Bamboo

Hello, and welcome to Japanology Plus.
I'm Peter Barakan.

I'm in Kyoto.

This part of Japan is well-known for
bamboo, which is our theme for today.

This is a quintessential
Kyoto streetscape,

and you'll see bamboo used
in all kinds of different ways.

For example, this bamboo covering,

which protects the outer wall
of this building from rain and mud.

You'll also see bamboo fences
and screens.

Bamboo is used in many facets of
everyday life,

and it harmonizes really well with
the traditional character of Kyoto.

Kyoto is definitely a very good place
to learn more about bamboo.

Our first destination is
Kyoto Bamboo Park,

which features around
110 varieties of bamboo.

Bamboo is originally a tropical plant,

but some species have adapted to
Japan's temperate climate.

-Hello. Nice to see you again.
-Hello.

Our guest is Professor Shibata Shozo,
of Kyoto University.

Shibata, a returning guest,
is a leading bamboo-ecology researcher.

His extensive knowledge
covers bamboo's role

in industry, culture,
and other contexts.

First, he introduces a few of the
rare species growing inside the park.

It's nice to wander through here and
see all the different types of bamboo.

This one's a rather unusual type isn't it?

Kind of zig-zags a bit. What is this one?

It's called kikko-chiku, which
literally means "tortoise-shell bamboo."

Of course,
that's because of the way it looks.

Bamboo usually grows evenly,
segment by segment.

But with this variety,
only one side grows at a time.

When it reaches a node,
the opposite side starts growing.

That sequence repeats,
resulting in this appearance.

These are nice too.
These black ones.

Yes. They're "kuro-chiku,"
or "black bamboo."

When their shoots emerge in spring,
they're actually green.

But in autumn, they start to get darker.

And by their second year,
they're very dark.

It's enjoyable to watch them change.

You see them in gardens.

And they're used as a craft material,
and in interiors.

This is hotei-chiku.
It's often used for fishing rods.

Close to the ground,
the segments are quite short.

This part offers a natural,
non-slip handhold.

It has long been a valued material
for fishing rods in Japan.

"Kinmei moso-chiku" is gold and green.

It is especially associated with
two groves in southwest Japan

that are designated as
natural monuments.

How many kinds of bamboo are there
altogether? Do we know?

It's said that, worldwide,
there are around 1,200 types.

In Japan, we have around 230.

Among those,

three varieties have been commonly used
over the centuries in Japan.

One of them is moso-chiku.

This is believed to have come to Japan
from China, around 500 years ago.

Its main value was as a source of food:
bamboo shoots.

Really?

Yes.

The other two types
may have been in Japan

for as long as two thousand years:
madake and hachiku.

Japanese have long used madake
as a craft material—

for weaving baskets, strainers,
and so on.

Hachiku, meanwhile,
has much thinner fibers than madake.

So hachiku is appropriate for
more delicate craftwork.

Throughout history in Japan,
items have been crafted from bamboo.

They include various utensils that
feature in the tea ceremony.

One example is the tea whisk.

Bamboo is split into narrow strands,
as thin as thread.

The whole whisk is made from
a single piece of bamboo.

But how exactly is this done?

The process begins with
a cylinder of bamboo.

Using a small knife,
it's cut into strands 5 millimeters wide.

The strands are carefully split into
even smaller filaments—

not with a knife, but by hand.

This is possible thanks to
the natural properties of bamboo.

Its fibers run vertically,
and can be divided along straight lines.

The tips are shaved
to make them even thinner.

This encourages them to curve over.

The resulting tips are now so soft that
they will not damage a porcelain cup,

and the whisk itself will not warp
in hot water.

Bamboo is also used to
make many everyday objects.

For example, this basket,
which is made to be worn on the back.

Thanks to its breathability, it's perfect
for carrying vegetables and other crops.

Bamboo has antibacterial properties,
so it's used to make lunchboxes.

Traditional Japanese umbrellas.

The frame needs to be flexible,
and once again, bamboo is a good choice.

The frame is covered in washi paper,
and the result is bright and colorful.

Bamboo is indispensable
in Japanese architecture.

Here's a traditional house.

Bamboo's flexibility makes it perfect
for the roof's frame.

And when constructing the walls,

lengths of bamboo are lashed together
in a crisscross pattern,

forming a frame that can be
filled with mud and earth.

Bamboo shoots are a popular delicacy
in Japan.

They're in season in early spring.

They're at their most delicious just
before they break the surface of the soil.

Getting the timing right
requires expert judgment.

The shoots are boiled
in plenty of hot water.

And the fresher they are,
the better they taste.

Bamboo shoots are a highlight
of a season that

many people eagerly look forward to.

Why do you think it is that Japanese
people came to use bamboo so much?

One reason is that bamboo is
just so widely available.

It will grow almost anywhere.

Also, there's the fact that
bamboo stems are hollow.

So they don't weigh much.

Another factor is flexibility.

Each variety is different, but in general,
bamboo is supple, even when split apart.

It's easy to weave.

Very easy to work with.

Our ancestors took advantage of
bamboo's natural properties

to make all sorts of
useful everyday items.

Simply cut off a small section,
and you have a cup.

Cut a large section, and you have a bowl.

Plus, bamboo is a
poor conductor of heat.

Even if you fill a bamboo container with
a very hot drink, you can still hold it.

Bamboo became essential in Japan.

When people moved somewhere new,
they'd take some bamboo to plant

in case there was none in the area
around their home.

Wow.

Bamboo grows quickly.

It can reach a height of 20 meters
in just a few months,

and after 3 to 5 years, is ready to be
used as a craft and construction material.

Since ancient times
it's been seen as a valuable resource.

So, I mean, when you're
in different parts of Japan,

quite often you'll see quite large groves
of bamboo in the mountains.

So should one imagine that
most of those have been planted?

I believe so.

If you see an isolated bamboo
grove up in the mountains,

it's likely that people once lived nearby.

That's a fair assumption.

Wow, I'd never realized that. Interesting.

Bamboo also decomposes quickly,

so it's hard to know
when it was first used in Japan.

However, a 3,000-year-old item
has been found.

It's a woven bamboo basket,
with a lacquer coating.

This offers a sense of just how long
bamboo has featured in people's lives.

In the 8th century,
many Japanese studied in China.

They brought back various new bamboo
objects, including this brush.

Another example is a wind instrument
called sho.

The samurai class first rose to power
in the late 12th century.

Their weapons included
bows and arrows,

which were made from
different types of bamboo.

For arrows, slender and
straight bamboo was ideal.

Samurai referred to it
as "arrow bamboo,"

and grew it next to their homes
for that specific purpose.

In the 16th century, Sen no Rikyu
perfected the tea ceremony.

He disliked the elaborate tea implements
that were fashionable at the time,

and much preferred the natural feel
and simplicity of bamboo.

He used a plain bamboo tea spoon

to scoop tea powder from
a container to a cup.

And a modest bamboo ladle
to add hot water.

A bamboo tea whisk was perfect for
mixing green tea powder and water.

Sen no Rikyu's tea ceremony popularized
new uses for bamboo.

In the 17th century,
Japan entered a long period of peace.

Industry developed significantly,

and bamboo was employed in crafts,
construction, and leisure.

It became an indispensable feature
of life in Japan.

When you're in a bamboo grove,
first of all, visually it's so beautiful.

And then you have the effect of even just
a very slight breeze rustling the leaves.

And it's just a wonderful environment
to be in, isn't it?

Yes. There's a breeze right now, in fact.

It generates a very soothing,
comforting sound.

Many Japanese really love it.

But we're hearing more
than simply the rustling of leaves.

It's thought that the bamboo stems,
which are hollow, add to the experience.

That has been studied
from an acoustic perspective.

It has been demonstrated that

bamboo groves have acoustic properties
similar to those found in concert halls.

That helps to explain the pleasant
tranquility of places like this.

Against that acoustic backdrop, the
sound of leaves is really very enjoyable.

That's interesting. Actually I was given
a pair of bamboo speakers.

And…this long; it's like a bamboo tube.

And a little speaker on the top of it.

And they actually have a very nice sound.

In recent years, various factors have led
to many bamboo groves being neglected.

If it isn't properly maintained,

bamboo will take over,
and other plants will die off.

This loss of natural diversity
creates multiple problems.

To ensure a healthy environment,
bamboo's density must be controlled.

Hi, I'm Matt Alt, and this is Plus One.

On today's episode I've come to Azabu,
one of Tokyo's toniest neighborhoods,

where I'm going to check out someone

who's involved in preserving bamboo
forests in their own unique way.

Matt heads into an office building.

I hear music.

The instruments being played by this
group are all made from bamboo.

We visit bamboo groves in person,
and harvest bamboo.

Then we use that to make our own
instruments to perform with.

We play all over the country!

The group's made up of
ten professional musicians.

For the past 13 years,

they have been visiting neglected groves
regularly to harvest surplus bamboo.

They use the bamboo to build
their own instruments from scratch.

Well that was an unexpected use
of extra bamboo.

Of course, I know there's bamboo flutes
and things like that.

But I've never seen such large bamboo
instruments such as this.

This is really cool, if you ever
get a chance to hear it yourself.

I'm in Akiruno, in far western Tokyo,

where I'm going to visit
the studio of a gentleman

who has a really unique take
on bamboo crafting.

Follow me.

Hello there! Mind if I come in?

No, hello!

Do come in!

This is bamboo craftsman Emori Hiroshi.

He uses bamboo to create
intricately detailed lamps.

They're very popular.

What made you choose bamboo
as your material to work with?

I wanted to make use of bamboo
from neglected groves.

If no one uses it,

and it's simply left as-is,
that bamboo will go to waste.

It'll become a problem for people.

By turning it into useful products,
I can give it life—a purpose.

To learn more,
we follow him into the forest.

Our first stop is a grove
close to Emori's workshop.

Several times a month, he comes here
with friends to thin out the bamboo.

Many of the landowners are elderly,

and so they can't maintain
the bamboo properly.

The plants are growing much too
close together.

Bamboo grows vigorously,
and spreads very quickly.

This was originally a cryptomeria forest,
but the bamboo is taking over.

And the cryptomeria are
beginning to die off.

First, Emori's group chop down
bamboos over 5 years old,

that have become decayed and rotten.

These are piled up and eventually
turn into compost.

Next, they turn their attention
to 3-year-old bamboos,

which are ideal for crafting.

Let's see how bamboo is
made into a lamp.

First, they cut off as much as they need.

-Very good.
-Really? Thank you.

Matt has drawn a design,
and this is stuck onto the bamboo.

With that as a guide, drilling begins.

Using drill bits of different sizes,
a pattern of holes emerges.

When that's done, the paper is removed.

The last step is to burn the surface of
the bamboo until it changes color.

This is to get rid of insect eggs.

Self-portrait?

What does it look like to you?

Drumroll please!

Oh, look at that! Oh wow!

It's a kappa—a supernatural creature
in Japanese folklore.

I'm really happy that you, an American,

came up with a design featuring
a Japanese kappa.

Bamboo instruments, bamboo interior
decorations like these lamps.

There's all sorts of ways to use this
flexible natural material.

And by so doing, we help preserve
bamboo forests all over Japan.

In recent years, a rare phenomenon has
been observed across Japan.

Hachiku bamboo has been flowering.

This happens every 120 years;
then the plants all die.

These are bamboo flowers.

Bamboo belongs to the rice family,
so their flowers look alike.

They have no petals.

The yellow parts that emerge
are stamens.

The white parts are pistils.

And the wind is key to pollination.

Japan's hachiku plants
sacrifice their lives

to the cause of reproduction
every 120 years –

when they grow flowers, produce seeds,
then quickly wither and die.

Japan is now in the midst
of that phenomenon.

But then why do new bamboos sprout
from the ground at other times?

The secret is the rhizome.

As it spreads underground,
individual shoots grow up from it.

Every bamboo from one rhizome has
the same genetic identity.

This strategy proved very successful
in Japan's climate,

so the flowering cycle became longer.

As a bamboo grove tends to have
limited genetic diversity,

it's vulnerable to irregular change
such as climate change.

To survive, even in Japan it needs to
conduct occasional genetic exchange.

And flowering is the means by which
this happens.

Why is it that a whole generation
of bamboo

flowers and dies pretty much
simultaneously?

There are several reasons.

One is that if bamboo produced seeds
little by little,

they'd all be eaten by animals.

But if it produces a lot of them
all at once,

there's a surplus,
even after animals have had their fill.

So bamboo is guaranteed to
successfully reproduce.

That's one reason.

But what if bamboo didn't die
after flowering?

The existing plants would get
all the sunlight,

and in the darkness below, the next
generation might not be able to grow.

Their offspring might all wither.

The parent dies for the sake of the child.

If that didn't happen,
extinction would loom,

because of a failure of genetic transfer.

But eventually,

within a fairly short period of time,
a whole generation of bamboo dies out.

That has to have quite an effect on

a society that uses bamboo
in so many different ways.

Indeed.

Madake last flowered in the 1960s.

Back then, that type of bamboo was
widely used as a craft material.

So when the plants died,
Japanese artisans really struggled.

But this happened right at a time when
Japan's economy was growing.

Booming, in fact.

By then,
oil had become very easy to get hold of.

And so Japanese switched to using
petroleum products.

After that,
everything was made from plastic.

OK.

After 10 or 20 years,
madake was widespread again.

But by then Japanese society had moved
away from bamboo products.

And that trend has continued
to the present day.

On the other hand,

there's the whole environmental
movement that's going on now.

And people are becoming
much more aware

of becoming less dependent
on fossil fuels,

and all the things that are made from,
including plastic I suppose.

So perhaps we might see a movement
back to using bamboo?

That's something that we have to do,
in my opinion.

We need to stop using plastic,
and go back to using bamboo instead.

There are many initiatives that
have this as their aim.

For example, people are now making
use of bamboo fibers.

These fibers are long and thin,
and of extremely high quality.

You can weave them together
to make clothing.

Or towels.

Lots of research is being carried out.

Interesting.

Bamboo even has potential
applications in space.

Outer space is a harsh environment.

When an object moves between direct
sunlight and shadow,

its temperature changes
extremely swiftly.

Plastic and adhesives can deteriorate,
and fail.

That might eventually cause a spacecraft
to malfunction.

Cellulose nanofibers represent
a potential solution.

These extremely thin bamboo fibers are
formed into panels.

This material is roughly twice
as strong as plastic,

and more resistant to heat.

Cellulose nanofibers are expected to be
used in space in the near future.

The sheer range of things that bamboo
can be used for is actually quite amazing.

It is indeed.

As I said earlier,
despite the recovery of madake,

society had already embraced
plastic products.

We need to make people aware that,
although bamboo might wither,

in due course it will come back.

If people don't know that,
they'll see bamboo die,

and just give up on it.

I think we need to advocate
for a return to bamboo,

rather than continuing to use plastic.

I think that's very important indeed,

when we consider environmental issues.

That's how I see it.

Thank you very much.

My pleasure.