Micropropagation in Bamboo - An Overview

The common term used for a diverse community (1250 species) of large woody grasses, ranging in height from 10 cm to 40 m, is bamboo. Bamboo may have potential as a bioenergy or fibre crop for niche markets, already in regular use by about 2.5 billion people, mainly for fibre and food in Asia, although some reports of its high productivity seem to be exaggerated. For bamboo, different propagation techniques are available, such as seed propagation, clump division, rhizome and culm cuttings. These are largely ineffective and inefficient for mass scale propagation and the only feasible approach is micropropagation. This study focuses on various Bamboo micropropagation techniques. Further research on propagation techniques, establishment and stand management is also required, and it is important to improve mechanised harvesting.