Gigantochloa scortechinii

Thai names: ไผ่ผากเพลิง (phai phak phloeng) (Peninsular); ไผ่บาง (phai bang); "pai naam". — T. Smitinand, 2001 [#1003]; BKF [#1368].

Malay names: buloh semantan; buloh telor; buloh rayah.

Indonesian name: buluh kapal (Sumatra).

Distribution: THAILAND (South): Provinces of Yala and Narathiwat, may be distributed in all four southernmost provinces; in evergreen forest at 100–150 m altitude; (Central): Nakhon Pathom Province, cultivated. — MALAYSIA (Peninsular): throughout, common, in hill forests, populations may become weedy, also widely cultivated. — INDONESIA: Sumatra, Java.

Culm size: Height 10–20 m, diameter 6–12 (20) cm.

Descriptions:

(1) "Culms up to 20 m. long by 12 cm. thick, straight, covered with fine waxy powder when young, green with age; culm-sheaths orange at the top, above a zone covered with appressed coarse dark hairs which also fringe the sheath; blade narrow, reflexed at right angles, green, constricted; auricles a dark green narrow rim, sometimes with a few pale bristles; ligule 1 cm. rising to 1.8 cm. at the ends, deeply incised and with bristles; leaf-blades up to 35 x 5 cm., lower surface softly hairy, with a short stalk, auricles small, ligule short. …" — H. B. Gilliland & al., Revised Flora of Malaya, vol. 3, 1971: p. 32 [#1039].

(2) "Culm sheaths green at the very base and flushed intense orange towards the top, covered with dark brown to black hairs; blade broadly lanceolate, spreading to reflexed; auricles low rims 0.5-1.5 mm high, glabrous, sometimes (rarely) with scattered short bristles near the ends; ligule deeply lacerated, with a short basal portion 1–2 mm long and lacerations or bristles 8–12 mm long. Culms to 10–20 m tall, commonly 6–12 cm diameter; internodes 30–40 cm long, dark green (unusually and extremely rarely completely yellowish orange), conspicuously white-waxy, glabrous but in juvenile clumps often covered lightly with short pale spreading hairs. Leaf: blades 8–35 cm long, 3–5 cm wide, pale soft-hairy below, very unusually not green but with pale greenish white stripes; stalk 3–5 mm long; auricles small lobes hardly 0.5–1 mm high, glabrous or with a few fine bristles; ligule a short inconspicuous subentire rim 0.5–1 mm long, sometimes with a few bristles … [flowers described]". — K. M. Wong, Bamboos of Peninsular Malaysia, 1995: p. 138-140, fig. 77-78 [#1210].

(3) "Densely tufted, sympodial bamboo. Culm erect, up to 20 m tall, up to 12(–20) cm in diameter, wall 5–10 mm thick, when young covered with a fine white waxy powder, bright green when old; internodes up to about 60 cm long, basal ones with light green stripes. Branches arising from the midculm node upward with primary and secondary ones. Culm sheath 15–25 cm long, light orange, covered with appressed black hairs, not easily deciduous; blade spreading to reflexed, lanceolate, 9–13 cm × 1–3 cm, leaf-like, light green, much narrower than top of sheath; ligule dentate or deeply incised, ending in bristles, up to 9 mm long; auricles forming a low dark green rim along the sheath apex, sometimes terminated by a few bristles. Young shoots light orange with light green blades covered with appressed dark hairs. Leaf blade 20–30 cm × 2–3 cm, softly hairy on the lower surface; sheath hairy; ligule 2 mm long, sometimes bearing bristles; auricles small, 1 mm long with a few bristles up to 6 mm long … [flowers and seeds described]". — Azmy Hj. Mohamed in S. Dransfield & E. A. Widjaja (eds.), Plant Resources of South-East Asia No. 7, Bamboos, 1995: p. 120-123, fig. [#1226].

(4) E. A. Widjaja, Revis. Malesian Gigantochloa, 1987: p. 341-346, fig. 20-22 [#1224].

(5) "Culms densely tufted, straight and erect, 10—20 m tall, 5—12 cm in diameter; internodes to 30—40 cm long, dark green, white-waxy, often covered with short pale spreading hairs when young. Branches developing only at the upper part of the culms, the primary one dominant, 1—2 subdominant branches from its base and several lesser branches. Culm leaves green at base and flushed intense orange towards the top, deciduous, coriaceous, top slightly concave, back covered with appressed dark-brown to black hairs; blades lanceolate, spreading to reflexed, adaxial densely covered with dark-brown hair in the middle at the base; auricles dark-green, glabrous, low rim-like, reach edges of the sheath, about 0.5—1.5 mm tall; ligule deeply lacerate with the base up to 2 mm high and pale brown lacerations or bristles 8—12 mm long. Leaves 8—12 per branchlet; blades 11—40 cm long by 2—5 cm wide, upper surface smooth in one direction from base to apex, scabrous when touching from apex to base, lower surface pale pubescent, bases acute to shortly attenuate, pseudo-petiole 3—5 mm long; leaf sheaths 7—10 cm long, covered with densely white hair; auricles small rounded lobes to 0.5 mm tall fringed with a few stiff short bristles; scale-like callus very small, pubescent; ligule irregularly dentate fringed with pale-brown bristles up to 5 mm long; secondary veins 8—10 pairs, intermediate veins 7—8. … [flowers and seeds described]". — C. Rattamanee, Revis. Gigantochloa in Thailand, 2014: p. 119-123, fig. 45-47 [#1225].

(6) J. S. Gamble, Bambuseae Brit. India, 1896: p. 62 [#1230].

(7) Kew GrassBase [#1335].

Images: Line drawing in J. S. Gamble, Bambuseae Brit. India, 1896: pl. 53 [#1230]. Photos in AsianFlora [#1332]; K. M. Wong, Bamboo - The Amazing Grass, 2004: fig. 54 (culms, shoots) [#1048]; photo of the type specimen at Kew Herbarium (leaf, flowers) [#1333]; photo in A. Mohamed & S. Appanah in A. N. Rao & al. (eds.), 1998: fig. 3 (shoot) [#1211].

Uses: Culms for construction, scaffolding, flooring, basketry, blinds, handicrafts, chopsticks, toothpicks, skewers, and paper pulp. Shoots bitter, not used for food.

Comments:

(1) Closely related to Giganto­chloa wrayi, which is not waxy powdery.

(2) There is a teratological form known in Malaysia: with multiple primary branch buds at each node (K. M. Wong, Bamboo - The Amazing Grass, 2004: vii, fig. [#1048]).