Bamboo Resources Conservation and Utilization in Malaysia

8/3/2019 Bamboo Resources Conservation and Utilization in Malaysia

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Bamboo resources conservation

and utilization in Malaysia

FRIM, Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Introduction

Peninsular Malaysia has a total land area of 32.86 million hectares on approximately 330 000 km2. The sizeis similar to Norway. About 72% of land includes forests of about 19.4 million hectares and tree plantationsof 4.2 million hectares. In the country, the permanent forest reserve area is 14.1 million hectares. The areadesignated as protected forest amounts to about 2.9 million hectares, with no logging whatsoever and itwould remain in pristine condition without any disturbance. About 330 000 hectares of the Protection Forestplus another 1.8 million hectares of forest outside of it constitute national parks, wildlife sanctuaries andnature reserves. Approximately 11.2 million hectares of the Permanent Forest Reserve are earmarked as

Production Forest (Fig. 1). Areas within the Production Forest are commercially logged on a rotationalcycle, supporting sustained-yield management.

Malaysia consists of Tropical Evergreen Forest with upper montane forest at the topmost level that occupiesa few peaks which tower over 1700 m. The montane forest extends from 800 m to about 1700 m above sealevel. The hill forest occupies between 300 to 800 m on the inland Malaysian mountain ranges where manylowland species, including numerous dipterocarp species are found. The vegetation in lowland forest isinfluenced by sunlight, wind and other elements. It is the most abundant from lower exposed ridges tohigher sheltered valleys, the abundance of dipterocarp species gives these forests the name hill dipterocarpforest. The lowland dipterocarp forest covers the elevation of 300 m above sea-level, with many speciesdensely crowded together (Anon 1992). The temperature ranges from 26C-34C and annual rainfall

between 400 mm-1600 mm throughout the country.

Malaysia is a heavily forested country, and forest products including bamboo are important sources ofincome. While bamboo has been an important resource, widely and easily available, it has remained a poorman's crop compared to timber and other non-timber crops like rattan. However, the potential for growth ofthe bamboo industry is tremendous. This has been recognized by researchers. In the last decade or so, ForestResearch Institute Malaysia (FRIM) has given very high priority for bamboo development, both in terms ofgrowth and the manufacturing aspects. The production and industrial development that has taken place forbamboo in Malaysia is reviewed, and the important research areas, as well as the other sectoral issues thatneed to be addressed before the industry can improve in the region are highlighted.

Area and habitats

Bamboos are abundant and widely distributed in Malaysia. Most of Malaysian bamboos grow gregariously,but in localized patches on river banks, in disturbed lowland forests, and on hillsides and ridge tops (Ng andNoor 1980; Wong 1989; Azmy 1991b). The populations are pure stands as well as mixed with other speciesin the forest. In general, bamboos were regarded as weeds in the context of Malaysian Forestry (Watson andWyatt-Smith 1961; Chin 1977). Nevertheless, at present, it is ranked second to rattan in economicimportance in Peninsular Malaysia among the minor or non-timber forest products (Aminuddin and Abd.Latiff 1991).

In 1970, the estimated total area of bamboos in Peninsular Malaysia was about 20 000 ha (McGrath 1970),and now the area has increased to about 329 000 ha (Abd. Razak and Abdul Latif 1988). The presentstanding stock has been estimated at 7.0 million tons (average 20 tons/ha), out of which only 6000 tons areof commonly used species with an estimated value of RM 3 million1. There has never been a completeinventory of bamboo resources in Malaysia (Salleh and Wong 1987). The Second National Forest Inventory


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(NFI II- 1981/82) showed that the average number of bamboo cuttings (6 m/ cutting with more than, 3 cm indiameter at breast height) extracted per ton basis was about 95.5 and 118.3 pieces from the undisturned anddisturbed forests, respectively. From these figures, it was estimated that there were 587 million culms ofbamboo in the forests (Kamaruzaman 1992).

1 IUS$ = RM3.8

Based on Table 1, the Kelantan has the highest density of bamboo within forest districts in Peninsular

Malaysia, comprising of 31035 750 number of culms, followed by Pahang (23 480 760 culms), and Perak(20 174 160 culms). The total number of culms in Peninsular Malaysia was 110 584148 covering 42 172 238 ha of forest areas (Lockman et al. 1992). The most useful bamboofound in these areas is Gigantochloa scortechinii, found in Kedah, Kelantan, Perak, Selangor andTerengganu. In terms of density, the richest area is in Selangor where 20% of having more than 20 clumpsper ha, 13% with 11 to 20 clumps per ha and the rest with less than 11 clumps per ha (Lockman et al. 1992).In one study, 3780 culms ofG. scortechinii were obtained from 204 clumps per ha (Azmy 1991b), (Figs. 1,2)

Genera and species

Malaysia has about 70 species of bamboo: 50 in Peninsular Malaysia, 30 in Sabah and 20 in Sarawak (Wong1989). The 10 available genera areBambusa, Chusquea, Dendrocalamus, Dinochloa, Gigantochloa,Phyllostachys, Racemobambos, Schizostachyum, Thyrsostachys and Yushania (Wong 1989; Azmy and Abd.Razak 1991). There are 12 bamboo species commonly exploited for commercial purposes (Azmy and Abd.Razak 1991) (Table 2). The most common species extracted are Gigantochloa scortechinii, G. levis, G.ligulata, Dendrocalamus asper, Bambusa blumeana, Schizostachyum grande and S. zollingeri. (Figs. 3, 4).

Malaysian bamboos grow wild in the forests and also cultivated by villagers in rural areas (Azmy 1992a).The most widespread species are: Gigantochloa scortechinii, Dendrocalamus pendulus and Schizostachyum

zollingeri; found from the Main Range from Pattani in Thailand to Malacca on the southwest coast, up toabout 1200 m altitude, more abundant at lower elevations (Fig. 2).Bambusa farinacea, G. ligulata and G.

latifolia are also encountered up to about 750 m on the Main Range although they are best represented in thenorthern states of Perlis, Kedah and Kelantan.

The rare bamboo, Schizostachyum terminale was collected at Krau Game Reserve in Pahang in 1988,adapted to swampy and inundated conditions. Another rare species is Gigantochloa rostrata, planted inFRIM, Kepong, and in the natural state at Gunung Raya, Langkawi. The endemic lowland bamboo

Racemobambos setifera is rare or extinct outside the upper Endau River area and does not occur in southernpart of Peninsular Malaysia. Another rare lowland species is Soejatmia ridleyi from a collection from BukitTimah forest in Singapore, at the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia and a small population in KemasulForest Reserve, Bukit Ibam area and the Rengit Forest reserve, all in Pahang state. The endemic montanebamboos are Gigantochloa holttumiana, G. holttumochloa andMaclurochloa montana. G. holttumianafound at the summit area of Fraser Hill, Pahang-Selangor area (highest peak just over 2000 m).

Maclurochloa montana occurs only in the montane forest on Western Hill (Penang Island), Gunung Jerai (orKedah Peak, in Kedah) and in the Frasers hill area on the Pahang-Selangor border between altitude of 830-1300 m (Wong 1995).

Table 1. Density of bamboos by forest districts, Peninsular Malaysia

Source: Lockman et al. 1992

State Districts

Compartment

areasStock

Species

Hectares (%) No. of culms (%)

Johor South 0.00 0.00 0 0.00


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Center 0.00 0.00 0 0.00

East 4205.25 13.22 739 260 15.14 B. heterostachya

North 27 615.51 86.78 4 142 340 84.86 S. zollingeri

Total 31 615.51 100.00 3 881 600 100.00

Kedah South 13585.85 64.99 2967150 46.32 D. asper

Center 4 834.00 23.13 2 358 900 36.82 G. scortechinii, S. grande

North 2 482.70 11.88 1 079 850 16.86

Total 20 902.55 100.00 6 405 900 100.00

Kelantan West 5 788.00 6.38 3 389 800 10.92

South 58 489.00 64.45 20 990 850 67.64 G. scortechinii, S. grande

East 26 470.00 29.17 6 655 200 21.44 G. species, D. pendulus

Total 90 747.00 100.00 31 035 750 100.00

Melaka Jasin 563.37 100.00 249 750 100.00 D. asper

N. Sembilan West 20 930.25 86.19 5 993 910 80.83 D. sinuatus, S. zollingeri

East 3 353.97 13.81 1 421 550 19.17 D. sinuatus, S. zollingeri

Total 24 284.22 100.00 7415460 100.00

Pahang Bentong 2 948.67 2.45 442 290 1.88

Jerantut 12 112.12 10.06 1 986 540 8.46 S. brachycladum, S.gracile

Kuantan 9 485.00 7.88 2 456 730 10.46

Kuala Lipis 88814.83 73.79 15684210 66.80 S. brachycladum, S.gracile

Rompin 5 342.29 4.44 2 288 130 9.75 B. vulgarisTemerloh 1 664.72 1.38 622 860 2.65 D. asper, B. ridleyi

Total 120 367.63 100.00 23 480 760 100.00

Perak Kinta/Manjung 5 297.45 7.83 2 383 860 11.82 B. vulgaris, S. zollingeri

Kuala Kangsar 10 676.90 15.78 2 703 000 13.40 B. vulgaris, G. wrayi

Larut/Matang 5 481.00 8.10 1 492 050 7.40 D. scandens

South 6 179.74 9.13 1 388 700 6.88 S. grande, G. scortechinii

Ulu Gerik 40 045.40 59.16 12 206 550 60.50 B. vulgaris, S. grande

Total 67 680.49 100.00 20 174 160 100.00

Perlis 0.00 0 0 0

P. Pinang 2 739.00 100.00 1 096 950 100.00 S. zollingeri, B.arundinacea

Selangor Hulu Selangor 12 193.36 30.76 7 563 510 61.01 G. scortechinii, D. asper

Pantai Kelang 0.00 0.00 0 0.00

Center 27 448.00 69.24 4 833 900 38.99 B. vulgaris

Total 39 641.36 100.00 12397410 100.00

Terengganu West 8 060.00 35.08 1 209 000 35.08 G. scortechinii, D. asper

South 13 015.00 56.62 1 952 250 56.65

North 1 901.00 8.27 285 150 8.27 D. sinuatus

Total 22 976.00 100.00 3 446 400 100.00


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W.Persekutuan

0.00 0.00 0 0.090

P. Malaysia 421 722.38 100.00 110 584140

100.00

Table 2. Uses of twelve commercial bamboo species in Malaysia

Source: Azmy and Abd. Razak 1991

Species Local Name Uses

Bambusa blumeana Buluh duri Chopstick, tooth picks, furniture, musicalinstrument, poles, shoots as food

Bambusa

heterostachya

Buluh galah/tilan/pering/pengat Poles, frames, tooth picks, blinds, skewersticks

Bambusa vulgaris Buluh minyak/aao/aro/gading/

Tamalang/pa

Ornamental, tooth picks, chopsticks, skewer

sticks, shoots as foodBambusa vulgaris var.

striata

Buluh gading Ornamental

Dendrocalamus asper Buluh beting/pering Shoots as food, higo materials, chopstick

Gigantochloa levis Buluh beting/bisa Shoots as food, higo materials, chopstick

Gigantochloa ligulata Buluh tumpat/tikus belalai Frames, shoots as food, poles for vegetablessupport

Gigantochloa

scortechinii

Buluh semantan/rayah/gala/paao/Seremai/telur

Handicraft, smallscale industries, incensesticks

Gigantochloa wrayi Buluh beti/raga Handicraft, blinds, tooth picks, skewersticks, shoots as food

Schizostachyum

brachycladum

Buluh nipis/lemang/padi/urat/rusa/Pelang

Handicraft, rice vessels (lemant)

Schizostachyum grande Buluh semeliang/semenyeh Frames, leaves used for wrapping Chineseglutinous rice dumpling

Schizostachyum

zollingeri

Buluh dinding/kasap/telor/pelang/nipis

Handicraft, toothpick, skewer sticks

Table 3. Culm characteristics of common bamboo species

Source: Azmy and Abdul Razak 1991

Species Height

(m)

Internode Length

(cm)

DBH

(cm)

Wall thickness

(mm)

No. of culm/

clump

Bambusa blumeana 16-18 35 7-9 12-18 40-60

Bambusa heterostachya 10-13 40 4.5-5.0 8-10 40-60

Bambusa vulgaris 10-18 33 7-9 10-12 50-90

Bambusa vulgaris var.striata

8-18 35 5-10 8-16 30-60

Dendrocalamus asper 18-23 35 9-13 10-14 33-35


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Gigantochloa levis 18-23 35 11-13 11-15 40-50

Gigantochloa ligulata 7-10 35 2.7-3.5 9-11 30-40

Gigantochloa scortechinii 17-20 42 9-11 7-12 50-80

Gigantochloa wrayi 15-18 40 8.5-10 6-10 40-70

Schizostachyum

brachycladum

12 58 6-7 3-5 30-50

Schizostachyum grande 18-21 85 8-11 6-10 40-60

Schizostachyum zollingeri 12-15 55 5-7 4-7 50-70

Fig. 1. Map of forest and tree cover: Peninsular Malaysia

Fig. 2. Distribution of natural bamboo stands in Peninsular Malaysia

Source: Lockman et al. 1992.

Fig. 3. Growing shoot ofGiagantochloa scortechinii

Fig. 4. Clump ofBambusa blumeana

Ground inventory in Malaysia takes into consideration species, quality and density classes, major foresttypes, stocking, clump distribution, clump size and bamboo regeneration conditions (Wan Razali and Azmy1994). Remote sensing techniques and aerial photographs are very promising in locating the extent of thebamboo areas in forests. The estimated total bamboo clumps according to such forest inventories arestratified into forest areas, and are as follows: Gigantochloa scortechinii and Gigantochloa wrayi -10 133368 clumps of which 5 231 150 clumps were in the 11-20 years of logged over forest areas; Schizostachyumgrande, S. zollingeri andDendrocalamus pendulus - 2 8842 500 and 1 1754 935 clumps fall in the medium

dense forest areas; Gigantochloa ligulata - 5 474 144 clumps, of which some 2 355 062 were estimated to bein original forests (Poh et al. 1994).

Conservation

No major conservation work has been done. However, conservation has been partially achieved in theplanting of bamboos for several purposes. For stabilization of land, species such as Bambusa vulgaris,Gigantochloa levis, G. scortechinii and Schizostachyum jaculans have been planted (Abd Razak 1989b).Conservation has been done by farmers in Sungei Senang, Mukim Jeneri and Nami, Kedah where 2 ha and1.3 ha respectively were planted in an agroforestry system, planting them along with rubber trees.Gigantochloa scortechinii natural stand bamboos have been maintained in between rubber rows to obtain

culms (Azmy and Abd. Razak 1992). Two farmers have managed natural stands of bamboos in betweenrubber rows in Kedah, Northern Peninsular Malaysia. The first place is at Nami, where there are 35 clumpsof this species managed in between 5-year-old rubber trees with a planting distance of 3 x 6 m on a contourhill. The other is at Sungei Senang, where there are 50 clumps maintained in between 20-year-old trees ofspacing 3 x 6 m (Azmy and Abd. Razak 1992). The clumps in both areas grew naturally before the rubbertrees were planted. These clumps were culled and left at reasonable distances.

From 1992 to 1995, the Forestry Department in Peninsular Malaysia planted bamboos in Kedah - 20 ha;Kelantan - 40 ha; Malacca - 20 ha; Negeri Sembilan - 24 ha; Pahang - 62 ha; Perak - 64 ha; Penang - 1 ha;Selangor - 30 ha, a total of 261 ha altogether (Anon 1995). Gigantochloa ligulata flowered gregariously atKuala Nerang, Kedah (Azmy 1992d). About 40-45 seeds per inflorescence were collected. The flowering

period lasted for six months from November to April.

Malaysian bamboos are often attacked by diseases at the establishment stage or at the onset of maturity,three years onwards. According to Azmy and Maziah (1990), most bamboos are easily infested by leaf spot
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and shot-hole diseases. The former caused by Collectotrichum andNigrospora species, the latter byGlomerella cingulata. Abd. Razak and Azmy (1991) reported that young leaves ofBambusa vulgaris wereattacked by the caterpillars ofPyrausta coclesalis and systemic insecticides such as dimethoate was sprayedto overcome the problem.Estigmina chinensis and Conarthus jansonii stem borer beetles damaged G.scortechinii natural stand culms by boring into the internodes. Removal of the infected culms was the onlyway to reduce the attack.

Growth

In natural stands ofGigantochloa scortechinii at Nami, Kedah, the average number of culms per clump was19, the basal area in the 1 ha research trial plot was 12.32 m 2 (Azmy 1991b). The shoots grew faster duringthe day time and the maximum height was 12.5 m after 10 weeks. Rain influenced the sprouting of shoots inthe natural stand (Azmy and Hall 1992). FRIM initiated studies on the management of natural bamboo standofG. scortechinii at Chebar Forest Reserve, Nami, Kedah. A single application of 2 kg of compoundfertilizer NPK (15:15:15), increased the sprouting of shoots by 30% annually (Azmy 1992c). A 40% fellingintensity increased the number of culms produced. The mortality values ofG. scortechinii sprouts of age oneyear and below, two years and three years were 10, 20 and 40% respectively.

Propagation methods

Malaysian bamboos are propagated by using rhizome offsets, culm cuttings and branch cuttings. Accordingto Hashim (1998), branch cuttings ofBambusa vulgaris gave the highest percentage sprouting (90%),followed by G. levis (85%),B. blumeana (80%),D. asper(65%) and G. ligulata (40%). Culm cutting usingmid-culm portion was the best in propagation and culms planted horizontally (Abd. Razak 1992). Byapplying NPK and chicken dung together, G. scortechinii rhizome offsets survived upto 85% about 30months after planting. Propagation of bamboo in the tin-tailing areas was also tried by Abd. Razak. Themixtures of organic fertilizer and NPK (15:15:15) enhanced the growth. Bambusa vulgaris was found togrow better thanDendrocalamus asperand Gigantochloa levis. In the propagation ofG. scortechinii bymeans of marcotting at FRIM, the treatments and media used were 200 g each of top soil (3:1), machined

coconut husk, burned paddy husk, and palm oil mill effluent (POME). G. scortechinii grew better withPOME (Azmy 1992b).

Exotic bamboos Phyllostachys glauca, P. nigra, P. pubescens and P. viridis from China, were planted atBukit Fraser and Genting Highlands using rhizomes. P. glauca grew best producing an average of 12 sproutswith mean height of 171.8 cm in 24 months after transplanting. The other species, showed slow growth(Abd. Razak 1989a). Gigantochloa ligulata (Buluh tumpat) seedlings were raised at FRIM, Kepong, (Azmy1991a). The seedlings developed in the second week after sowing. With 1:3 soil-sand ratio, the germinationwas 76% and it was better to sow deglumed seeds. Fertilizer was applied in the seventh week after sowing.According to Krishnapillay et al. (1993) using cryopreservation methods worked better on bamboo seedlingsofThyrsostachys siamensis, Bambusa bambos, Dendrocalamus membranaceus andDendrocalamus

brandisii, after drying them in laminar flow cabinet (25+-2C with a relative humidity of 55%) for a periodof 5 hours. When seed moisture was reduced from 9-15% to 2-4% there was no real loss of viability over aperiod of 9 months. Micropropagation ofBambusa vulgaris, Bambusa vulgaris var. striata and G. levis waspossible through multiple shoot formation method using nodal segments from lateral branches of matureplants. (Aziah and Warus 1992).

Extraction and sustainable utilization

The highest annual royalties collected from bamboo from 1980 to 1987 were in Perak (44%), followed byKedah (33%), Johore (10%), Selangor (8%), Perlis and Pahang (about 2% each). The total revenue collectedfrom bamboo taxation in Peninsular Malaysia in 1987 was RM 65 951 (This was 57 tonnes of estimatedavailability of bamboo production based on 180 culms equivalent to 1 tonne dry-weight and an averageroyalty of three cents per culm) (Abd. Latif and Abd. Razak 1991). According to Dahlan (1994), in Pahangalone, 192 101 culms of more than 2 cm and less than 5 cm diameter and 154 447 culms of more than 5 cmdiameter were extracted and the total royalty of RM 19 998.11 was paid. The number of culms extracted and


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catered according to its specific uses were as follows: baskets - 37 810 pieces; Joss-paper - 2 911 845;Skewer sticks - 1974; fish traps - 7000 and chicken house flooring - 10 000 (Poh et al. 1994). Theproduction and sustainability of Malaysian bamboos found naturally in the forest can be managed so that theresources will not be depleted. According to Azmy et al. (1997), natural stands ofGigantochloa scortechiniiespecially in Kedah, Northern Peninsular Malaysia can be managed with recommended felling intensity of70% per clump, only mature culms of 3 years and above can be felled. Further more, rotational felling atevery 2 consecutive years can be applied in sustaining the production of quality culms. Culms should not beclear felled.

Research in progress

For Malaysian natural stand bamboos, on going research has focused on the application of organic fertilizersat Nami, Kedah, Peninsular Malaysia. Various combinations of fertilizers was applied on the bambooclumps in the assigned trial plots. This involved two species, Gigantochloa scortechinii (Buluh semantan)andDendrocalamus pendulus (Buluh akar).

The objectives of this study are:

To develop improved management and sustainable use of bamboos in Malaysia;

To determine different management practices on basic culm properties;

To optimize the processing and promotion of advanced technology to improve raw material (e.g. parquet);and

To disseminate information to user groups.

Malaysian commercial bamboos will be cultivated on a large scale in Pahang, on a 100 ha area in theFederal Land Development Authority (FELDA) estate. Four species,Bambusa vulgaris, Dendrocalamus

asper, Gigantochloa sp. (brang) and Gigantochloa levis will be planted. The objective is to increase theresource supply on a sustained basis in future. In addition, the culms will be used for making high valueadded products such as parquet. The project will also help train the settlers and make them successfulentrepreneurs in the bamboo production area as well in the industry. In terms of developmental strategies,this will help to encourage the local people in other states of the country to venture and establish bambooplantations. In addition, other government agencies such as the Department of Aborigines Affairs inPeninsular Malaysia is also involved in the training.

Utilization and economic value

Bamboo has been used in the making of products such as chopsticks (Razak and Tamizi 1989), vegetablebaskets (Azmy 1989) tooth-picks (Wong 1989) and others. There are 2 joss paper factories, one each inPahang and Perak. The joss paper factory in Perak produced 1.3 million kg in 1992, and was mainlyexported to Taiwan (Lockman et al. 1992). There are 9 bamboo entrepreneurs who develop bamboo basketindustry in Perak. Daily, about 6000 vegetable baskets are sent to Cameron Highlands (Lim and Roslan1992). This is a home industry involving family members as workers. Of the total 382 workers, 47% arefull-time workers while the rest work on a part-time basis. Women constitute 61% of the workers in themanufacturing of bamboo baskets (Lim and Roslan 1992).

The export of bamboo increased from 329 tonnes in 1991 to 7348 tonnes in 1995 (valued at RM 193 019).The import value increased from 2097 tonnes in 1991-94 426 tons in 1995 (valued at RM 2 586

188) (Anonymous 1995). The main buyers for Malaysian bamboos were Singapore and Vietnam. Malaysiaalso imported finished bamboo products such as chopsticks from Taiwan (Anonymous 1991) (Table 4).

Table: 4. Exports and imports of bamboo (1991-1995).


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Year Trade Quantity (Tonnes) Value (RM)

1991 Export 329 314 086

Import 2 097 1 472 276

1992 Export 208 148 284

Import 3 510 2 339 551

1993 Export 111 122 130

Import 4 120 2 966 321

1994 Export 692 168 899

Import 3 761 2 804 197

1995 Export 7 348 193 019

Import 94 426 2 586 188

Source: Anon, 1995.The culm characteristics of the 12 commercial bamboos are shown in Table 3. The maximum weight of oneculm each ofG. scortechinii, S. zollingeri and S. grande was 27.2 g, 16.3 g and 4.3 g, respectively (Azmy1993). There is a positive linear relationship between green weight and solid volume ofG. scortechinii, B.blumeana, S. grande and S. zollingeri (Azmy et al. 1991). Studies on comparative vascular anatomy of 1 to3 year old bamboo species ofB. blumeana, B. vulgaris and G. scortechinii were conducted. The fibre lengthand cell wall thickness were not significantly influenced by the increment of age and culm height. Theaverage fibre length of the 3 bamboo species varied from 1.74-4.24 mm. With the increment of age, all thefibre dimensions (except fibre diameter) increased (Abd. Latifet al. 1990a,b; Abd. Latif and Wan Tarmeze1990). According to Abd. Latif (1987), the selection of bamboo for industrial uses and housing should bebased on the physical and mechanical properties. The physical properties vary within and between the culmsof the bamboo species. The moisture content of bamboo was highest near the basal portion, and density thelowest (Abd. Latifet al. 1989; Abd. Latif and Wan Tamizi 1990). The density ofG. scortechinii was lowestat the basal portion of 1-year-old culm (0.49) and highest at the top portion of the 3-year-old culm (0.58)(Jamaludin et al. 1992). The older bamboo showed better processing qualities.

G. scortechinii has the potential to produce fermented products such as ethanol by enzymaticsaccharification (Nor Azah and Azmy 1991). In addition, according to Mohd Nor, the younger culm ofG.scortechinii was easier to pulp due to its lower lignin content compared to the older culm. It is a good rawmaterial for pulping (Jamaludin et al. 1992). Bamboo flooring can be made fromB. vulgaris and G.scortechinii which were better than kempas (Koompasia malaccensis). According to Chew et al. (1992),B.

vulgaris also was used for producing medium density particle board.

Research and development needs

There are several constraints in Malaysia in the area of bamboo production and utilization which requireattention They are as follows:

1. The difficulty of acquiring enough land for large scale plantation and exploitation of commercialMalaysian bamboos. With the Federal Government and State policy in the country, for every 100 ha of landto be developed for any purpose, it has to get approval from the state Exco Committee and this has hinderedthe interest of the entrepreneurs to venture into the planting of bamboo because the decision making process

takes long time.

2. Poor management system of the cottage industry which is family managed. They lack the knowledge inmodern factory management, and this has hindered development of the industries. In addition, it is difficultfor such families to obtain bank loans.


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3. Lack of product technology development, especially better designing for export markets.

4. Most of the bamboo entrepreneurs currently in the industry cannot compete in the international market,with the high production costs and poor product quality.

5. Lack of supply of quality bamboo culms due to the haphazard way of felling and mixture of various agesof bamboo culms, which reduces the quantity and quality of the products.

6. Lack of quality planting materials especially for mass propagation.

Suggestions for improvement include:1. Land policy should be flexible, especially in acquiring large tracts of land in the Forest Reserve areaswhich can be managed on a plantation basis.

2. Courses in business management in bamboo industry should be conducted to the public, especially tocottage industry entrepreneurs.

3. Product development for higher value added like parquet and new product designs with international

standards.

4.In situ and ex situ conservation measures should be stressed especially for commercial species for futuresupply of materials.

5. Good germplasm should be identified and collection of quality planting materials should be implemented.

6. Management regimes for commercial plantation purposes should be highlighted for future research.

References

Abd. Latif, M. 1987. Guideline on blinds and satay sticks production. P. 8 (Malay) in FRIM TechnicalInformation 2.

Abd. Latif, M. and O. Abd. Razak. 1991. Availability, distribution of bamboo and its industrial status inPeninsular Malaysia. Pp. 60-67 in Proceedings of The Fourth International Bamboo Workshop, 27-30 Nov,1991, Chiangmai, Thailand, IDRC, Singapore.

Abd. Latif, M., S. Mohd Rashid and H. Jalaludin. 1989. Effect of bleaching on mechanical properties ofcommercial Malaysian bamboo. Pp. 27-33 (Malay) in Proceedings of National Symposium on AnalyticalChemistry. Agriculture University of Malaysia, Serdang.

Abd. Latif, M. and W. A. Wan Tarmeze. 1990. Anatomical properties and mechanical relationship of somenatural stand Malaysian bamboo. Paper presented at IUFRO XIX World Congress, 5-12 Aug 1990.Montreal, Canada.

Abd. Latif, M., W. A. Wan Tarmeze and A. Fauzidah. 1990a. Anatomical features and mechanicalproperties of three Malaysian bamboo. Journal Tropical Forest Science 2(3):223-227.

Abd. Latif, M., M. Mohd Tamizi, S. Mohd Rashid and M. Mohd. Shukari. 1990b. Wear resistance of twocommercial bamboo species in Peninsular Malaysia and their suitability as flooring material. In Proceedingsof The International Bamboo Workshop, (I.V.R. Rao, R. Gnanaharan and C.B. Sastry, eds.). Cochin, India,14-15 Nov 1988. Kerala Forest Research Institute Peechi, and IDRC. Singapore.

Abd. Razak, M.A. and M. Abd. Latif. 1988. Prospects of small-scale wood-based industries. Paper presentedat the Seminar on Opportunity and Technological Development in Small-Scale Industries held in KualaLumpur, 28-29 Mar 1988.


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Abd. Razak, O. 1989a. Note on the plantation of bamboo species of the temperate zone in Malaysia. JournalTropical Forest Science 2(l):84-85.

Abd. Razak, O. 1989b. A Note on Bamboo for Soil Stabilization and Erosion Control on Forest Roads inFRIM. P. 8 in FRIM Technical Information No. 10.

Abd. Razak, O. and H. M. Azmy. 1991. Pests of Bamboo in Peninsular Malaysia. P. 4 in FRIM TechnicalInformation No. 6.

Abd. Razak, O. 1992. Vegetative propagation of selected bamboos. Proceedings of the National BambooSeminar I. Pp. 46-57 in Towards the Management, Conservation, Marketing and Utilization of Bamboos, 2-4 Nov 1992, FRIM, Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Aminuddin, M. and M. Abd. Latif. 1991. Bamboo in Malaysia: Past, present and future research in Bambooin the Asia Pacific. Pp. 349-354 in Proceedings of the Fourth International Bamboo Workshop, 27-30 Nov,Chiangmai, Thailand, FAO, Bangkok.

Anonymous 1991. External Trade Statistics Department. Kuala Lumpur, Pp. 5.

Anonymous 1992. Forever Green. Pp. 28 in Malaysia and Sustainable Forest management. Ministry ofPrimary Industries, Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.

Anonymous 1995. Forestry Statistics Peninsular Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur, P. 135.

Aziah, M. Y., and H. A. Darus. 1992. Production of bamboo propagules via tissue culture for large scaleplanting programmes. Pp. 64-72 in Proceedings of the National bamboo Seminar I. Towards theManagement, Conservation, Marketing and Utilization of Bamboos, 2-4 Nov 1992. FRIM, Kepong, KualaLumpur, Malaysia.

Azmy, H. M. 1989. Guideline on the Production of Bamboo Baskets. P. 8 (Malay) in FRIM TechnicalInformation No. 8.

Azmy, H. M., W. M. Wan Razali, and A. Fauzidah. 1991. Characteristics and volume-weight relationship offour Malaysian Bamboos. Journal of Tropical Forest Science 4(l):87-93.

Azmy, H. M. 1991a. Germination and fertilization ofGigantochloa ligulata seedlings. in Bamboo in Asiaand The Pacific. Pp. 120-122 in Proceedings of the Fourth International Bamboo Workshop, 27-30 Nov,Chiangmai, Thailand, FAO, Bangkok.

Azmy, H. M. 1991b. The structure and demography ofGigantochloa scortechinii natural stand. Japan

Bamboo Journal No. 9: 21-26.

Azmy, H. M. 1992a. Potential of Malaysian Bamboo Shoots. P. 42 (Malay) in siri Alam dan Rimba No. 2.FRIM, Kepong, Kuala Lumpur.

Azmy, H. M. 1992b. Marcotting of bamboo. P. 9 in Buletin Buluh (Bamboo), Vol 1 (2):4. FRIM, KualaLumpur.

Azmy, H. M. 1992c. Effect of fertilizer and felling intensity on natural bamboo stands. Bamboo and Its Use.Paper presented at The International Symposium on industrial use of bamboo. 7-11 Dec 1992, Beijing,China.

Azmy, H. M. 1992d. A note on the occurence of flowering ofGigantochloa ligulata (buluh tumpat). Journalof Tropical Forest Science 4(4):354-355.


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Azmy, H. M. 1993. Relationships between height, diameter at breast height (dbh) and culm weight of threeMalaysian bamboos. Journal of Tropical Forest Science 6(1): 85-86.

Azmy. H. M. and O. Abd. Razak. 1991. Field Identification of Twelve Commercial Malaysian Bamboos. P.12 in FRIM Technical Information No. 25. FRIM, Kuala Lumpur.

Azmy, H. M. and O. Abd. Razak. 1992. Management of Bamboo in Rubber Plantation. FRIM Reports No.58:1-8.

Azmy, H. M. and J. B. Hall. 1992. Observation on the growth ofGigantochloa Scortechinii (buluhsemantan) shoots at Nami, Kedah. Pp. 89-96 in Proceedings of the National Bamboo Seminar I. Towards theManagement, Conservation, marketing and Utilization of Bamboos, 2-4 Nov 1992. FRIM, Kepong, KualaLumpur, Malaysia.

Azmy, H. M. and Z. Maziah. 1990. Leaf Diseases of Bamboo. P. 4 in FRIM Technical Information No 18.FRIM, Malaysia.

Azmy, H. M., H. Norini and W.M. Wan Razali. 1997. Management Guidelines and Economics of Natural

Bamboo Stands. P. 40 in FRIM Technical Information No. 15, FRIM, Kepong, Malaysia.

Chew, L. T., S. Rahim, and K. Jamaluddin. 1992.Bambusa vulgaris for urea and cement-bonded particleboards. Journal Tropical Forest Science 4(3):249-256.

Chin, T. Y. 1977. Effects of cutting regimes on bamboo infested forest areas. P. 12 in paper presented at theAsean Seminar on Tropical Rainforest Management, 7-10 Nov, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.

Dahlan, T. 1994. Resources and industrial prospects of bamboo in Pahang State. Pp. 20-25 (Malay) inproceedings of The National Bamboo Seminar I. Towards the Management, Conservation, marketing andUtilization of Bamboos, 2-4 Nov 1992. FRIM, Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Hashim, M.N. 1988. To Select Bamboo Species For Cultivation. Pp. 15 in FRIM Annual Research Report,Kuala Lumpur.

Jamaluddin, K., H.A. Abd. Jalil, A.J. Ashari and M. Abd. Latif. 1992. Variation in specific gravity of 1-, 2-,and 3-year-old Gigantochloa scortechinii (buluh semantan). P. 182-187 in Proceedings of the NationalBamboo Seminar I. Towards the Management, Conservation, Marketing and Utilization of Bamboos, 2-4Nov 1992. FRIM, Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Kamaruzaman, A.B. 1992. Bamboo Resource in Peninsular Malaysia. Buletin Buluh (Bamboo) 1(1):8-9.

Krishnapillay, B., M. Marzalina and M. Haris. 1993. Liquid nitrogen storage prolongs bamboo seedlongevity. Buletin Buluh (Bamboo) 2(2):1-3.

Lim, H.F. and I. Roslan. 1992. Some socioeconomic aspects of bamboo basket making Industry: A CaseStudy in Tapah, Perak. Pp. 128-146 in Proceedings of the National Bamboo Seminar I. Towards theManagement, Conservation, Marketing and Utilization of Bamboos, 2-4 Nov 1992. FRIM, Kepong, KualaLumpur, Malaysia.

Lockman, M.S., H.O. Mohd Shahwahid, L.Y. Poh and J. Saroni. 1992. Distribution of bamboo and thepotential development of the bamboo industry. Pp. 6-19 in Proceedings of the National Bamboo Seminar I.Towards the Management, Conservation, Marketing and Utilization of Bamboos, 2-4 Nov 1992. FRIM,Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

McGrath, K.P. 1970. The Potential of bamboo as a Source of Pulp and Paper in West Malaysia. P. 8 inUNDP-FAO Technical Report.


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Ng, F.S.P. and A.M. Nor. 1980. Bamboo Research in Asia. Pp. 91-96 in Proceedings of the workshop,Singapore, 28-30 May 1980. International Union Forestry Research Organization and InternationalDevelopment Research Centre, Singapore.

Nor Aziha, M.A. and H.M. Azmy. 1991. Preliminary study on the four Malaysian commercial bamboospecies. Bamboo Information Centre, India Bulletin 1(2):6-10.

Poh, L.Y., Mohd. H.O. Shahwahid and J. Saroni. 1994. P. 176 (Malay). Analysis of Bamboo Industry inPeninsular Malaysia. Department of Forestry, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Razak, W. and M. Tamizi. 1989. Guidelines on Chopsticks Manufacturing. Pp. 8 (Malay) in FRIMTechnical Information No. 11, Kepong, Malaysia.

Salleh, M.N. and K.M. Wong. 1987. The bamboo resources in Malaysia: Strategies for development. Pp. 45-49 in Current Research on Bamboo. Proceedings of the International Bamboo Workshop held in Hangzhou,China. (I.V.R. Rao, G. Dhanarajan and C. B. Sastry, eds.). The Chinese Academy of Forestry and IDRC,Singapore.

Wan Razali, W. M. and H.M. Azmy. 1994. Appropriate methodologies in research on natural stands ofbamboo. P. 22 paper presented at The INBAR production Working Group, 8-13 May 1994, Bangalore,India.

Watson, A.A. and J. Wyatt-Smith. 1961. Eradication of bamboo Gigantochloa levis. Malayan Forester24:225-229.

Wickneswari, K., H.M. Azmy, and M. Norwati, 1992. Intra and inter-clump electrophoretic variation inGigantochloa scortechinii: Preliminary Results. Pp. 58-63 in proceedings of The National Bamboo SeminarI. Towards the Management, Conservation, Marketing and Utilization of Bamboos. 2-4 Nov. 1992, FRIM,Kepong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Wong, K.M. 1989. Current and potential use of bamboo in Peninsular Malaysia. Journal American BambooSociety 7(1&2):1-15.

Wong, K.M. 1995. The bamboos of Peninsular Malaysia. Malayan Forest Records, No. 41. FRIM, KualaLumpur, Malaysia.

Genetic diversity of woody bamboos - their conservation and

improvement - A.N. Rao

Consultant, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan,Malaysia.

Introduction

Bamboos are very interesting plants in their growth, morphogenesis, taxonomy, distribution, ecology andreproduction. The monopodial or sympodial habit, well-segmented culms and rooting patterns characterizevarious growth forms of bamboos. The functioning of intercalary meristem that supports rapid growth ofinternodes and their elongation to establish the erect stem axis that reaches 30-40 m in certain species,characterizes the morphogenesis of bamboo plants. The perennial woody habit of bamboos separates themfrom herbaceous grass genera. The interrelationship between various bamboo genera and species is not wellunderstood. The complicated life history and widely variable vegetative characters create impediments insolving the taxonomic problems.


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The grass family Gramineae is one of the biggest of the five among flowering plants, the tribe bambuseaeincludes 85% of woody and 25% herbaceous genera. Of these about 10 genera and 30 species arecommercially important worldwide. In the priority list, prepared in 1993, nine genera and nineteen specieswere included which indicate the fact that traditionally only a small part of bamboo resources are used todate (Williams and Rao 1994; Rao et al. 1998). The scientific details available on bamboos are inadequate,except taxonomic categorization, to promote work on genetic analysis and conservation.

Regarding distribution, most of the woody genera are present in South and South East Asia which includeYunnan province in China bordering the lower Himalayas that extend to the east (Tewari 1992; Pei 1997;Rao et al. 1997; Rao et al. 1998). Ecology of bamboos is diverse in terms of habitats, soil, altitudes, waterrequirements, species association and others. Most of them are rapid colonisers. Vegetative growth is variedeven between two species belonging to same genus. Gregarious or sporadic flowering with long or shortinterval of time with varying degrees of sterility would characterize sexual reproduction (Tewari 1992). Nocorrelation has been observed between vegetative and reproductive growth phases. The clumps of woodybamboos can grow up to 100 or 120 years and each culm can last 4-10 years.

The present state of knowledge on some of the important topics that help to understand the geneticvariations, conservation and production of woody bamboos are discussed and lines of research that need to

be pursued in the near future are briefly specified in this paper.

Taxonomic status

Gramineae, or the grass family, has 14 tribes andBambuseae is one of them that includes bamboos.Seedling characters, leaf anatomy, number as well as morphology of chromosomes of panicoid, chloridoid,festucoid and bambusoid members were compared to assess the evolutionary trends. The bambuseae isregarded as the early or primitive tribe among all grasses (Stebbins 1950, 1971). This generalization wasmade on the data obtained from temperate grasses and the criteria 'established cannot be uncriticallyfollowed' with reference to all the species, especially when the groups are distantly related to one another(Stebbins 1971). It was suggested that the data obtained indicate the need for the revision of various tribes of

the whole family (Stebbins 1971). It is not certain whether bambusoid grasses examined by the aboveauthors were of woody or herbaceous groups. A normal or standardized bamboo classification system,which is easy to use, is very much needed consolidating all the criteria so far used by different researchers invarious parts of the world (McClure 1966; Ohrenberger and Goerrings 1989; Tewari 1992; Dransfield andWidjaja 1995). Taxonomic problems in species identification are common to all the bamboo growingcountries in Asia with the difference that in some countries few species remain yet to be identified while inothers more than 30-40% of the species remain unidentified. Further, the variations that may be presentwithin the same species that has very wide or Pan Asian distribution have yet to be accounted and recorded(E.g.Bambusa bambos, Dendrocalamus strictus and others), because no individual scientist has studied thepopulations of the same species in different countries or geographical areas.

Nearly 10-20% of bamboo species that have been used for ages have no scientific names. Herbariumspecimens are inadequate in many Asian countries in evaluating all the diagnostic characters. The livingplants show many more useful characters. Such details are illustrated with reference to bamboos inSoutheast Asia (Chua et al. 1996; Dransfield and Widjaja 1995). Nevertheless the extraction, use and tradeof bamboos continue in all the countries using common and local names. Some species in certain countriesare identified only with numbers.

Up to 90% of the sympodial bamboos presently used are extracted directly from the forests. Resources aredwindling. Very few countries have made any efforts so far to assess the bamboo resources available interms of forest land area covered with bamboos, all the species present, the quality and quantity of speciesdistributed etc (Fu and Xiao 1996; Bennet and Gaur 1990; Anon 1995, 1997; Rao et al. 1987; Rao et al.1990).

Species delimitations in bamboos are determined by using a number of vegetative and reproductivecharacters and their coefficients. Since bamboos flower irregularly and at very long intervals it is not easy to


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study the flowering materials hence both vegetative and floral characters are used simultaneously (Holltum1956, 1958; Gilliland 1971; Tewari 1992). The difficulties encountered in taxonomic studies on bamboosare well summarized and the basic frame work laid down 130 years ago by pioneers remains still valid,continuously used by others with or without additional details. (McClure 1966; Tewari 1992). A number ofnew species and genera are added in the meanwhile (Soderstrom and Ellis 1987; Dransfield and Widjaja1995). More research is needed by native taxonomists working in bamboo growing countries so that theywill have an opportunity to study the growing plants regularly and use fresh materials rather than studyingspecimens in herbaria. Occasionally they may be able to collect flowering specimens, which would be anadditional advantage. The continued studies in unexplored areas would help to add more new taxa to thegroup.

Literature on bamboo taxonomy focuses on delimitation of genera and species and various workers haveemphasized the need to study large number of species to regroup them and to streamline the phylogeneticrelationships (Tewari 1992). The 'critical taxonomic work' on Southeast Asian bamboos is progressing(Dransfield and Widjaja 1995). Complete inventory of species in each bamboo growing country, the patternsof distribution and population diversity, the relative abundance with reference to ecological conditionsshould be properly recorded for better conservation and management of bamboo resources. For detailedecogeographic survey and complete inventory selected locations should be identified in each country and

sampling strategies with particular details relevant to each country should be outlined. The ecologicalcharacters including soil quality and water availability should be outlined. The associated plant species thatgrow with bamboos in a given habitat that help the ecosystem functioning need to be properly documentedto prepare plans for conservation methods.

Flowering and seed production

McClure (1966) reviewed flowering behaviour of bamboos identifying species that are permanently sterile(E.g.Bambusa vulgaris); and those that regularly flower (E.g.Bambusa lineata, Ochlandra stridula,Schizostachyum spp). Other species fall in between the two boundaries showing monocarpic tendencyirrespective of the fact that they flower sporadically or gregariously and of the interval between the two

flowering periods. Many species ofPhyllostachys andArundinaria do not die after flowering. McClure alsosuggested that life cycles and flowering cycles of various bamboo species should be properly studied amongvarious populations in different countries.

Flowering is infrequent, that too at long intervals, in most bamboo species and some of them grow up to100-120 years before they start flowering. Monocarpic flowering habit in bamboos is a relic tendency andappears to be a carried over phenomenon resembling other grasses. Certain species became perennials withpronounced woody habit but monocarpic flowering habit remained as a surviving evolutionary trace. Manyinteresting articles have been written on flowering in bamboos (Jansen 1976; Liese 1985; Dwivedi 1990;Tewari 1992) and three main types of flowering recognised: a) Gragarious flowering occurs in populationsvery synchronously lasting over a period of 2-3 years; b) Sporadic flowering observed in some plants within

the populations; sometimes very regular and seeds collected annually as observed in some species; whetherthe same plant continues to grow further even after flowering or dies has to be confirmed in many species.The details available at present are not precise (McClure 1966; Tewari 1992); c) Species ofSchizostachyumand other bamboos flower regularly with or without seeds and the same plant continues to grow year afteryear.

Sporadic flowering is regular in bamboo species that grow in Kanchanaburi area of Thailand (about 120miles from Bangkok). The temperature, rainfall and soil conditions appear to be most suitable since manyspecies of about six genera both in the bambusetum and in the nearby forest flower regularly. Clump afterclump in a population take turn to flower. Seeds are collected either once or twice every year. Althoughmany hypotheses were put forward in the past, it is becoming increasingly clear in the last 5-10 years thatsporadic flowering is very common in many species as observed in different countries. In a recent trip toMyanmar the author along with Dr Nyan Htun noticed several (1-2%) clumps ofBambusa blumeana in fullflowering but with few seeds. Such observations need to be properly confirmed, collated and published (Figs1-5). It is also necessary to study the populations more regularly in different localities every year and record


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the data. Further, plants from such populations need to be collected and grown in a suitable place to establishand conserve the gene pool (Banik 1995). Such an exercise would help to determine whether the causalfactors that induce flowering are ecological or genetic in nature besides providing a reliable collection ofgermplasm for seed collection. Phytotron conditions or even large growth chambers may be suitable forexperimentation. Because of the huge size of bamboos plants and lack of secondary cambium, it may bedifficult to grow them in growth chambers. This point would bring in other questions like how much wouldculm or rhizome contribute towards flowering? The bamboo clumps that flower under natural conditionsremain almost leafless. What is the role of foliage in inducing flowering? Why should foliage wait todevelop till axis development is complete? Role of auxiliary buds etc? All these details need to be wellstudied to understand the causal factors and relationship between vegetative growth and flowering inbamboos.

It is generally observed that many species with gregarious flowering would produce no viable seeds. Veryfew studies are done on percentage fruit set, seed viability, germination etc. In the sporadic flowering types,the ratio between fertile and infertile seeds vary between the clumps or different clumps in a population.Seed sterility involves many factors including pollination, relative stage of embryo development,relationship between endosperm and embryo, thickness of seed coat and others. There are very few studieson development of bamboo seeds since the material is almost unobtainable or available. Bamboo growers

usually soak the seeds before germinating them in the nursery. Only those that sink are used and the onesthat float are rejected with the assumption that the latter are infertile with or without regular seed contents.Work on seed anatomy is required. The genetic implications in seed development are several which are yetto be properly analyzed. All such details play an important role while selecting superior populations for insitu or ex situ conservation.

Polyploidy and hybridization in bamboos

Polyploidy is more common among plants than in animals. More than 35% of flowering plants arepolyploids (Stebbins 1971; Heywood 1995). Highest percentage of polyploids recorded are perennial herbsand bamboos and they are mostly self incompatible as recorded in certain bamboo species. It is suggested

that the rhizomatous perennial habit drains the photosynthates to build up the vegetative biomasssuppressing or postponing the event of flowering until the end of vegetative growth period as seen in manyof the monocarpic plants including bananas, some palms and bamboos. The period recorded for completionof vegetative growth before flowering is the longest in bamboos among all the angiosperms. The period alsovaries among different species from a few decades to more than a century.

In polyploids the sexual reproduction system is modified or upset involving apomictic and parthenocarpictendencies and substitution of asexual reproduction for sexual; the common examples are grasses. Loss offertility and seed production is another important character of polyploids, commonly noticed in certainbamboo species. Chromosome segregation during mitosis or meiosis is not studied among bamboos. Theautopolyploids and allopolyploids are identified by studying and matching chromosomes at metaphase in

mitosis and these details are wanting for bamboos. Most of the woody bamboos so far studied are polyploidsand diploids are rarely found in any of them (Table 1).

Genetic diversity within the species is the main building block for evolution and speciation. Both the geneticand species divergence have yet to be well studied among bamboos. Just in one generation the polyploidsbecome separate and distinct from the diploid species. The concept of species is still being debated(Heywood 1995). Bamboos are such a diverse group and provide many good examples to analyze anddiscuss the morphological, ecological and genetic concepts of species. The number of species, theirgeographic range of distribution, species and ecosystem diversity are important to determine the in situconservation programme and select the appropriate species from good populations for ex situ conservation.Many of the above details are yet to be well studied in case of tropical woody bamboos. Population studieswould help to plan the conservation activities. The range of geographic distribution for certain bamboosspecies are recorded (Dransfield and Widjaja 1995; Rao et al. 1998).

Table 1. Polyploidy in bamboos


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Source: Tewari 1992, Darlington and Janaki Ammal 1945, Darlington and Wiley, 1955).

Genus and number of

species studied

Chromosome numbers in different species

1.Arundinaria 14 sps 4 species with 24 chromosomes, 8 species with 48, one with 54, one with 70 or74 =14

2.Bambusa 18 sps 1 species with 70 or 74, 1 with 70 or 72, 3 with 64-72, 3 with 64, 2 with 48, 4

with 72, 1 with 52 or 64, 2 species with 56 or 64 or 72, 1 with 96 = 18

3.Dendrocalamus 8 sps 7 with 72, 1 with 48, or 64 or 72 = 8

4. Phyllostachys 21 sps 18 with 48, 1 with 44 or 48, 1 with 48 or 54, 1 with 70 or 74 = 21

(Haploid chromosome numbers 2, 8, 6 or 12 but not certain, somatic numbers vary from 48-96).

Depending on the evolutionary tendencies hybridization is possible among polyploids between closely orwidely related species or even among different genera (Stebbins 1971). Such details are recorded in Bromusand the other grass species. The same proclivity is observed among bamboo genera and species.Interspecific hybrids were obtained from among species ofBambusa, intergeneric hybrids betweenBambusaandDendrocalamus sps. Phyllostachys andDendrocalamus and others (Table 2). (Fu 1995; Zhang 1986,

1987, 1997). Superior bamboo hybrids with good vitality, reproductive potential and adaptability arecultivated in several provinces in China, covering more than 600 ha. The growth rate of culms, culm form,fibre length, resistance to cold (up to -5C) of these hybrids were analyzed. More research in this directionholds great promise for the possible genetic enhancement of the species or groups of species concerned.Some of the hybrid bamboos are already introduced to other countries outside China.

Table 2. Cross-breeding between different genera and species of bamboo

Female

parent Male

parent

Dendrocalamus

latiflorusSinocalamus

minorBambusa

textilisBambusa

ervariabilisBambusa

sinospinosaBambusa

chungiiPhyllostachys

edulis

D. latiflorus * * * X X

S. minor

B. textilis X X X

B.

pervariabilis

X X X

B.

sinospinosa

X X

B. chungii

P. edulis X X X XD. latiflorus

+

*

B. textilis

D. latiflorus

+

X

P. edulis

D. latiflorus

+

X

B.pervariabilis

P. edulis + X

S. minor


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Note: * means excellent crossbreeding combination, good hybrids obtained (Fu 1995)

Biodiversity and genetic diversity

The word biodiversity came into usage in 1986 and the three levels of biodiversity namely, genetic diversity,species diversity and ecological diversity are yet to be properly investigated in bamboos (Tewari 1992). Butno data are so far available on the biodiversity or genetic diversity or genetics of population of any speciesof bamboos. Biodiversity and sustainability are inseparable, said to be the two sides of the same coin

(Wilson 1988; Reaka Kudla et al. 1997; Raven 1998). Genetic diversity attributes to the genes and geneticmake up of individuals within the species. The meaning and implications of both bio and genetic diversity ofbamboos were recently discussed (McNeely 1996; Stapleton and Ramanatha Rao 1996). Details publishedon species diversity are very few and intraspecific details recorded are few. A large number of taxa need tobe studied to establish inter and intraspecific relationships. Cladistic relationships are built to determinephylogenetic affinities and DNA techniques have been used (Watanabe et al. 1994). Strategies for bambooimprovement were outlined (Banik and Rao 1996). Population studies are important to analyze the diversitywithin and between species. Proper guidelines should be developed for local and regional action. Ecologicalpriority actions are needed (Vivekanandan et al. 1998; Wan Razali et al. 1994).

Spontaneous mutants were detected showing morphological variations in colour, shape and structure in

Bambusa vulgaris, B. bambos, Oxytenanthera abyssinica, Phyllostachys edulis and Guadua angustifolia(Venkatesh 1992). Both intra and inter clump variations were common among these species and most ofthem are propagated vegetatively. Greater can be the variations to select superior plants if seeds are used asplanting materials but seeds are rarely formed in the above species. Genetic variations are recorded incertain species due to outcrossing, segregation and recombination (Zhang and Chen 1987).

Intra and inter clump variations in Gigantochloa scortechinii were analyzed using electrophoretic methods(Ratnam et al. 1994). Lateral buds from 30-40 culms of three clumps were analysed using eleven enzymes.Variations were observed in three enzyme systems, when buds from different clumps or buds on the sameculm were studied indicating the possible somatic mutation in the species (Ratnam et al. 1994). G.scortechinii is well naturalized in the logged over forests of Peninsular Malaysia. It is a very useful bamboo

for handicrafts, basket making and other small-scale industries. Attempts are also made to establishplantations for which improved planting materials are needed (Othman and Nor 1994; Azmy 1994).Electrophoretic methods were used to determine both intra and interclump variations as well as somaticmutations. Only a small sample size was used and 3.3% frequency of somatic mutation was recorded. Alarge number of samples need to be tested to determine the genetic diversity and to select superior plantingmaterials (Ratnam et al. 1994). Seeds ofBambusa bambos andDendrocalamus strictus responded wellwhen treated with colchicine showing increase in plant size and greater vigour (Ueda 1962; Tewari 1992).Both cytological and genetic research should progress further to identify the factors involved to improve thequality of bamboos

Similarity of structures in closely related species is called Homology, a biological concept more frequentlyused while describing animals than plants. The unique characters that bamboos display show strongtendencies of homology, especially in relation to culm sheath, arrangement of axillary buds, leafarrangement, branching and others. Some of these characters are very identical in the closely related bamboospecies and one has to be very critical in distinguishing and differentiating the variations among thecharacters that help to prepare the taxonomic keys and identify the species. The genetic basis of homology isnot well established in plants to explain inter and intra specific relationships (Tautz 1998). A very closestudy of developmental characteristics in bamboo species will be very interesting to understand the role ofecological and genetical factors that determine the genotypic and phenotypic characters.

Conclusions

The work on genetic diversity, patterns of distribution, and herbarium survey of bamboos done in the last 5-6 years has given us better insight to continue research on conservation of important bamboos including thepriority species. Concepts of biodiversity and sustainable use are very closely intertwined, not easy toseparate or study one aspect without referring to the other. Relative evolutionary history of bamboos,


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endemism, geology and characterization of habitat are all inter-related and their implications need to beanalyzed to plan and carry out research on methods of conservation. Evolutionary tendencies are notproperly traced or determined in bamboos and information obtained on these lines would help to strengthentaxonomic relationships of bamboos and to identify the advanced, superior taxa. There are no fossilevidences of bamboos. Sexuality and its function in plants is an important strategy to generate geneticvariation but many bamboos do not have a regular reproductive cycle. More critical studies are needed toanalyze the implications of the present reproductive methods known in bamboos including absence of seedset, ineffective pollination, fertilization and other related aspects. It is said that economy is a subsidiary ofthe environment and restoration ecology, use of degraded and waste lands are important to grow bamboosthat would help regenerate plant wealth and improve the economy of rural people in Asian countries who arethe main bamboo users. Studies on the lines indicated above would provide good perspective for bettermanagement of superior bamboos including their conservation and

Bamboo Resources Conservation and Utilization in Malaysia

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