Variation in Fibre and Parenchyma Wall Thickness in Culms of the Bamboo Sinobambusa Tootsik

The mid-internodal anatomy of three culms estimated to be less than one, one to two and more than two years old respectively, has been investigated revealing significant increases in average cell wall thickness of the fibres and ground tissue parenchyma. The basic density of the culm also increases. Cortical parenchyma, in contrast, shows no obvious change. Both fibres and parenchyma appear to retain living protoplasts . Progressive thickening of the cell walls over a period of perhaps several years would have important implications for harvesting and utilisation of bamboo culms and would explain reported changes in certain mechanical properties with ageing.