Appendix: Why is the bamboo so versatile?

The answer lies in its internal structure. The shoots that arise from an underground rhizome grow into woody stems (culms) that are hollow and jointed, conferring both strength and lightness, and making them ideal for many human endeavours. The shoots grow at a truly prodigious rate; no other plant, or animal, grows so tall in so short a period of time. The world record was set in Kyoto, Japan, when a culm of Ma-dake, Phyllostachys bambusoides, was recorded as having grown almost 1.3 m (4 ft) in 24 hours, the equivalent of 5 cm (2 ins) an hour. Even at colder, high altitudes the rate of growth is impressive; a shoot of Fargesia robutsta measured at Wolong Giant Panda Research Station grew a commendable 1 m (3 ft) in five days.

An ancient tradition in China was to visit the bamboo groves at night during early spring and to listen to the popping of the bamboo shoots as they broke explosively from their coverings into the night air. More prosaically, the Chinese regard bamboo shoots as a superior form of food, valuing the crisp texture. Like blanched asparagus, the most succulent bamboo shoots are those that never see the light of day. To achieve this, the peasant farmers walk barefoot through a bamboo grove in early spring, feeling for the tell-tale bumps that signal that a shoot is about to emerge. They cover the spot with a pile of earth, returning a few days later to harvest the crop.