Five Famous Bamboos of Mount Tai Fu

Five Famous Bamboos of Mount Tai Fu

　　　Bamboo, belonging to the Poaceae family, is a perennial plant with woody underground stems that can be either long or short. Bamboo stalks are hard like wood and have distinct nodes. China has over 250 species of bamboo, mainly distributed in the Yangtze River basin as well as in southern and southwestern regions. Bamboo shares the same noble qualities as pine, and the ancients often mentioned them together. The Book of Songs · Minor Odes · The Dormitory reads: “Thick grow the bamboos, lush grow the pines,” believed to be a poem sung during the construction of a palace by King Xuan of Zhou. "Thick grow the bamboos, lush grow the pines" means thriving bamboos and pines, used metaphorically to represent a flourishing family. Bamboo also has the advantage of stronger vitality compared to pine. Pine trees rely on seeds for reproduction, resulting in poor propagation ability, whereas bamboo is different. If its main stalk is cut down, new shoots will quickly sprout from the roots underground. As long as the roots remain, offspring will continue endlessly. Just planting a few bamboos on a barren mountain will, within ten years, turn the area lush and verdant. Zheng Banqiao’s verse, “Biting fast into the green hills, unrelenting; its roots set firm in cracked rocks. Enduring a thousand grindings and ten thousand strikes yet still strong, letting the winds blow from any quarter,” is an excellent tribute to bamboo.

　　Linli County’s Mount Tai Fu is extremely rich in resources. In addition to rare flowers, exotic trees, and precious animals, it also produces over 100 varieties of bamboo. Its speciality, the Five Famous Bamboos — Shui (Water), Shan (Mountain), Nan (South), Gui (Osmanthus), and Zi (Purple) — generates economic benefits of several million yuan annually.

　　Shui Bamboo It is quite rare for shui bamboo to grow in mountainous areas, but Mount Tai Fu is an exception. Because Mount Tai Fu is situated in a location described as “a single dot of Dongting Lake surrounded by countless mountains,” it enjoys abundant rainfall and a warm, humid climate. The banks of streams at the foot of steep ridges and low-lying areas are ideal for shui bamboo growth. The main production areas of Tai Fu’s shui bamboo are around Heishanxi, Longkouyu, Junqiyu, Fenghuangshan, and the Golden Summit beneath Santai Peak. One notable feature of shui bamboo is its flat nodes, fine cores, and tall stalks, generally exceeding 10 meters, with very flexible culms, making it perfect for weaving delicate handicrafts and farming tools. Another key trait is its consistent thickness from base to tip, so farmers commonly use it for mosquito net poles and frames for growing fruits and vegetables. Every year, tens of thousands of tons of Tai Fu shui bamboo are sold to other regions.

　　Shan Bamboo Shan bamboo is the dominant species on Mount Tai Fu, found all over the mountain, especially on Maomao Ridge and various mountain peaks and ridgelines. Shan bamboo plants are not tall, with lower branching, and their culms are both soft and tough. Due to their good elasticity, they are excellent material for making brooms. Local farmers live off the mountain, and every spring and autumn, they head up the mountain to harvest shan bamboo. They transport it back and stack it like piles of hay, forming small mountains for storage. During summer and winter, whole families—men, women, young, and old—engage in bundling bamboo brooms, which are then transported in trucks to other areas. Today, Tai Fu bamboo brooms enjoy nationwide fame.

　　Nan Bamboo Also known as mao bamboo, nan bamboo can be called the king of bamboos. It combines the characteristics of various bamboo types, with tall stalks and large culms. The tallest nan bamboo can reach dozens of meters, with the largest being as thick as a bucket. Nan bamboo is valuable in every part; its culms have dozens of layers, which can be used to weave a wide range of fine handicrafts and utensils. Water boiled in a nan bamboo tube is pure, sweet, and refreshing; rice cooked in one is fragrant and delicious; and vegetables steamed in one are both colorful and tasty. Carving on nan bamboo is more lifelike and exquisite than on other types of wood. A single nan bamboo stalk can generate hundreds of yuan in economic value. Tai Fu’s nan bamboo is mainly found in major forest farms and around residents’ homes. It is one of the local pillar industries.

　　Gui Bamboo Gui bamboo stands out among bamboo species due to its tall stalks and hard texture. Utensils woven from gui bamboo culms are highly durable. Because of its unique rigidity, it is the best choice for making clothes-drying poles, boat poles, and duck-herding poles. There is a particular art to crafting these poles locally. Typically, newly cut bamboo is slow-roasted over a low flame for three days while being bent and massaged. This serves two purposes: increasing hardness and ensuring the pole remains straight and properly shaped. Tai Fu’s gui bamboo is mainly found at the foot of the mountain and near residential homes. Every year, buyers come from all over the country to purchase it.

　　Zi Bamboo Zi bamboo is a rare species among bamboos, seldom found even across China or globally. It gets its name because its outer skin resembles the purple color of sugarcane. Zi bamboo has short, green, wrinkled sheaths, and its spikelets form fan-shaped clusters containing 3–4 small flowers, typically blooming in July. With its elegant posture and purple stalks, it is valued as an ornamental bamboo. Its thick stalks can be made into bookshelves and tables, while thinner ones are used for making flutes, xiao (Chinese vertical flutes), and tobacco pipes. Zi bamboo is also a superior traditional Chinese medicine. For instance, drinking water boiled from its roots can cure bites from rabid dogs. Zi bamboo stalks are also an effective tool for preventing attacks from rabid dogs — simply carrying one will keep even the fiercest at bay. Moreover, using a zi bamboo pole as a walking stick is believed to have health benefits and ward off illness. By divine blessing, this rare species has existed on Mount Tai Fu since time immemorial. Near the Ximochi (Ink-Washing Pool) under Tianxin Yan on Mount Tai Fu, there grows a grove of zi bamboo, which is one of the Twenty-Four Scenic Spots of the mountain. Since the height of Chinese civilization, for thousands of years, Mount Tai Fu has been one of the nation’s few renowned ancient mountains, attracting emperors, generals, scholars, and poets to admire its bamboo and explore its serenity. When Ming Dynasty’s Yang Ying composed his verses on the 24 Scenic Spots of Mount Tai Fu, he spoke highly of the zi bamboo grove: “Who planted these gentlemen deep in the mountains? / A thousand stalks, a hundred feet, forming their own grove. / Moonlight shifts on dewy leaves, casting graceful shadows; / Rain sprinkles wind-blown tips, tracing delicate lines. / Not weeping by the Xiang River’s parting flow, / Nor once sweeping clouds in compassion from the South Sea. / Surely dragons guard this place at last, / Forbidding mortal axes from asking its worth.”