Schizostachyum lima
Schizostachyum lima (Blanco) Merr., Amer. J. Bot. 3 (2), 1916: 62.
Synonyms: Bambusa lima Blanco; Schizostachyum hallieri Gamble; Schizostachyum stenocladum A. Camus.
Thai names: No known records.
Distribution: THAILAND: introduced, in cultivation, rare. — PHILIPPINES. — MALAYSIA: Borneo. — INDONESIA: Sulawesi, Moluccas, Irian Jaya (Papua), Lesser Sunda Islands. — PAPUA NEW GUINEA. — SOLOMON ISLANDS.
Descriptions:
(1) "Densely tufted, sympodial bamboo. Culm erect with drooping tip, 7–10(–13) m tall, diameter 2–4 cm, wall 2 mm thick, rough, hairy when young but becoming glabrous, green; internodes 30–100 cm long, when young covered with white waxy powder. Branches many at each node, subequal. Culm sheath 18–30 cm × 8 cm, green when young, covered with brown to dark brown hairs, middle of top recessed at attachment of blade; blade 13–25 cm × 6–12 mm, erect first, then deflexed, hairy adaxially, especially near the base; ligule short, with slender bristles 3 mm long; auricles not prominent, bearing curved bristles up to 8 mm long. Leaf blade 19–30 cm × 3.5–7 cm, glabrous above, glabrescent below; sheath glabrous; ligule short, irregularly toothed; auricles short with long bristles. … [flowers described]." — C. A. Roxas & S. Dransfield in S. Dransfield & E. A. Widjaja (eds.), Plant Resources of South-East Asia No. 7, Bamboos, 1995: p. 138-140, fig. [#1226].
(2) "Habit: Perennial; caespitose. Rhizomes short; pachymorph. Culms erect; pendulous at the tip; 800–1000 cm long; 30–40 mm diam.; woody. Culm-internodes terete; hollow; antrorsely scabrous; distally hispid. Lateral branches dendroid. Buds or branches absent from lower quarter of culm. Branch complement many; with subequal branches. Culm-sheaths deciduous; yellow, or green; antrorsely scabrous; hispid; with appressed hairs; with white hairs; truncate at apex; without auricles; setose on shoulders; shoulders with 9–12 mm long hairs. Culm-sheath ligule ciliate. Culm-sheath blade linear, or lanceolate; reflexed; hispid. Leaf-sheaths glabrous on surface, or hispid. Leaf-sheath oral hairs lacking, or ciliate; deciduous; pale. Leaf-sheath auricles absent. Ligule an eciliate membrane, or a ciliolate membrane. Leaf-blade base with a brief petiole-like connection to sheath. Leaf-blades lanceolate, or oblong; 9–33 cm long; 15–48 mm wide. Leaf-blade venation indistinct; without cross veins. Leaf-blade surface smooth, or scaberulous; rough abaxially; pilose; sparsely hairy; hairy adaxially. Leaf-blade margins scaberulous. Leaf-blade apex acuminate. … [flowers and seeds described]." Kew GrassBase, accessed 10 July 2020 [#1335].
Images: Photos in BambooWeb.info [#1340]; ASEAN Trop. Pl.
Uses: Shoots for food; culms for basketry and weaving, framework in thatching, fishing rods, spears, bow strings, musical instruments (flutes), handicrafts (carved tobacco containers); plants as garden ornamentals.
Specimen: BS-0481 [S4] (living plant), received from Singapore Botanic Gardens, June 2010.
Characteristics: Rhizome pachymorph, short. Culms erect, apically pendulous, unbranched on the lower culm. Young shoots emerge from late January to September. Culm-internodes rather long, usually 80–85 cm long, scattered with very short appressed pale hairs when young, slightly scabrous when old, thin-walled. Branches many, subequal. Culm-leaves deciduous on the branched sections of the culm, late deciduous or persistent on the lower unbranched culm. Culm-leaf sheaths antrorsely scabrous, with appressed white hairs, the hairs changing to dark color with age, the outer basal sheath edge with a tiny suborbicular projection about 3 mm long and 4 mm wide; apex horizontally to slightly concave-truncate. Culm-leaf auricles inconspicuous, very low rims along the sheath apex, dark-colored when young, with many long (to 15 mm), more or less erect, stout, white bristles. Culm-leaf ligule short, with fine, to about 10 mm long, white bristles. Culm-leaf blade linear, reflexed. Foliage-leaf auricles inconspicuous or absent. Foliage-leaf blades glabrous above, glabrescent beneath, 9–33 cm long, 1.5–4.8 cm wide.
Cultivation requirements: Grows in part shade to full sun, sandy loam to clay loam, normal moisture-retentive to moist soil with good drainage.
Comments: The hairs of the sheaths can cause severe itching if they come into contact with the skin.