Bambusa textilis var. albostriata

Bamboo Outlaw · **Posted:** Thu Mar 20, 2008 1:45 am

Roy, correct on all from what I see here. I never noticed the difference as detailed in pic #3. That is indeed a very easy way to tell them apart. thanks...

Roy · **Posted:** Thu Mar 20, 2008 1:55 am

Bamboo Outlaw wrote:

Roy, correct on all from what I see here. I never noticed the difference as detailed in pic #3. That is indeed a very easy way to tell them apart. thanks...

Bamboo Outlaw,

The key is which one is which? I'm going to have to do a little research and see if I can find some detailed descriptions of the 2. Probably going to be hard to find any information that would lead to the conclusion that the source of information was correct in its descriptions.

blokker · **Posted:** Thu Mar 20, 2008 3:28 am

Roy

I have only one years interest and experience with bamboo which I realise is nothing so take this for exactly what it's worth.
But I've found this thread very interesting and so from a beginners point of view have looked very closely at my:

Bambusa textilis gracilis
Bambusa textilis
Bambusa textilis var. albostriata

and all have the leaf bristles as shown in your photo. Am I simplifying things too much by assuming that your photo with the leaf bristles if I had to guess would be more likely to be the textilis var. albostriata just because it runs in the family and that the other without the leaf bristles would then by default be the B. doli. Silverstripe?

Roy · **Posted:** Thu Mar 20, 2008 4:07 am

blokker wrote:

Roy

I have only one years interest and experience with bamboo which I realise is nothing so take this for exactly what it's worth.
But I've found this thread very interesting and so from a beginners point of view have looked very closely at my:

Bambusa textilis gracilis
Bambusa textilis
Bambusa textilis var. albostriata

and all have the leaf bristles as shown in your photo. Am I simplifying things too much by assuming that your photo with the leaf bristles if I had to guess would be more likely to be the textilis var. albostriata just because it runs in the family and that the other without the leaf bristles would then by default be the B. doli. Silverstripe?

blokker,

I'll have to take a look at my B. textilis and my B. tex. gracilis tomorrow.

rfgpitt · **Posted:** Thu Mar 20, 2008 2:08 pm

blokker,
Are your plants fairly young? I don't have any experience with the Bambusas, but most of the temperate plants I grow can show different characteristics when still juvenile. The auricles/oral setae are one example. After a few years they've disappeared on several plants. The plants may have to be several years old before certain features go away or become more pronounced. Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong (Roy, you don't have to hold back).....

Roy · **Posted:** Thu Mar 20, 2008 2:32 pm

rfgpitt wrote:

blokker,
Are your plants fairly young? I don't have any experience with the Bambusas, but most of the temperate plants I grow can show different characteristics when still juvenile. The auricles/oral setae are one example. After a few years they've disappeared on several plants. The plants may have to be several years old before certain features go away or become more pronounced. Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong (Roy, you don't have to hold back).....

I think you are right on your observation(s). I know that on my B. textilis culm sheath auricles, on smaller culms they are much more pronounced and on normal size culms they are almost not existent.

Roy · **Posted:** Fri Mar 21, 2008 2:24 am

blokker wrote:

Roy

I have only one years interest and experience with bamboo which I realize is nothing so take this for exactly what it's worth.
But I've found this thread very interesting and so from a beginners point of view have looked very closely at my:

Bambusa textilis gracilis
Bambusa textilis
Bambusa textilis var. albostriata

and all have the leaf bristles as shown in your photo. Am I simplifying things too much by assuming that your photo with the leaf bristles if I had to guess would be more likely to be the textilis var. albostriata just because it runs in the family and that the other without the leaf bristles would then by default be the B. doli. Silverstripe?

I did some checking today and here's some of my findings. My B. textilis and B. textilis gracilis clumps are absent of any lower branches so it was somewhat difficult to do much observing using the clumps. I do have some of each in pots and what I noticed was that on the branches that has new leaves, then the bristles were observable. On older leaves, from say last Summer's growth, then then there was very little to non-observable bristles on those leaves (nearby the leaves, but not actually growing on the leaves).

One thing I definitely pride myself on is when I get to the point I think I know something, then that is the time to start questioning that knowledge or perceived fact of which I think I know. (Did I close the loop in that circle?)

The question then became: "Was the composite picture (posted previously) of the 2 bamboo leaves of B. tex. albo and B. doli. Silverstripe pictures of an old set of leaves and new set of leaves?" Thus giving the same scenario as I observed today on the leaves I examined on the B. tex. and B. tex. gracilis?

Since I don't have the B. tex. albo to examine, I decided I would check some old leaves of the B. doli. Silverstripe (as I've always known it by that name) and see if the leaves had any bristles. I checked older leaves on the B. doli. Silverstripe and they still had a large amount of bristles around the leaf area. At least that part was consistent.

blokker · **Posted:** Mon Mar 24, 2008 9:30 pm

Rick

You do make a good point as all my plants are fairly young. I notice on all three plants I looked at that the older leaves are devoid of leaf bristles but all the young leaves do have the leaf bristles. But then again like both you and Roy make the point that you can have differences between a young specimen as compared with a mature plant so I guess that could change. Unfortunately I don't have any mature plants to make a comparison with!

Roy · **Posted:** Tue Mar 25, 2008 12:14 am

blokker wrote:

Rick

You do make a good point as all my plants are fairly young. I notice on all three plants I looked at that the older leaves are devoid of leaf bristles but all the young leaves do have the leaf bristles. But then again like both you and Roy make the point that you can have differences between a young specimen as compared with a mature plant so I guess that could change. Unfortunately I don't have any mature plants to make a comparison with!

See! This is what makes bamboo ID-ing difficult and sometimes frustrating.

boonut · **Posted:** Tue Mar 25, 2008 12:45 pm

Outlaw,

Last time I went to Mercer, I saw one albostriata with large stripes and one with very few stripes if any. I really liked the one with large stripes. Can you look at both next time you are there and see if you see any differences in the leaves?

I am just wondering if it has anything to do with age of the boo.

When I was in California, I noticed that a lot of the Gigantochloa Pseudoarundinacea "Maxima" didn't have that much striping. I have seen the ones in Florida and they have lots of stripes. I also saw one at Bamboo Headquarters that had lots of beautiful stripes. Unfortunately, I have one with hardly no stripes. I got it in an auction at the TBS conference a number of years ago. I know there will be a lot of discussions related to Maxima vs. Pseudoarundinacea vs. Pseudoarundinacea "maxima"... etc... I don't have an opinion on that, so I just left the name that it came with. I think it came from Florida, although I don't remember any more.

mantis · **Posted:** Tue Mar 25, 2008 1:42 pm

Boonut,

The G. maxima I got from River's End when I visited you last spring has lots of striping. I love the look of the boo, I just wish it was 2* hardier. There are so many neat bamboos that have a min. temp. of 28*, but I get down to 25-26 each winter.

Hopefully as my jungle matures I'll get some additional protection, so my yard won't look so ratty in the spring. Whoops, I got off topic again.

You might want to ask your friend at River's End (Kathy?) where she sourced her maxima if you are bored and want to track the lineages of the different striped maximas. :laughing1:

mantis · **Posted:** Tue Mar 25, 2008 1:43 pm

boonut wrote:

Outlaw,

Last time I went to Mercer, I saw one albostriata with large stripes and one with very few stripes if any. I really liked the one with large stripes. Can you look at both next time you are there and see if you see any differences in the leaves?

I am just wondering if it has anything to do with age of the boo.

Oh, I'll be heading up to Mercer this weekend for the March Mart, so I'll try to get some good pictures (if I remember).

Roy · **Posted:** Tue Mar 25, 2008 2:05 pm

boonut wrote:

Outlaw,

Last time I went to Mercer, I saw one albostriata with large stripes and one with very few stripes if any. I really liked the one with large stripes. Can you look at both next time you are there and see if you see any differences in the leaves?

I am just wondering if it has anything to do with age of the boo.

When I was in California, I noticed that a lot of the Gigantochloa Pseudoarundinacea "Maxima" didn't have that much striping. I have seen the ones in Florida and they have lots of stripes. I also saw one at Bamboo Headquarters that had lots of beautiful stripes. Unfortunately, I have one with hardly no stripes. I got it in an auction at the TBS conference a number of years ago. I know there will be a lot of discussions related to Maxima vs. Pseudoarundinacea vs. Pseudoarundinacea "maxima"... etc... I don't have an opinion on that, so I just left the name that it came with. I think it came from Florida, although I don't remember any more.

The one I have, which I have always known it as B. doli. 'Silverstripe' has somewhat larger than normal leaves for a mid-size bamboo. Another key thing about the leaves is that they have a similar look as though one took and washed and then tumbled dried a cotton shirt, but did not iron it. (For the life of me, I can't think of the right word at the moment--maybe "rough-dried"?) The leaves are not like most of the bamboo leaves which are flat as though they have been ironed.

Bamboo Outlaw · **Posted:** Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:42 pm

Roy, we have the boo identified as you do. The hairy leaves are Doli, the bald are Textilis. The description of the leaves and growth habit we studied last year and observed the same as you indicated. I checked at Mercer last weekend.

Boonut, was the nice striped one (Textilis) just inside the main gate to your left? Best veiwed from the walkway on the other side of the plant? Was the non-stipedy one past the visitor center on the right? Probably last or next to last of the bamboo in the arch shaped bed? If so, this one was dug up and chopped and topped. I do not know what is was other than it was labeled Albo. I did not study the leaves but maybe can this weekend. It is March Mart and the days will be very long. I will follow up as soon as I can though. I had already pointed out your observations to Linda.

boonut · **Posted:** Wed Mar 26, 2008 1:12 am

I just went out and looked at the Mutabilis I got from Roy. It has the hairs on the leaves just like the pictures of the B. Textilis Albo... Don't know if age has something to do with the hair issue.

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Bambusa textilis var. albostriata

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