Description

Indian thorny bamboo, spiny bamboo, Bambusa bambos, the giant thorny bamboo, or thorny bamboo, is a species of clumping bamboo native to southern Asia. It is a tall, bright-green colored spiny bamboo species, which grows in thickets consisting of a large number of heavily branched, closely growing culms. It reaches a height of 10–35 m and grows naturally in the forests of the dry zones. Indian Thorny Bamboo is a soft, thick-walled bamboo which grows very fast and tall. The shoots are edible. Thorny lower branches are long and wiry. Leaves are lanceshaped, 7-18 cm long, 1-1.8 cm wide, with a long-pointed tip. Clump bamboos have underground stems that sprout vertical shoots much closer to their parent plants, growing slowly outward. Thick wall with flexibility comes in useful for construction materials, scaffolds, and handicrafts. Indian Thorny Bamboo is native to India and China.

Characteristics:

Culms are not straight, but are armed with stout, curved spines. They are bright green, becoming brownish green when drying, and the young shoots are deep purple. Branches spread out from the base. Aerial roots reach up to few nodes above. Internode length is 15–46 cm, and diameter is 3.0–20 cm. Culm walls are 2.5–5.0 cm thick. Nodes are prominent and rootstock is stout. Culm sheaths are dark brown when mature, elongated, and cylindrical. Length of the sheath proper is 15–25 cm and 12–30 cm in width. Blade length is 4.0–12 cm. Auricles are not prominent. Upper surfaces of the sheath are covered with blackish-brown hairs. Lower surfaces of the sheath are not hairy. Sheaths fall early.

Medicinal Uses:

They are extensively used in many applications, mainly for making bridges and for ladders. Leaves are used for thatching. Bambusa bambos has been proven to have great pharmacological potential with a great utility and usage as folklore medicine. It is widely used in folk medicine for its anti-inflammatory, astringent, laxative, diuretic, anti-ulcer, anti-arthritic, anti-obesity and abortifacient activities.