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branches
In most genera the
branches appear only after the main culm has completed its elongation, however,
in other genera such as Phyllostachys and Semiarundinaria, the
branches appear as the culm elongates. In some genera the branches start
developing from the top down, in other it is the way around. Genera like Sasa,
Sasaella and Pseudosasa grow branches only in the upper part of
the culm, in others branches appear all along the culm, this however also
depends on the intesnsity of light received.
The number of
branches at the node (branching
pattern) is an important taxonomic characteristic in identifying bamboos,
although there is some variation. Sasa species have only one branch
per node, and this is true also for Pseudosasa and Sasaella (which
may occasionally have two or three branches). Phyllostachys usually
has two, a stronger branch and a smaller one about two.thirds the lenght.
There is sometimes a third, even smaller branch between the two. In Phyllostachys,
well grown plants occasionally have only a single branch on some lower
nodes. Pleioblastus, Semiarundinaria, Sinobambusa and Chimonobambusa
have three branches per node; Arundinaria and Sinarundinaria three
to six branches; Dendrocalamus and Bambusa seven to nine.
Some Sinarundinaria have many thin branches and Chusquea has a
whorl of up to 50 branches surrounding each node.
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