How To Go Green With Bamboo
/The Power of Bamboo
Published Date: May 07, 2010
One of the greatest gifts the Earth has given us to go green is a plant that has been used in Asia for thousands of years; bamboo. In the west, bamboo is not used as much as it is in Asia, but that is beginning to change as more and more people discover just how amazing this plant is.
Bamboo is the fastest growing plant in the world, usually growing about one foot every single day. This means that rather than reach maturity in 30 years like trees in North America, a bamboo stalk can reach maturity within three years. In addition, one bamboo stalk can be harvested many times as each time the stalk is cut; a new stalk will continue to grow.
However, the fast growing ability of bamboo is not the only thing that makes the plant so great. There are several facts about bamboo that most people do not realize which show how versatile the plant is.
1. Bamboo stalks are used in Asia to reinforce concrete because it has the same tensile strength as steel.
2. While bamboo stalks are as strong as steel, fabric made from bamboo is actually as soft as silk.
3. Bamboo towels are much better than cotton towels because bamboo is better for the environment, it does not take as much space to grow and bamboo towels are 1.5 times as absorbent as cotton towels.
4. Bamboo can grow nearly anywhere and where it does grow; it helps to protect the soil from erosion.
5. Bamboo can be made into a variety of environmentally-friendly products including floors, countertops, furniture, clothes, towels, baby clothes, baby products, toys, scaffolding and construction materials.
One of the biggest concerns about bamboo is that people feel that it costs more. This is not true at all. In fact, bamboo is beginning to fall in cost because it is becoming so commonly used throughout the world now. Even Wal-Mart, is beginning to sell bamboo products for a very low price. Many studies have also been done and found that bamboo is going to be one of the biggest exports and imports throughout the world in the 21st century. Many countries are starting to jump on this and grow their own bamboo. Currently though, China accounts for about 80 percent of all the bamboo exports in the world, and China grows all the bamboo it uses. The United States, Canada, Europe and Australia account for some of the bamboo exports and their hold on the market is beginning to grow.
So, if you are thinking of going green in your home, you can do no wrong by implementing bamboo everywhere you can. The floors are strong, the countertops are beautiful and the fabrics are soft. In addition, if you are thinking of investing in something that will increase in value in the coming years, then you should look at bamboo.
What other plant on Earth is as strong as steel, as soft as silk, waterproof and more absorbent than cotton? Bamboo is the wonder plant of the 21st century.
To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Mar 7, 2010
