Retro Brand Water Bamboo

Retro Brand Water Bamboo

　　Water bamboo, also known as water bamboo shoot, is a perennial rhizomatous aquatic herbaceous plant. The cultivated varieties include double-season and single-season water bamboo. The double-season variety is commonly called 4·9 bamboo, harvested twice a year starting in early April and early September according to the lunar calendar, with harvesting ending by the end of September. The single-season variety can be categorized by growth season into early-maturing, mid-maturing, and late-maturing. Through cultivation improvements, the early-maturing variety is generally harvested and marketed around early May according to the lunar calendar (around the time of the Dragon Boat Festival), with a harvesting period of about three months; the mid-maturing variety usually comes to market in early August according to the lunar calendar, with the highest supply around National Day; the late-maturing variety (locally known as Shatou bamboo) starts to be available around National Day, with a harvesting window of 20–30 days. Coupled with storage and processing, it has the capacity for year-round market supply. Tangxia water bamboo, grown under unique climatic and soil conditions, is characterized by its tenderness, whiteness, fineness, cleanliness, and delicious flavor, earning high trust in the market and enjoying particular consumer popularity under normal circumstances. Its market price is typically higher than that of common products and it sells well. Modern medicine believes that regular consumption may help prevent hypertension, guard against arteriosclerosis, and offer certain therapeutic benefits for patients with cirrhosis, uremia, and complex kidney diseases. Traditional Chinese medicine considers it effective for promoting diuresis, relieving thirst, and detoxifying. Recent research by Japanese scientists has found that water bamboo also offers beautifying effects such as skin brightening and moisturizing. (Wenling)