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Harvest dead bamboo?

Kim

By Kim
in TROPICAL LOOKING PLANTS - Other Than Palms

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Kim Grand Master

Kim

Posted
Posted

From my front porch I can see a stand of dead bamboo in the distance. Is there any merit to harvesting dead bamboo, or would it be cracked, deteriorated, full of insects, or otherwise a bad idea? When is the right time to cut stalks and preserve them for decorative purposes? Must the stalks be treated? Just curious...

Kim Cyr

Between the beach and the bays, Point Loma, San Diego, California USA
and on a 300 year-old lava flow, Pahoa, Hawaii, 1/4 mile from the 2018 flow
All characters  in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

DoomsDave Grand Master

DoomsDave

Posted
Posted

Kim:

Bamboo is tough stuff. If it's nice and dry, I'd go ahead and harvest some, unless it's super old. It's tougher than palm. That's saying something.

Let's keep our forum fun and friendly.

Any data in this post is provided 'as is' and in no event shall I be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, damages resulting from accuracy or lack thereof, insult, or lost profits or revenue, claims by third parties or for other similar costs, or any special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of my opinion or the use of this data. The accuracy or reliability of the data is not guaranteed or warranted in any way and I disclaim liability of any kind whatsoever, including, without limitation, liability for quality, performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose arising out of the use, or inability to use my data. Other terms may apply.

MattyB Grand Master

MattyB

Posted
Posted

You might wanna call bamboo Bob Diamata. He's an expert at that. Certain species, like B. beechyana get powder post beetles very quickly unless properly treated. I seem to remember him showing me a trough with a liquid in it where you soak the culms and let boric acid or some stuff like that penetrate into the wood. Once properly treated the culms can even be used safely for structural members in construction or for decorative purposes. All of my makeshift bamboo fences are cracked and have powder post beetle holes because I did not treat them.

Matt Bradford

"Manambe Lavaka"

Spring Valley, CA (8.5 miles inland from San Diego Bay)

10B on the hill (635 ft. elevation)

9B in the canyon (520 ft. elevation)

DoomsDave Grand Master

DoomsDave

Posted
Posted

Okay, thanks Matt. I stand corrected.

Let's keep our forum fun and friendly.

Any data in this post is provided 'as is' and in no event shall I be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, damages resulting from accuracy or lack thereof, insult, or lost profits or revenue, claims by third parties or for other similar costs, or any special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of my opinion or the use of this data. The accuracy or reliability of the data is not guaranteed or warranted in any way and I disclaim liability of any kind whatsoever, including, without limitation, liability for quality, performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose arising out of the use, or inability to use my data. Other terms may apply.

Kim Grand Master

Kim

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Thanks for the information, Matt. I will check into this further.

Kim Cyr

Between the beach and the bays, Point Loma, San Diego, California USA
and on a 300 year-old lava flow, Pahoa, Hawaii, 1/4 mile from the 2018 flow
All characters  in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Pedro 65 Grand Master

Pedro 65

Posted
Posted
  On 9/1/2013 at 4:42 PM, Kim said:

From my front porch I can see a stand of dead bamboo in the distance. Is there any merit to harvesting dead bamboo, or would it be cracked, deteriorated, full of insects, or otherwise a bad idea? When is the right time to cut stalks and preserve them for decorative purposes? Must the stalks be treated? Just curious...

Kim, the only merit of harvesting dead bamboo is the amount of calories burned to try and cut it :) If its a thick walled bamboo and dead, it would be like cutting steel, and if you do have a go, wear a dust mask as bamboo is "very high" in Silica. Cutting, wet green fresh bamboo is fine as little to no dust will be present, but "safety 1st" if its dry.

Bamboo to have any strength and life span should be a culm of a minimum of 3 yrs of age and cut in the "dry season", below is a culm from a Timor Black that was cut over 6 yrs ago, it was the right age and cut in our driest time, and cut close to the node ( outside ring you see ) If you cut it in the middle of the nodes they split.. it still has very good colour as it lives "inside" where it get a little wipe over with the wood oil cloth.

Hope this little post helps, all the best with your bamboo decision and artistry. Pete :)

post-5709-0-79303400-1378101793_thumb.jp

post-5709-0-65964800-1378101813_thumb.jp

aussiearoids Grand Master

aussiearoids

Posted
Posted

If its your clump , it would be good to clear out all old dead stems .

Then it will be much easier to keep track of harvestable ones .

A little dab of different coloured paint each year , or scratch on the year .

Michael in palm paradise,

Tully, wet tropics in Australia, over 4 meters of rain every year.

Home of the Golden Gumboot, its over 8m high , our record annual rainfall.

Kim Grand Master

Kim

Posted
  • Author
Posted

:) That black bamboo is so pretty, Pete! If it's that difficult to cut, perhaps that's why this big stand of dead bamboo is just left where it is. I have a feeling I can purchase the handful of stalks I need for a very reasonable price, without getting into soaking things in chemicals, and making the effort to cut through something hard as steel!

Michael, the bamboo is not mine, thankfully. :) I love the look of bamboo -- in other people's gardens. I decided a long time ago that it is more plant than I can handle. :)

Kim Cyr

Between the beach and the bays, Point Loma, San Diego, California USA
and on a 300 year-old lava flow, Pahoa, Hawaii, 1/4 mile from the 2018 flow
All characters  in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

MattyB Grand Master

MattyB

Posted
Posted

Ooh, that timor black is nice. Ill have to try that.

Matt Bradford

"Manambe Lavaka"

Spring Valley, CA (8.5 miles inland from San Diego Bay)

10B on the hill (635 ft. elevation)

9B in the canyon (520 ft. elevation)

MattyB Grand Master

MattyB

Posted
Posted

Ooh, that timor black is nice. Ill have to try that.

Matt Bradford

"Manambe Lavaka"

Spring Valley, CA (8.5 miles inland from San Diego Bay)

10B on the hill (635 ft. elevation)

9B in the canyon (520 ft. elevation)

Pedro 65 Grand Master

Pedro 65

Posted
Posted
  On 9/2/2013 at 6:01 PM, MattyB said:

Ooh, that timor black is nice. Ill have to try that.

A few will look great in your house or outside on the porch undercover. Pete :)

DoomsDave Grand Master

DoomsDave

Posted
Posted
  On 9/2/2013 at 6:01 PM, MattyB said:

Ooh, that timor black is nice. Ill have to try that.

I second, er, third that!

And, Dypsis psammophila has that look. When it finally stems a bit.

Let's keep our forum fun and friendly.

Any data in this post is provided 'as is' and in no event shall I be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, damages resulting from accuracy or lack thereof, insult, or lost profits or revenue, claims by third parties or for other similar costs, or any special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of my opinion or the use of this data. The accuracy or reliability of the data is not guaranteed or warranted in any way and I disclaim liability of any kind whatsoever, including, without limitation, liability for quality, performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose arising out of the use, or inability to use my data. Other terms may apply.

bambooboy Newbie

bambooboy

Posted
Posted (edited)

i would first get this identified. post a photo of the culms and look at wall thickness. Boric acid soaking method can be done a couple of ways like knocking out the internodes etc... and filling bamboo. Another less known method is to use the leaves on the ground from the bamboo and smoke the bamboo which also acts a pest deterrent. Like drying many things drying at the correct rate is important and takes longer than the equivelant wood.

here is a link to borax method treating bamboo plants

Theres quite abit on the web with regards to drying bamboo techniques. Also another great effect is flattening bamboo used for paneling etc...

post-8005-0-84348200-1378260424.jpg

Edited by bambooboy

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