The origins of bamboo are related to tropical and subtropical regions, mainly the Far East, although we can also find wild species in Africa, Oceania and America. However, it is also possible to find wild bamboo varieties at temperate latitudes.
It is in China that bamboo has best prospered and its use has generated objects and furnishings of daily use since the dawn of humanity. Even today, the most cultivated and most present species in China is the Moso, which covers about 3 million hectares of the territory.
Of the approximately 1,500 varieties of bamboo found on our planet, it is easy to argue that Moso, also known as Phyllostachys Edulis or Pubescens, is one of the most important. This species is well adapted to the Italian territory with its harsh winters, high humidity and little exposure to the wind. It is often recalled together with the Phyllostachys Bambusoides, called Madake, suitable for Italian zones with hot and dry summers and wind exposure.
WHY DO YOU GROW MOSO GIANT BAMBOO?
Moso giant bamboo produces a stem composed of high-quality wood, surpassing many fine kinds of woods in hardness and strength. It can absorb CO2 at higher levels than a traditional forest and it can be the base of thousands of industrial and manufacturing applications. Its rapid growth times and constant reproduction make it a continuous source of raw material.
CULTIVATING BAMBOO: CHOICE OF THE SOIL
Generally speaking, giant bamboo, like Moso, requires a sunny exposed soil with a temperate climate, abundant access to water and ample space for the development of the bamboo grove. In order to establish the suitability of a soil, our team carries out geological, chemical-physical and bioelectronic analyses in advance. Bad preliminary elements can be too cold winter temperatures, lack of water for irrigation, possible flooding of the soil.
BAMBOO PLANTING
In a bamboo plantation, the quality of the foundation is essential to guarantee a quality result. This process starts with a feasibility study based on the bioelectronic and chemical-physical analyses of the soil, followed by a geological analysis, if needed. This is followed by a report to establish how to obtain the perfect suitability of the soil in terms of processing and enrichment. The subsequent phases include the study of the plant, the operational plan of implementation and management with the help of satellite technology.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF A BAMBOO GROVE
A newborn baby, as we know, needs continuous assistance. A child needs a little less, because he has begun to develop a certain autonomy, which will gradually grow as the years go by, until he becomes an independent adult. In the same way, we can compare this to the life course of a bamboo crop. It must be assisted with extreme care in the first months and with constant attention in the first years, but the moment will come when the plant will become independent, transforming itself into a forest that every year will produce hundreds of tons of material for each hectare planted.
The rhizome of the giant bamboo vegetates in the first 30/40cm of the soil, sometimes some parts come out to increase the oxygen load. It creates a 360-degree network around the mother stump, continuously multiplying and generating new culms/canes, which reach their maximum height in about 60 days, every spring.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF A BAMBOO GROVE
Cultivation systems created with Prosperity Bamboo leave no room for improvisation on fertilization and irrigation, using satellite-based plant health monitoring technologies.
In order to allow the giant bamboo plants to expand and develop in the best possible way, it is necessary to leave all culms and shoots in the field for the first 3 years. Each year, the plant will increase its size exponentially and, consequently, the number of new shoots will also increase and, in relation to this, so will its size.
For this reason, from the fourth year onwards, “adjustment mowing” is carried out, i.e. the cutting of the first canes produced in the field, which will be smaller than those born after the plants have reached their maturity, which will then begin to replace the cut canes with new, larger culms.
Through this, within the fifth year of life of the bamboo grove, the first canes can be harvested, before gradually reaching full maturity.
BAMBOO GROOVE MATURITY
By the tenth year, a properly managed bamboo forest is considered to be at capacity. However, in the following years it will progress further in production thanks to a continuous increase in the height and number of new shoots and cane diameters.
The average lifespan of a bamboo grove is close to 100 years. Each hectare will therefore produce hundreds of tons of material for a century, with little maintenance required and at the same time guaranteeing cleaner air, healthy environments for local fauna, regeneration of the soil and numerous other environmental benefits, in addition to economic ones that will benefit not only those who supported the start-up of the bamboo grove, but also their subsequent generations.