Bamboo grows in clumps of culms called sympodial, the term for tropical bamboo that grows directly from the parent, where the culm and rhizome are one. Other kinds of bamboo have a single free-standing culm and are called monopodial, which means they grow out of a rhizome that travels fast and far underground. Valuable in the control of soil erosion, bamboo can be propagated from young rhizomes or from cuttings. The plant needs rich moist soil, full sun and nitrogen. They are different lengths, depending upon the variety, the largest being about 14 inches long by 2 inches wide.
Most varieties shed their leaves yearly, growing new ones that appear immediately.
Bamboo wood has silica in its cell walls and is hard, straight, strong, flexible, light and easily split. The Japanese name for bamboo is take , while the Chinese call it chu . Bamboo's usefulness takes many forms. A traditional knife for cutting the umbilical cord of a newborn was fashioned of bamboo, as were skewers to string kukui nuts for candles, lama or kali kukui . In the tapa cloth-making process, women used lapa, bamboo sticks, to apply dye.