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UNIVERSITI PUTRA MALAYSIA
EFFECTS OF AGE AND HEIGHT ON SELECTED PROPERTIES OF THREE MALAYSIAN BAMBOO SPECIES
ABD. LATIF MOHMOD
FH 1991 1
EFFECTS OF AGE AND HEIGHT ON SELECTED • PROPERTIES OF THREE MALAYSIAN BAMBOO SPECIES
By
ABD. LATIF MOHMOD
Thesis Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science
in the Faculty of Forestry Universiti Pertanian Malaysia
December 1991
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would l ike to expres s my grat itude to my supervisor ,
Associate Professor Mohd . Z in Jusoh for his help and advice
throughout the study . The help rendered by my co-supervisors ,
Assoc iate Professor Dr . Nik Muhamad Maj id and Mr . I smail
Hashim is also apprec iated .
Thanks are due to Dato ' Dr . Sal leh Mohd . Noor , Director
General , Forest Research Institute: Malaysia (FRIM ) for giving
me the opportunity to undertake this cours e . utmost thanks are
extended to Mr . Khoo Khean Choon of FRIM for proof reading the
manuscript .
Last but not least , heart felt apprec iat ion i s due to my
dear wife , Halidah for her constant encouragement , sacrifices
and pat ience ; and to my son , Mohd . Danial , who has given me the
strength during the course of my study . F inal ly , I dedicate
this thesis to my late parents , Mohmod and Satiah ; and best
friend , Raml i Yahaya . I wish them to be under the guidance and
in the path o f Allah s . w . t . Wassalam.
ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS • • • • • • • • • • • 41 . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii
LIST OF TABLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi
LIST OF FIGURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
LIST OF PLATES x
ABSTRACT xi
ABSTRAK
CHAPTER
I
I I
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii
INTRODUCTION 1
LITERATURE REVIEW 6
Types of Bamboo for Indu strial Use 6
Genus: Bambu sa Schreber 7
Genu s: Gigantochloa Kurz. 9
Properties o f Bamboo 10
Variation in Anatomical Propert ies • • • . . • • . • • 12
Variation in Physical Properties . • . • • . . • . . . • 1 7
E f fects of Anatomical and Physical Propert ies on Strength of Bamboo . • • • . • . • • . . . • . • 20
Natural Durab ility of Bamboo 2 2
Physical Factors Affecting the Natural Durability of Bamboo • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 23
iii
I I I
Chemical Factors Affect ing the Natural Durab ility of Bamboo
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
MATERIALS AND METHODS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Source of Material s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Field Procedure
Sampling of D iscrete Portion
Determination of Phys ical Propert ies
Moisture Content
Oven-dry Dens ity
Radial and Tangent ial Shrinkage
Determinat ion of Anatomical Propert ies
Vascular Bundle D istribut ion
F ibre Length
Cell Wall Thickness
Mechanical Propert ies of Bamboo
Page
2 5
2 6
2 8
2 8
28
30
31
31
31
33
3 4
34
35
37
in Green Condit ion • • • . . • • • . . • . . • • • . • • • • • . . . • . • • 37
Shear Parallel to Grain Test 38
Compres s ion Parallel to Grain Test 4 1
Static Bending Test • . . • . • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • 42
Machining Propert ies . . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • 44
Natural Durabil ity of Bamboo 47
Starch Analys is . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Total Avai l able Sugar Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
iv
IV
v
Page
Natural Durab i l ity Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 7
Stat istical Analys is . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
General Phy s ical Characterist ic s of Bamboo . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • 49
Anatomical Propert ies of Bamboo
Vascular Bundles
F ibre Length
Cell Wal l Thicknes s
Phys ical Propert ies
Variation in Moisture Content
Variat ion in Oven-dry Dens ity
Shr inkage
Mechanical Propert ies of Bamboo
Machining propert ies
Starch and Total Sugar Content
Relation of Borer Attack and Carbohydrate Content of Bamboo
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
VITA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
v
52
57
61
62
64
65
69
7 3
7 7
85
92
100
111
117
128
131
Table
1
2
3
4
5
LIST OF TABLES
L ist of Some Bamboo Species of Peninsular
Malays ia Suitable for Industrial Use • . . . . • . . .
Propert ie� Tested Each Sample Test
Types of Machine ' satay' sticks , Manufacturing
Average Phys ical Bamboo Spe c ies
and the D imens ion of
Used Skewers
for and
Toothpicks , Chopsticks
Characterist ics of the
Correlat ion Coefficients of D i f ferent Physical Characteristics with Age and Height of Bamboo . . . . . • . . . . • . • . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . .
6 Anatomical Characteristics of the Three Bamboo Species
7 Summary of Analys is of Variance on Anatomical Characteristics of �. blumeana , � . vulgaris and Q . scort ech inii in Green Condit ion
8 Correlat ion Coe ff icient s of D i f ferent Anatomical Characteristics with Age and
Page
1 1
3 0
4 6 .
50
5 1
5 3
5 4
He ight of Bamboo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 5
9
10
1 1
1 2
1 3
Average Mo isture Content ( % ) of the Three Bamboo Spec ies . . . . . . . . . . • . . . • . . . . . . • • • . . . . . . .
summary of Analysis of Variance for Moisture Content of �. vulgari s , �. blumeana and Q. scortechinii . . • . . . . . • . . . . .
Correlat ion Coef f icients of D i f ferent Phys ical Propert ies With Anatomical Characterist ics , Age and Height of Bamboo
Average Oven-Dry Dens ity ( kg/m3 ) of the Three Bamboo Species . . . . . • . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Summary Dens ity
of o f
Analysis Bamboo
vi
of Variance for . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
66
6 7
6 8
7 0
72
Table
14
1 5
1 6
1 7
1 8
Average Shrinkage Value ( % ) of the Three Bamboo Spec ies . . . . . . • . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . • . • . . .
Correlat ion Coefficients of Shrinkage with Moisture Content and Density of Bamboo
Average Mechanical Properties of the Three Bamboo Spe c ies in Green Condition . . . . • . . • . . • .
Summary o f Analys is of Variance on Mechanical Properties of �. b lumeana , �. vu lgaris and Q. scortechinii in Green Condition . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . • . . . . • . • . . . . . • .
Correlation Coefficients o f Age and Height on Mechanical propert ies of Bamboo . . . . . . . . . . .
19 Corre lat ion Coefficients of Physical and Anatomical Characteristics on Mechanical
Page
7 4
76
78
79
80
Properties of Bamboo . . . . • . • • . . • . . • . . • . . . . . . . . 82
2 0
2 1
2 2
2 3
2 4
2 5
Machining Species
propert ies of the Three Bamboo
Average Recovery Bamboo Products
Rate ( % Weight ) of
Summary of Analysis of Variance on Recovery Rate and Average Qual ity of Bamboo Products . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Correlation Coef f icient s on the E ffect of Age and Height of Culms on Recovery Rate and Qual ity of Bamboo Products . • . . • . . . . .
Duncan ' s New Multiple Range Test Mean Values of Recovery Rate of Bamboo Products
Carbohydrate content (%) of Bamboo
2 6 Summary o f Analysis o f Var iance o n Carbohydrate Content of � . vu lgaris, �. blumeana and
2 7
Q . scortechinii
Means Values of of Bamboos at
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Carbohydrate Content ( % ) Different Age and Height
Level s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
vii
86
87
89
90
91
93
94
9 5
Table
28 Correlat ion Coef f ic ient s of Carbohydrate
Page
Content with Age and Culms Height . • . . . . . . . . . . 98
2 9 Average Borer Attack ( Number o f Holes ) on Bamboo After One Year of Exposure • . . . . . . . . . . . 103
3 0 Summary of Analysis o f Variance of Borer Attack on Bamboo . . • • . . • . . • . . . . • . • . . . • . • . . . . . . 103
3 1 Duncan ' s New Multiple Range Test on Mean Values of the Number of Borer Holes
32
on Bamboo
Correlation Between Borer Height and Age of Bamboo
Holes ( BH ) on
3 3 E f fects o f Carbohydrate Content o n Borer
104
106
Attack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
3 4 E f fects of Moisture Content and Dens ity on Borer Attack . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . • . • . . . . . . . • . . . . . 110
viii
Figure
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
LIST OF FIGURES
A . Pos it ion of Samples Taken from a Culm
B . General Cutting of a Culm for Testing
D iscrete Zone of Samples for Determinat ion of Moisture Content and Oven-dry Dens ity
Select ion of Fibres for Measurement
J ig Assembly for Shear Testing
General Arrangement of Testing Equ ipment for Compres s ion Test • • . • . • . • • . • • . • • . • . . • . . • . •
General Arrangement of Testing Equipment for Static Bending Test . . . . . . • • • . . . . . . • . . . . . .
Product ion Flow for Toothpick , ' Satay' Stick , Skewer and Chopstick Manuf acture
General ( x 2 0 )
Cross Sect ion of Bamboo Wall s
ix
Page
2 9
2 9
3 2
36
39
4 1
43
4 5
5 6
LIST OF PLATES
Plate
1 Arrangement of Test ing Equipment for Shear Parallel to Grain Test . . • . . . . . . . • . • . • • • . . . . . .
2 Scanning E lectron Micrograph o f Parenchyma Ce l l s with Starch Granules ( x 700 ) • . • • . • . . . . .
3 Cros s Sect ion of Three-Year-Old � . blumeana Culm Wal l ( Middle Layer of the Middle
4
5
6
7
Port ion )
Cros s Sect ion of Three-Year-Old � . vulgaris Culm Wal l ( Middle Layer of the Middle Middle Port ion ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . .
Cros s Section of Three-Year-Old Q . scortechinii Culm Wall ( Middle Layer o f the Middle Port ion ) . . . . . . . . • . . . • . . • . . . • . . . . . . . . . .
The Bamboo Borer Bostrychidae Family
�. minutu s o f the
Borer Attack on Bamboo Spl its
x
Page
40
5 7
5 8
58
59
102
102
Abstract o f thesis submitted to the senate o f Univers it i Pertanian Malaysia in ful f i lment o f the requ irements for the degree of Master of Science .
Chairman
Facu lty
EFFECTS OF AGE AND HEI GHT ON SELECTED
PROPERTIES OF THREE MALAYSIAN BAMBOO SPECIES
By
ABD . LATI F MOBMOD
December 1 9 91
Assoc iate Pro f . Mohd . Z in Jusoh
Forestry
Although bamboo is widely found in Peninsu lar Malaysia ,
little research has been conducted on its importance for
industrial use. A study was initiated to evaluate the effect of
age and height of three common bamboo species namely Bambusa
blumeana Schult . ' Buluh duri' , Bambu sa vu lgaris Schrad . ' Buluh
minyak' and Gigantochloa scortechini i Gamble ' Buluh semantan'
on their anatomical, physica l, me c h an i c a l and mac h i n ing
propert ies and durabi l ity against borers .
Al l the anatomical propert ies except radial/tangent ial
ratio o f the vascular bundles s ize , showed no s ignif icant
relat ionship with age and height . The f ibres of both the
xi
Bambusa species were shorter than those o f Q . s cortechinii
( ranges of 1 . 7 4 - 3 . 7 6 mm and 3 . 5 0 - 4 . 24 mm , respectively ) .
The average cell wall thickness of the three bamboo species was
in the range of 5 - 7 pm .
The init ial moisture content and oven-dry densit ie s o f the
bamboos dif fered s ignificantly with species and maturity but
not with height . The moisture content of the samples ranged
from 54 - 300 percent in ft. vu lgari s , 6 0 - 1 6 4 percent i n ft .
b lumeana and 67 - 1 3 3 percent in Q. scortechinii . The densities
of the bamboos , however , were in the range of 200 - 630 kg/m3 ,
3 6 0 - 690 kg/m3 and 380 - 620 kg/m3 in ft. vu lgaris , ft . blumeana
and Q . scortechini i , respectively . The radial and tangent ial
shrinkages decreased with increase in age and culm height . In
general , the strength propert ies of the bamboos increased with
age and culm height .
Bamboo should be harvested and processed at two years of
age with usage limited to the basal and middle portion to
ensure good quality products . Q. scortechinii, which generally
pos ses sed a higher content of starch and total sugars , was
observed to be less susceptible to borer attack t han both the
Bambusa species . This indicates that the durab i l ity of bamboo
may also be affected by its inherent physical and chemical
properties besides its carbohydrate content .
xii
Abstrak tesis ini dikemukakan kepada Senat Universiti Pertanian Malaysia sebagai mernenuhi keperluan untuk mendapatkan ij azah Master Sain s .
KESAB UMUR DAN KETINGGIAN BATANG TERHADAP BEBERAPA
SIFAT TERPILIH PADA TIGA JENIS BULUB MALAYSIA
Oleh
ABD. LATIF MOllMOn
D isernber 19 9 1
pengerusi Pro f . Madya Mohd . Z in Jusoh
Fakulti Perhutanan
Buluh boleh dijumpai dengan mudahnya di kebanyakan kawasan
di semenanj ung Malaysia . Narnun demikian , kerj a penyel idikan
yang d i j a l ankan kurang mernbe r ikan t umpu an t e r h adap
kepentingannya sebagai bahan asas perindustrian . Memandangkan
kepada banyaknya buluh yang hidup rnel iar di negara ini , satu
kaj ian as as dijalankan bagi menilai kesan urnur dan ketinggian
batang di dalarn t iga j enis buluh utarna iaitu Barnbusa blurneana
schu lt . ( Bu luh dur i ) , � . vulgaris Schrad ( Buluh minyak ) dan Q .
s co rt e c h i n i i Gamb l e ( Bu l u h sema nt an ) t er hadap s i f at - s i f at
anatomi , f izikal , mekanikal , pemerosesan , kandungan pemakanan
dan kerintangannya terhadap kurnbang bubuk .
xiii
Umur dan ketinggian batang didapati t idak memberi kesan
y a n g berert i t e rh adap s i f at anatomi ( ke c u a l i n i s b ah
j ej ari/tangen ) . Gentian bagi kedua-dua spesis Bambusa j uga
didapati lebih pendek · ( j ulat antara 1 . 74 - 3 . 7 6 rom) berbanding
Q. scortechinii ( 3 . 50 - 4 . 24 rom). Ketebalan dinding sel ketiga
t iga buluh pul a adalah di dalam j u l at purata diantara 5 - 7 fm .
Kandungan lembapan dan ketumpatan buluh amat dipengaruhi
o l e h p e n i ngkatan urnur t et ap i b e r b e z a rneng i kut ket inggi an
batang . Kandungan lembapan buluh-buluh adalah berjul at antara
54 - 300 peratus , 60 - 1 64 peratus dan 67 - 1 3 3 peratus setiap
satunya di dalam � . vulgari s , � . b lurneana dan Q . scortechinii .
Keturnpatan buluh pula adalah di dalam l ingkungan 200 630
kg/rn3 (�. vu lgaris ) , 3 60 - 690 kg/m3 ( � . b lumeana ) dan 380 -
620 kg/m3 ( Q . scortechinii ) . Nilai pengecutan bagairnanapun
didapat i rnenurun mengikut kenaikan urnur dan ket inggian batang .
Ini berbeza pada s ifat mekanikal yang secara amnya dipengaruhi
oleh kenaikan umur dan ketinggian batang buluh . Penuaian buluh
b a g i tu j u an pembu atan a d a l ah d i c adangkan supaya d i l akukan
selepas ianya berumur dua tahun dan dengan had penggunaan dari
bahagian pangkal ke tengah batang bagi menj amin kadar pul angan ,
mutu dan hayat barangan yang lebih baik.
Walaupun Q . scortechinii didapati mengandungi kanj i dan
j umlah gul a yang lebih tinggi , kerintangannya terhadap serangan
xiv
kumbang bubuk ternyata lebih baik berbanding dengan kedua-dua
b u l u h l a i n yang d ikaj i . I n i membawa penger t i an b a h awa
k e r e n t a n a n b u l u h j uga me l ib at ka n s i f at - s i f at f i z i k a l d an
kandungan kimia tertentu yang dimiliki oleh j enis-j enis buluh
itu sendiri .
xv
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
Bamboo belongs to a unique group o f p l ants o f the giant
arborescent grass family ( Gram ineae ) in which the woody culms
emerge from underground rhizomes . It i s a shrub that has a
tree- like habit with culms that are usually erect but sometimes
c l imb ing ( Holtum , 1959 ; Liese , 198 5 ) . It is also characterised
by it s woody , mostly hollow culms with internodes and branches
at the nodes of culms .
Bamboo generally grows in forest areas from sea level to
about 400 m above sea level in all cont inents except Europe .
Out of an est imated 600 - 700 species in the world , more than
half can be found in As ia ( Liese , 1 9 8 5 ) . B amboos , l ike other
l ignocellulosic materials have long been explo ited by mankind
for various purposes in many developing countries in As ia,
Africa and South America ( Tewari and B indhi S ingh , 1 9 7 9 ) . It is
cons idered as one of the oldest bu ilding materials used in the
rural areas and vil lages , and is popul ar mainly due to its
avail ab i l ity, low cost , strength , and the fact that it i s a
high yielding renewab le resource .
In Malaysia, bamboo is found in abundance although widely
scattered in about f ive percent of the tot a l forest reserve
a r e a ( Ab d . L at i f , 1 9 8 7 ) . I t h a s , however , r e c e ived
1
2
comparat ively l ittle attention as far as research is concerned .
Forest management in Malays i a , for instance , has not given due
emphas i s.
to bamboo as an . industrial resource to be exploited
systemati cal ly . Traditionally, bamboo has been considered as a
weed in forestry pract ice in which attempt s were made to
prevent or control its growth ( Medway , 19 7 3 ; Ng , 1980 ; Sal leh
and Wong , 198 7 ) .
The bamboo industry in Malays ia goes back to 1 9 5 0 ' s when
bamboo was commonly explo ited for craft and agri cu ltural needs .
Among the products are baskets for transporting vegetables ,
poultry and hogs . The industry which produces these products is
mainly cottage as wel l as part time in nature . The work force
compr ises mostly housewives and children to supplement the
family income ( Abd . Latif et al . , 1989 ) . Due to the current
demand for disposable items such as chopst i cks , the bamboo
mach ine- intens ive industry has been booming over the last f ive
years . This has encouraged the import o f Taiwanese- and
Japanese-made machines for process ing Malaysian bamboos . As a
result , bamboo which was once cons idered a weed has been
exten s ive ly e x p l o i t e d to meet t he demand f rom c o nsumer
countries particularly Japan , the Republ ic of Taiwan and Korea .
One hundred and four machine- intens ive bamboo processing
f ac t o r i e s have been e s t ab l i s h ed s in c e 1 9 8 5 i n P e n i n s u l ar
Malays i a . These are mostly located in t he west coast of
3
t he pen i n s u l a r and produ c e b amboo p r o du c t s l i ke s kewe r s ,
chopsticks, furniture, spec i f ic craft items and j oss paper for
religious purposes ( Abd . Lat i f et al . , 1989 ) . Even though the
number of mi l l s has increased, The Malays ian Department o f
Statistics reported that Peninsular Malays ia exported only
about MR 2 1 8 , 6 8 5 FOB worth of bamboo products in 1988 , that is
approximately 0 . 6 percent of the global market ( Malays ian Trade
Commiss ion Tokyo, 1988 ) . The pr imary reason for this miniscule
export quantity is that the quality of local ly-made bamboo
produ c t s i s c o n s idered r e l at iv e l y p o o r t o meet the h i gh
standards imposed by the import ing countries ( Lee, 1989 ) . This
industrial set-back is related to indiscriminate harvest ing of
b amboo w i t hout mu ch cons iderat i o n g iven to it s f i n a l or
spec i f ic intended usage .
The select ion of bamboo materials su itab le for machine
intens ive indu stry, construct ion and hous ing is dictated by its
anatom i c a l , phy s i c a l and mecha n i c a l propert ie s . Improper
selection of age and species of bamboo wi l l o ften resu lt in
h igher w a s t age and product s of l ow grade for export .
Furthermore, bamboo is also prone to fungal and insect attacks
due to the available nutrients such as starch and sugars
( Plank, 1 9 5 0 ; L iese, 1980 ; Sulthoni, 1987 , 1 9 88 ) . Detailed
studies on the relationship of species, age and height to the
natural durabi l ity will further lead to proper select ion of
more resistant bamboos for industrial applicat ion .
4
No published report exists on the e ffect o f species , age
and stem sections on the properties o f natural stand Malaysian
bazrtboos for industrial use. Therefore , the general obj ective o f
this study is to assess the variation in some natural stand o f
b amboo spec ie s . Three common ly ut i l i z e d Ma l ay s i a n b amb o o s
name l y Bambu s a b l umeana S c hu l t ( Bu l uh d ur i ) , �. vu lga r i s
Schrad . ( Buluh minyak ) and Gigantochloa scortechinii Gamble
( Buluh semantan ) of known age ( one- to three-years-old ) were
se lected for the study . The parameters used are the anatomical
propert ies name ly, fibre length, vascul ar bundle distribut ion
and size , and cell wal l thickness . The phys ical propert ies
measured are mo isture content , dens ity and shrinkage ; while the
mechanical propert ies measured inc lude shear , compres s ion and
bending strengt h . Machining propert ies , c arbohydrate content
( starch and total sugars ) and the natural durabil ity towards
borer are also taken into cons iderat ion . The above propert ies
were studied because of their importance in the manufacturing
process and in the ultimate product qua l ity and durab i l ity .
The highly variable propert ies o f bamboo present problems
i n proc e s s i ng and ut i l i z a t i o n . Thu s , future proc e s s ing
improvement should be focussed on harvest ing bamboo o f des ired
qual ity, species and suitable age for end-uses . The inter
relationship of the properties studied may indicate whether
s i l v i cu lt u r e t re atment , t r e e impro vement , and harve s t ing
practices are required to produce bamboo stands with improved
5
propert ies suitable for manufacturing purposes . The study was
conducted at the Forest Research Inst itute of Malaysia ( FRIM ) ,
Kepong, Selangor , Malaysia where the naturally occuring bamboo
samples of known age were obtained .
CHAPTER II
LITERATURE REVIEW
Informat ion on the basic propert ies of Malays ian bamboos
part icularly in relat ion to their industrial appl icat ions is
very l imited . Since many bamboo species remain unutilized,
research ef fort is needed to determine the propert ies of such
species and to develop appropriate technology to ut ilize them .
Due to lack of research information on local bamboos, a maj or
portion o f this l iterature review is based on the work done by
researchers in other countries .
Types of Bamboo for Industrial Use
Out of the 45 bamboo species ident if ied by Holtum ( 19 5 8 )
in Peninsular Malaysia, only about 13 species are widely used .
These inc lude Bambusa blumeana schult, � . heterostachya Munro ,
� . vu lgaris Schrad . , Dendrocalamu s asper ( Schu lt . ) Backer , Q.
pendulus Ridl . , Gigantochloa lat i folia Ridl . , Q. levis ( B lanco )
Merr . , Q . ligul ata Gamb le, Q. scortechinii Gamble, Q. wrayi
Gamble, Schizostachyum brachyladum Kurz, and §. . grande Ridl .
( Holtum, 1 9 5 8 ; Gilliland et al . , 1972 ; Ng, 1980; Abd . Lat if,
1 9 8 7 ) .
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This sect ion describes the three species selected for this
study .
Genus : Bambusa Schreber
B ambo o s t h at are grouped in t h i s g e nu s are e a s i l y
ident if ied from the culm sheath auricles and their stiff
sheath-blade covered with darkish brown hairs . This genus can
also be recognised by the presence of thorns or spikes at the
lateral branches . Some common examples are :
Bambusa blumeana Schult . ( Buluh dur i )
The shoot of this spec ies has dark brown hairs which get s
darker towards the apex . The culms are tal l , about 10 cm in
diameter and grow in clumps and easily recognised by thorny
characteristics from the copiou s spreading low thorny branches .
This species is classified as large diameter bamboo .
The culm sheath may extend up to 3 0 cm and its back is
covered with loose dark brown hair . The internodes are green
and glabrous when young with lateral branches borne almost at
the basal port ion . The lower branches spread horizont al ly and
bear stout , curved spines in groups of three , with the middle
spines being longest .
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The ligules are stiff and about 5 mm to 1 2 mm tall in the
middle while the outer part consists of a stiff bristle about
12 rom long .
This bamboo i s widely distributed in Java and Eastern
Peninsular Malaysia and traditionally used for furniture and
musical instrument ( Ng , 1980 ) .
� . vulgaris Schrad . ( Buluh minyak , aao, aro , beting , pan ) .
The c lump is usually big and umbrella-shaped . It is a
common s ight in the village and on river banks .
The eulms are about 10 - 20 m tall , slightly irregular ,
and about 5 - 10 cm in diameter at the base . The culm is
classified as big diameter bamboo and not closely tufted . The
culm internode is green in colour . Culm sheath is densely
covered with appres sed almost black loos e hairs . The sheath
blade is ye llowish when young .
The nodes are prominent, with 20 - 4 5 em internode lengt h ,
poss e s s appressed dark hairs and scales of wax when young
but become smooth and shiny with age . The ligules are normally
3 rom tall or more , with slightly crisped edges and short hairs .
The origin o f this bamboo is stil l unknown , but it is
often cultivated in the tropics , inc luding Malaysia . It can be
found growing abundant ly on the river
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b anks and are valued
for it s good quality edible shoots ( Hildebrand , 1 9 5 4 ) besides
being used for toothpicks , bl inds , chopst icks and ornamental
purposes ( Abd . Lat i f , 1987 ; Abd . Lat i f et al . , 1 9 89 ) .
Genus : Giqantochloa Kurz .
The sp e c ie s b e l o nging to t hi s g e nu s grow in Burm a ,
I nd o c h i na , t h e Ma lay arch ipe l ago a n d t h e P h i l ippine s .
Gigantochloa can be identified in the field by its straight
culm, almost low but firm auric les with narrow sheath-bl ade .
The ligule is often tall and thin , with the blade either erect
or def l exed . The most common species is :
Q . scortechinii Gamble ( Buluh semantan ) .
The culms are about 10 - 20 m tall, straight and usually
covered with fine , white waxy powder when young , green when old
and with internodes o f about 40 cm long . The culm-sheath is
light orange at the top when young and covered with appres sed ,
coarse nearly black hairs . The sheath blade is much narrower
than the top o f the culm-sheath , and de flexed at right angles .
The branches at each node are few but with dense foliage ;
t h e au r i cl e s are small and u s u ally a c c omp a n i e d w i t h f ew