A bamboo belt surrounds the earth, along latitude 40. This plant is to be found on nearly all continents North and South, but for Antarctic. But Phyllostachys Pubescens, the raw material of BambooTouch, is located only in China.
Bamboo is a member of the big family of grasses, more precisely the poaceae, like wheat, maize and grass.
Nowadays the botanists have identified some 1,200 varieties of bamboo, among which 80 are classified. The plants size ranges from the smallest ( 30 cm) to the giant species up to 40 meters high.
Bamboos have underground roots, called rhizomes, carrying the buds and roots. Some buds develop and give culms (overground stems) that are hollow and partitioned at the knots level. Culms are of different colours (green, yellow, black) and can be spotted or striated.
The growth knots are spaced regularly, as unlike a trunk that grows in diameter, culms unfold like a telescopic stick. Unlike the other trees, bamboo has only one growth ring, since its thickness does not change. The bamboo shoot comes out of the ground with a circumference that remains unchanged throughout its lifetime.
Every year when the growth period of culms and branches ends, the rhizome continues to grow and to branch out underground.
Bamboo grows at an altitude of 4,000 meters as well as in hot and humid jungles. It withstands temperatures of – 20°C.
