Bamboo by Sam Mckinven

Bamboo can be used for a great variety of eco-friendly products including baskets, bicycle frames, bird cages, blinds, boats, bridges, brushes, buckets, canoes, carts, charcoal, chopsticks, clothing, cooking utensils, nappies, fans, fences, firewood, fishing rods, flooring, food steamer, furniture, garden tools, handicrafts, hats, incense, musical instruments, paper, particle board, pens, pipes, plywood, roofing, scaffold, sheets, tableware, toilets, toothpicks, toys, umbrellas, and walking sticks. It is amazing to think that bamboo can have this many uses.

 

There are around 1400 species of bamboo; at a growing rate of 24 inches a day it is also one of the fastest growing renewable materials in the world. Bamboo finishes growing within 3 months, its size varies from 1 to 10 feet tall depending on species and takes 3-4 years to mature. Some species can grow up to as much as 50 feet! A bamboo plant gives out up to 35% more oxygen than most other plants as well as preventing soil erosion. However, the growing demand from bamboo is having an effect on giant pandas that only eat bamboo.

 

Bamboo flooring can deal with a great deal of use without damage. Clothing made from bamboo is ideal for hot weather or a sweaty workout as it keeps moisture away from skin and has a silky texture. Sheets made from bamboo do not require the use of harmful pesticides because it has anti-bacterial properties which help reduce the spread of nasty germs hidden in the bed sheets.