Bambusa siamensis blooms for the first time in 50 years; don't miss this rare spectacle at Shanping Park

Text by the Liugui Research Center, Taiwan Forestry Research Institute 

Taiwan, China is located in a subtropical environment with a warm, humid climate and fertile soil, making it highly suitable for bamboo growth, yet the phenomenon of bamboo flowering and fruiting is rarely seen. Shanping Park, operated by the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute in Liugui District, Kaohsiung City, introduced Bambusa siamensis in 1967, and this is its first flowering in 50 years, truly a sight seldom seen.

Fortune or misfortune is hard to say; face nature with humility

Once bamboo flowers, neighboring bamboo usually flowers as well, causing large areas of bamboo forest to die off, which in turn inflicts knock-on harm on some bamboo-eating animals (such as giant pandas); on the other hand, bamboo seeds are an excellent food source for rodents. Some scientists have calculated that during the once-in-50-years bamboo flowering cycle in northeastern India, rat populations surge 4-fold, and the sudden increase in rats rapidly consumes the grain stored in villages, leading to famine.

Is bamboo flowering a blessing or a curse? Everyone will have different interpretations and views, and there seems to be no absolute right or wrong. Whichever view one holds, when facing nature people should maintain a positive and proactive attitude, observe the changes in the natural world, and take them in with humility. Readers are welcome to take some time to stroll through Shanping Park and witness the wondrous phenomenon of bamboo flowering and fruiting.

Shanping Forest Ecological Science Park website: https://shanping.tfri.gov.tw/