Retaining color/treatments for Bambusa vulgaris sp?

[jungle trash]

Hi:
I just bought a load of bamboo and some of its emerald green and some of its yellow. Questions: how can i retain the colors, what can i coat it with? can i use filberglass stuff like you use on boats?? or shelac or what? and do i have to heat dry it..will the coating keep the bugs out? I live in Belize Central America.. I need a lots of help here guys..
thanks
jungle trash with a load of bamboo

[Mark Meckes]

Hi, bamboo will change color as it dries, and the color change will vary according to the way it is dried.
For example, this pic of Phyllostachys aurea shows ...
A fresh harvested pole / pole dried indoors / pole dried outdoors

http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/data/503/thumbs/1040605-065F.jpg See photo (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showphoto.php?photo=2292)

Some factors that affect color change ...
Bamboo species, age of material, moisture content of bamboo, amount of exposure to sunlight during drying, temperature, humidity and rate of drying, and changes brought on by a variety of other treatments.

> some of its emerald green and some of its yellow..

Do some of the poles have green AND Yellow stripes?

Just wondering if it is Bambusa vulgaris 'Vittata'.

Got pics?

The subject of processing and preserving bamboo is extensive, and though we can generalize about it, the procedure and results produced will have a lot to do with local environmental conditions, desired objectives and intended use of the bamboo.

~ Mark

[jungle trash]

Thank you for answering so quickly. Yes, some of its yellow with green stripes through it and i would presume from the dampness of the inside that it was cut just prior to delivery, now, the superstition down here is that, Bamboo has to be cut on a " full moon" then it will not get bugs, have you heard of that??? Right now, it is the rainy/hurricane season here so it is wet and humid.
(See also...Harvest bamboo on full moon - Fact or fiction? (http://www.bamboocraft.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1548))

Can I use fiberglass coating on it?? The Mayans say I can, but, I thought before I pay 800.00 for a 55 gallon drum of it and resoner, I thought maybe there is cheaper way to seal it...and do i have to scrap off the outside coating??
candy

[Mark Meckes]

Hi Candy,
I've never worked with this bamboo - too cold to grow it here successfully, so I can't help you with first-hand experience.
Hopefully others will be able to give you some pointers ...

Here are the pics that we have so far, of Bambusa vulgaris at Gallery Bamboo Flora
http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/data/526/thumbs/Im000426a.jpg Bambusa vulgaris (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showgallery.php?cat=526) (green form) http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/data/525/thumbs/BvVittataZM93-07--1.jpg Bambusa vulgaris 'Vittata' (http://www.bamboocraft.net/bamboo/showgallery.php?cat=525)

According to F.A Mclure - The Bamboos, published 1966:
Page 163 ...
Bambusa vulgaris thrives under a wide range of soil and moisture conditions ... at Turrialba, Costa Rica, has a clump growing well on an island in a small lake, where the water table is within 1 ft of the surface of the soil.
On the other hand, in El Salvador, the green striped yellow form thrives in areas where the dry season is so severe that the plants become completely defoliated. ...
There is no mention of or comparison of the differences of quality of materials harvested from these two locations.
As a general rule, adequate moisture produces larger culms, though excessively moisture laden culms can lead to reduced culm strength.
Bamboo growing under dryer conditions will produce smaller but tougher culms, though excessive dryness will affect the health and vigor of the planting

Page 157 ...
Bambusa vulgarisis a bamboo remarkable for a number of reasons.
Among these are ...
- the high strength of it's culms and their adaptability to a wide variety of uses
- the readiness with which the plant responds to propagation by vegetative means
- the rarity and restricted extent of the incidence of flowering in plantations
- and the prompt recovery of plants after severe harvesting - even clear cutting of the clump.

However, the susceptibility of the harvested culms to invasion by powder-post beetle (PPB) (Dinoderus spp) was rated as the highest of all among a dozen important economic bamboos studied by Plank at Mayagüez Puerto Rico (1950:8).
This susceptibility limits it's value for many conventional purposes, but it's reputation is redeemed by pulping studies that rate Bambusa vulgaris very high among nearly 100 species selected from those available in the Western Hemisphere.
... for the prevention of lodging in their banana plantation, the United Fruit Company selected B. vulgaris as the most satisfactory source of banana props in it's Central American plantations.

On the contrary, I know of many beautiful craft items made from Bambusa vulgaris, some on display in the gallery at this site.
~ Mark

[martinduplantier]

hi,
ím currently working on a architectural project in Chiapas, Mexico, with B. vulgaris vittata. I was also interested in keeping the color of the canes.
According to Yves Crouzet in one of his numerous books on bamboo, the color can be kept by putting the canes in water (as used for protection after harvesting) WITH 2% of vinegar during a certain period. I dont have the book with me right now, but i remember it to be an asian way of treating canes.
Un saludo,
martin

[Mark Meckes]

Hi Martin, thanks for writing!
We'd love to hear more about your project. You're welcome to start a New Thread about this and post pics if you have any.

Interesting note about the 2% vinegar.
Would this be 2% vinegar solution with 98% water added? ...
... or vinegar diluted to 2% acetic acid?
Common household store-bought vinegar is about 4-5% acetic acid.

Actually, I have a gallon of extra strength distilled white vinegar, listed as 9% acidity and labeled for pickling, salads and marinades.
It would be interesting to try to marinade or pickle some green bamboo in it and see what happens, and compare results to green bamboo immersed in just plain water.

I don't have Yves Crouzet's books - will check with the local library, or maybe someone else can provide us with the quote from his book.

~ Mark

[martinduplantier]

Hi Mark,
The project in Chiapas will be starting next year. In the mean time I should participate in some workshops so as to be able to design houses, coffee bodegas and community centers for local Maya people. They have the material but not the savoir-faire, the necessary technical background.
I have one year to learn how to do everything from harvesting to building. A few workshops would help.
But it's pretty hard to find bamboo construction workshops in Europe.
If anyone knows about one, please let me know.
I may go to Joerg Stamm's one in Colombia in February, we will experience building with guadua.

Concerning vinegar and water to protect bamboo initial color, I have to make a correction: Yves Crouzet in his book "Travailler le bambou " (p.45, Ed. Actes Sud, France, 2005) writes :

" one didn't know until a few years ago how to keep the green color of bamboos. Now, one can, thanks to industrial treatments, keep a bit of it. Easier to do, Kubo Sueyosi recipe (1989) consists in impregnating the canes with a solution of 0.2% white vinegar and 0.2% table salt and isolating them from light and heat. The length of the treatment is not precised, depending probably on the size of the pieces"

I will try to meet him at the bambouseraie in Anduze (www.bambouseraie.fr) and ask him details about all this.

Martin

[Capn Bill]

Regarding bugs...I am making furniture out of bamboo here on the Yucatan coast of Mexico. I found a large asst. of bamboo (don't know the strain) in the local dump after the local fishermen trimmed the poles they use for octopus fishing, and made some pieces out of those discards. 3 months later I am finding evidence of a small beetle boring and eating the wood. I also bought a load of Dendrocalamus strictus, cut fresh, that had been soaked in diesel fuel for insect control. After just a short time I am finding the same beetle trying to bore into some of the fresh stock. Whats interesting is that I occassionally find a piece of bamboo lying on the beach, obviously dislodged from one of the numerous fishing boats here. After being immersed in the salt water of the gulf, there is absolutely no evidence of insects. Even after I store it in the shop or it lies around outside, the bugs still avoid it. I am considering soaking all my bamboo in the salty water before use now. Anyone have any experience with this?

[Mark Meckes]

Thanks for the info Martin.
Hopefully we can find out more details about this treatment.

This discussion has got me thinking about the process of making Pickled cucumbers (http://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheets/HGIC3420.htm)
Perhaps we could learn a few things from the cook's recipe book on food preservation techniques and adapt them to bamboo (??)

Interesting findings Capn Bill,
Apparently soaking bamboo in water is supposed to leach the starch content out of the bamboo (that's what PPBs are after). However it can discolor the bamboo and make the wood more brittle if done for too long a period.

~ Mark

[bamboozler]

In regards to soaking or pickling bamboo, let me emphasize that the vinegar will reduce the starch out of almost anything, remember the childhood experiment with the unbreakable rubberized wishbone that we created by soaking it in vinegar?

Also I have 500 – 700 acres of timber bamboo in southern Alabama, and would like help bringing this harvest to market. It is my intention to harvest 175 acres a year to provide me with an ongoing harvest every year from here on. I just inherited this bamboo and it has been literally been untouched since planting in the late ‘50s and ‘60s. I live on the Gulf of Mexico and would like to now more about the brine soaking solution for bamboo eating bugs. Anyone out there got anything on that? I also am looking to sell some of the bamboo and wish to use some myself in making bamboo products. I would be interested in any help out there including anyone who might help to harvest the bamboo for a share of it. I was surprised with the discovery of bamboo, and the need to sell some of it is not going well, the paper company I talked to said they experimented with bamboo pulp back in the ‘60s and had no good things to say about it. So if pulping is out, next might be making plywood and lam beams, anyone know anything about that?

[Mayerk]

Bamboozler,
Just read your post, and wondering if you still need help harvesting. I live south of Tallahassee Florida and might be interested in helping in return for some of the bamboo. Is any of it of the right size for walking sticks? Any idea what species you have?

Thanks,
Kent

Also I have 500 – 700 acres of timber bamboo in southern Alabama, and would like help bringing this harvest to market. It is my intention to harvest 175 acres a year to provide me with an ongoing harvest every year from here on. I just inherited this bamboo and it has been literally been untouched since planting in the late ‘50s and ‘60s. I live on the Gulf of Mexico and would like to now more about the brine soaking solution for bamboo eating bugs. Anyone out there got anything on that? I also am looking to sell some of the bamboo and wish to use some myself in making bamboo products. I would be interested in any help out there including anyone who might help to harvest the bamboo for a share of it. I was surprised with the discovery of bamboo, and the need to sell some of it is not going well, the paper company I talked to said they experimented with bamboo pulp back in the ‘60s and had no good things to say about it. So if pulping is out, next might be making plywood and lam beams, anyone know anything about that?