The Bamboo Flowering Cycle Sheds Light on Flowering Diversity.

Xiao Zheng,Yulong Ding,Yawen Wan,Huajun Fu,Shuyan Lin

doi:10.3389/fpls.2020.00381

Abstract

Bamboo is a perennial flowering plant with a distinctive life cycle: many bamboo species remain in the vegetative phase for decades, followed by mass synchronous flowering and subsequent death. The phenomenon of bamboo flowering is not fully understood, but its periodicity is a major research focus. Here, we collected information on bamboo flowering events by investigating historical documents and field studies at the Bamboo Research Institute of Nanjing Forestry University. We compiled information on more than 630 flowering events, 124 of which accurately recorded the flowering cycle time. We summarized the specific flowering cycles of 85 bamboo species, as well as four kinds of bamboo flowering habits in detail. We present a theory of the bamboo flowering cycle and discuss the reasons for the observed variations in bamboo flowering. This review also introduces two mechanisms by which bamboo forests are rejuvenated after flowering and explains the flowering phenomena of bamboo forests using the bamboo flowering cycle theory. Finally, we present suggestions for forest management strategies. Bamboo flowering is a normal physiological phenomenon, even though it has unique elements compared with flowering in other plants. The results presented here provide valuable reference material for understanding bamboo flowering and its periodicity.

Highlights

Bamboo is a large clade of the family Poaceae
Bamboo has attracted worldwide attention because of its distinctive life history. It is a perennial flowering plant, but many bamboo species remain in a vegetative phase for decades, or even a century, followed by mass synchronous flowering and subsequent death (Janzen, 1976)
Research on bamboo flowering greatly increased and inflorescence characteristics were widely used in the classification of bamboo

Summary

INTRODUCTION

Bamboo (subfamily Bambusoideae) is a large clade of the family Poaceae. There are more than 88 genera and 1,642 species worldwide, of which 28 genera and more than 120 species are herbaceous bamboo (Vorontsova et al, 2016). Bamboo has attracted worldwide attention because of its distinctive life history It is a perennial flowering plant, but many bamboo species remain in a vegetative phase for decades, or even a century, followed by mass synchronous flowering and subsequent death (Janzen, 1976). From the mid- nineteenth century to the early twentieth century, the amount of literature regarding bamboo flowering began to increase, and many reports used reproductive organs, such as inflorescences and fruits, as the main basis for classifying bamboo. Research on bamboo flowering greatly increased and inflorescence characteristics were widely used in the classification of bamboo. Researchers at the Bamboo Research Institute of Nanjing Forestry University have observed and studied the flowering events of many bamboo species. It is worth noting that the observed flowering habits of some bamboo species were not completely consistent

Literature reference

CONCLUSION AND PERSPECTIVES