Phyllostachys aurea

Flower name
Phyllostachys aurea
Scientific name
Phyllostachys aurea
Aliasタケ, 竹, 布袋竹, hoteichiku, クレタケ, ゴサンチク, ジンメンチク, コサンダケ, Fish pole bamboo, 羅漢竹
Place of originChina,Japan
Place of floweringFields and footpaths, Low mountains
Flowering season

What is Phyllostachys aurea

Phyllostachys aurea or the hoteichiku (scientific name: Phyllostachys aurea) is a species of evergreen bamboo native to China. It is also known as fish pole bamboo, golden bamboo, monk's belly bamboo, and fairyland bamboo It grows wild in the mountains and fields of the Yangtze River basin in China. It was introduced to Japan around the Edo period. The height of the culm is 5 to 10 meters, and the diameter of the culm is 2 to 4 cm. The leaves are light green, 5-12 cm long, 1-2 cm wide, lanceolate, and leaf-eared. 0.3-0.8 cm long, small flowers bloom once every 60-120 years in an inflorescence and wither when the fruit matures. It is used for garden and horticultural purposes. When dried, it is used to make fishing poles and walking sticks because of its hardness and resistance to breakage and its easy grip.

Origin of the name
The genus name "Phyllostachys" is a compound of the Latin words "phyllon (leaf)" and "stachys (ear). The species name "aurea" is a Latin word meaning "shining gold," from the shape of the flower ear encased in leaf-patterned bracts. Japanese name was derived from the irregular and bulging internodes at the base of the culm, which are narrow and oblique, resembling the belly of a mourning mourner.

Similar bamboos of another genus
A variant of the mousou-chiku with similar nodularity is Phyllostachys heterocycla f. heterocycla。

Common name is "hoteichiku," the scientific name is "Phyllostachys aurea," and the common names are "kuretake," "gosanchiku," "jinmenchiku," "kosandake," "fish pole bamboo," "golden bamboo," "monk's belly bamboo," and "fairyland bamboo, Leaf length: 5-12 cm, leaf width: 1-2 cm, leaf shape: lanceolate with leaf tips, inflorescence: spike-shaped, flower length: 0.3-0.8 cm, flowering cycle: 60-120 years, uses: garden tree, gardening, fishing rod, walking stick, bamboo shoots are edible, special note: single fertile (withers when flowers bloom and fruits mature).