There are at least 59 species from 22 genera that have the word bamboo as all or part of one or more of their common names and I have no idea which of them are represented on this page. Most of the species are in either the genus Bambusa or or the genus Phyllostachys but at least 2 dozen are in various other genera.
Because of the way it grows, bamboo does not produce "lumber" in the normal sense and everything you see that is made of bamboo and is more than an inch or so wide is made of laminations of strips that are cut from the round stalk. Technically, bamboo is not wood at all, but rather is a type of grass. It grows as a hollow tube but with knuckles spaced regularly along its length. Really large stalks can grow to several inches in diameter with knuckles more than a foot apart.
my samples:
tiny "plank"
flooring sample and end grain --- I was puzzled by this piece, as it appears to be a quartersawn section of an amazingly thick bamboo stalk. I have never experienced bamboo anywhere near as thick as this and was not aware that such existed, but upon close examination of the end grain closeup below, I now see that this is a very skillful laminate, not a solid piece
end grain closeup from the flooring sample directly above
small, thin, pices of bamboo with a fungal growth that causes them to be called "dirty bamboo" according to Mark Shade, who gave them to me, and whom I thank for this and other contributions to the site.
web pics
plank listed as bamboo / Phyllostachys pubescens and with wet and dry sections
planks
laminated planks
veneer --- I have never seen bamboo veneer but I assume the washed out color is either incorrect or there is some bleaching process used in the veneer creation.
flooring
bowls --- you can see the segmenting pretty clearly
unsegmented bamboo vase made by Mike Hawkins out of a large bamboo stalk, and the stages of construction. The finish is analine dye. Note how neatly Mike made a bead at the bottom of the vase to make the natural ring on the bamboo fit right into the design. Enlargements are present on all but the first pic.
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