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Universal node distribution in three bamboo species (Phyllostachys spp.)

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Abstract

Key message

Node distribution along the mature culm of three Phyllostachys species is governed by a hidden universal law and can be determined at the bamboo shoot stage by its base diameter.

Abstract

Bamboo exhibits unique structural properties that distinguish it from most other woody plants. One of the most remarkable properties is that the long hollow culm is separated into many small chambers by a sequence of nodes. The node distribution along the culm is, in general, sparse at the mid-culm and dense near the ends of the culm. In this study, we examined the intraspecific and interspecific variation in the node distribution of three species of the genus Phyllostachys (Phyllostachys pubescens Mazel ex Houz., Phyllostachys nigra var. henonis and Phyllostachys nigra Munro) with different culm sizes. The node distribution followed a single fitting curve via the normalization procedure, indicating the existence of a hidden universal law that governs the node distribution of the three species, despite their different appearances. Our findings also suggest that the node distribution along the mature culm could be determined at the stage of bamboo shoot by its base diameter.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the staff of the Nagomi Town and Nagomi Satoyama Committee and Dr. Kotaro Sakuta (Kyushu University) for their support with field research. We also like to thank the students of the Laboratory of Forest Ecology, Faculty of Environmental and Symbiotic Sciences, Prefectural University of Kumamoto for their technical assistance. This study was supported by JSPS KAKENHI (Grant Nos. JP25390147, JP26292088, JP15H04207, JP16K12823, and JP16K14948).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Environmental and Symbiotic Sciences, Prefectural University of Kumamoto, Kumamoto, 862-8502, Japan

    Akio Inoue & Shiori Tochihara

  2. Faculty of Engineering, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 060-8628, Japan

    Motohiro Sato

  3. Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Yamanashi, Kofu, 400-8510, Japan

    Hiroyuki Shima

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  1. Akio Inoue
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  2. Shiori Tochihara
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  3. Motohiro Sato
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  4. Hiroyuki Shima
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Correspondence to Akio Inoue.

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Communicated by Y. Sano.

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Inoue, A., Tochihara, S., Sato, M. et al. Universal node distribution in three bamboo species (Phyllostachys spp.). Trees 31, 1271–1278 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-017-1546-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-017-1546-2

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