CSIR-NEERI Biodiversity Portal

CALCUTTA BAMBOO

(Dendrocalamus strictus Roxb.Nees)

Botanical name	: Dendrocalamus strictus Roxb.Nees
Common Name	: Male Bamboo / Calcutta Bamboo
Family	: Poaceae
Synonym	: Bambusa stricta (Roxb.) Roxb.
About	: Dendrocalamus strictus is a medium-sized evergreen bamboo with culms of about 8-20 m tall and 2.5-8 cm in diameter. The internodes are 30-45 cm long and thick-walled. Its nodes are somewhat swollen and basal nodes are often rooting. Culms are hollow when growing under humid conditions, but nearly solid under dry conditions. This species has pale blue - green culms when young, and dull green or yellow culms on maturity, which can slightly zig-zag from the middle towards the top. Many clustered branches with 1 larger dominant branch. The simple leaves are alternate. They are lanceolate with entire margins and parallel venation Leaf size is variable between 5-25 cm long and 1-3 cm broad .the flowers are arranged in spikes. The grasses produce caryopses. It is native to India, Myanmar, Thailand and the Malay Peninsula. It is extensively used as raw material in paper mills and also for a variety of purposes such as light construction, furniture, musical instruments, bamboo board, mats, sticks, agricultural implements, rafts, baskets, woven wares and household utensils. Young shoots are edible and used as food. Leaves are used as forage, and decoction of leaves and nodes and silicious matter is used in traditional medicine. Study on tissue culture of this species has been preceded in India.