally, bamboo houseware doesn’t require a lot of maintenance to retain their functionality and beautiful appearance. Do not use chemical cleaning agents to clean food stains from bamboo. To remove stains from brightly coloured foods, use coarse salt or baking soda. After cleaning with a dry or slightly damp cloth, you will see its natural shine even without applying polish. That’s because bamboo has raw natural oil to keep it fresh and shiny naturally for a long time. This also makes bamboo houseware mould and dust resistant.

Origin of Bamboo

The species of bamboo that we know today evolved from prehistoric grasses between thirty and forty million years ago, long after the extinction of the dinosaurs. While bamboo occurs in a wide range of tropical, subtropical and temperate regions of all continents, it is thought to have originated in China, where its usage can be traced back to 7,000 years ago. As early as the Shang Dynasty (16th-11th century B.C.), bamboo was already used in various aspects of ancient people’s daily lives. It was used for food, clothing, housing, transportation, music instruments and even weapons. Before the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 A.D.) when paper was invented, strips of bamboo had been used as the most important writing medium more widely used other materials, such as silk, animal furs and rocks. China’s first books were crafted from bamboo strips on string.

Bamboo Culture

Bamboo has the title of “gentleman” among other plants. As a symbolization of virtue, bamboo is always closely related to people of positive spirits. People think its deep root denotes steadiness and persistence; its tall, straight stem represents honour; its hollow interior and clean exterior exemplify modesty. It represents the character of moral integrity, resistance, modesty and loyalty. It also stands as an example of loneliness and elegance. This value becomes one of the major themes in Chinese painting, calligraphy and poetry. For thousands of years, generations of artists praised bamboo in their paintings, calligraphies and poetries. Many ancient scholars chose to live in deep mountains surrounded by bamboo forests. Su Dongpo, a famous writer of the Song Dynasty (960-1279 A.D.), wrote in his poem, “I would rather eat no meat than live without bamboo.”

Bamboo and Architecture

Bamboo is as beautiful as it is practical, and it has been used in architecture for a long time. In South America, for example, evidence was found that bamboo was used to build dwellings up to 9,500 years ago. Today, some group in Asia, like the Dai people in Laos, still live in the two-storied bamboo stilt houses — the upper floor of the house contains bedrooms, kitchens and balconies, and the ground floor is used to house poultry and domestic animals. As it is light and tough with elasticity and bearing capacity, bamboo is an ideal building material, and it’s also an elegant material with an extremely low carbon footprint. Bamboo architecture is growing in popularity. It has gone from the building material of the poor to the choice of architects and artists with rapid ambition. At the first-ever international Bamboo Architecture Biennale showed, bamboo can be used in all kinds of things, including exterior sheathing, structural spines, interior screens, ventilation systems, canopies, stairs, ceilings, floors, and walls. We may expect to see more of this sustainable and renewable building material in our future homes.

Bamboo Products

Bamboo has been made into numerous products over the years: from furniture such as bamboo chairs, bamboo stools and bamboo beds, to kitchenware including bowls, plates and bamboo chopping boards. As for containers, there are bamboo cupboards and bamboo cases; writing materials, like bamboo brushes and bamboo pen containers; and clothing, like bamboo hats and bamboo shoes. Whether they are made of raw or treated bamboo, they all seem to be used with more frequency now that we are re-discovering the versatility of the products. In Beijing and Bangkok, bamboo shoots are a valuable addition to many dishes. In Japan, nimble-fingered craftsmen fashion it into fans, flutes and other lovely handicrafts. It is imported to the Western Countries, where interior decorators use it to trim elegant flats, giving it a “tropical touch”. Perhaps the most encouraging trend of all is that we are only beginning to realize how green bamboo is as a nature material. As we continue to search for ways to lessen our impact on the environment, bamboo may offer us the best chance to save our remaining forests so that future generations can experience the simple joys of wooden touch.