Project Overview
Annual Reports
Information Products
Commodities
- Agronomic: bamboo
Practices
- Pest Management: cultural control
Proposal summary:
Whispering Winds Bamboo is dedicated to "Creating a Culture of Bamboo” here on the Hawaiian Islands, which includes the cultivation and post harvest use of clumping tropical timber bamboos. We have demonstrated that clumping bamboos can be successfully grown on the islands (not only on our farm on Maui but also on the farm of our project cooperator on the big island of Hawaii). We are now turning our attention and energy to the post harvest aspect of bamboo, which includes treatment, curing and building with bamboo. This Western SARE Farmer/Rancher grant project focuses on the inherent and treated resistance to attack by termites of six species of bamboo.
Project objectives from proposal:
Our project proposed to test up to eight species of clumping bamboo for resistance to termite attack without treatment. We have been fortunate in having Dr. Ken Grace, our technical advisor, spearheading the lab work so that our results are in keeping with standard testing protocol (they used E1-09 from the American Wood Protection Association and ASTM D 3345-74), and therefore acceptable to all concerned. At Whispering Winds Bamboo we are committed to bringing island-grown bamboo into the market place as a renewable and locally grown building product for the home and farm. Proper post harvest handling and treatment is key to a dependable long-lasting material, and this work on insect resistance of bamboo is important in crafting a protocol that will give our bamboo projects longevity and dependability.