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I agree bamboo doesn't really meet the definition of tree, but many/most people will argue that bamboo (the material) it isn't wood. I disagree with that... it

I agree bamboo doesn't really meet the definition of tree, but many/most people will argue that bamboo (the material) it isn't wood. I disagree with that... it is woody enough to meet my definition, and the non-contiguousness of trees supports that.

samatman 5y ago
I would also argue that bamboo isn't wood, it's a cane. Woody hollow stems which don't grow rings, are canes. If less woody and more herbaceous, it's a reed. The "tiebreaker" if you will, is palm wood. No rings, but it's dense, not hollow, it has a grain and it's lignin-rich. You can make planks with it. It's a weird wood, but it's wood. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut_timber https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut_timber
- robbrown451 5y ago
  I don't disagree that bamboo is a cane, but that doesn't necessarily make it non-wood. Ultimately "wood" is just a word, people will use it however they do.
  - samatman 5y ago
    I agree completely, what I'm trying to do is describe how these words are used by people with a stake in the matter. Woodworkers, for example. Canes take the adjective "woody" but not the noun "wood". Bamboo can make some interesting laminate materials, but these are not normally referred to as wood either, although they are lumber.
    - robbrown451 5y ago
      Yeah, either a woodworker or a botanist might have different definitions than "regular people". But "wood" is an everyday word. There are various things in my house -- trays or spoons or boxes or the like -- made of bamboo, but that I would refer to as "wood" simply because I never even looked closely enough to notice that technically it is bamboo (or maybe I have, but the distinction seems extremely minor in practice). I've done a fair amount of woodworking, but I don't think I've ever worked with bamboo. But if I were to, I'd be a lot more attuned to the distinction.

samatman 5y ago

I would also argue that bamboo isn't wood, it's a cane. Woody hollow stems which don't grow rings, are canes. If less woody and more herbaceous, it's a reed. The "tiebreaker" if you will, is palm wood. No rings, but it's dense, not hollow, it has a grain and it's lignin-rich. You can make planks with it. It's a weird wood, but it's wood. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut_timber https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut_timber

robbrown451 5y ago
I don't disagree that bamboo is a cane, but that doesn't necessarily make it non-wood. Ultimately "wood" is just a word, people will use it however they do.
- samatman 5y ago
  I agree completely, what I'm trying to do is describe how these words are used by people with a stake in the matter. Woodworkers, for example. Canes take the adjective "woody" but not the noun "wood". Bamboo can make some interesting laminate materials, but these are not normally referred to as wood either, although they are lumber.
  - robbrown451 5y ago
    Yeah, either a woodworker or a botanist might have different definitions than "regular people". But "wood" is an everyday word. There are various things in my house -- trays or spoons or boxes or the like -- made of bamboo, but that I would refer to as "wood" simply because I never even looked closely enough to notice that technically it is bamboo (or maybe I have, but the distinction seems extremely minor in practice). I've done a fair amount of woodworking, but I don't think I've ever worked with bamboo. But if I were to, I'd be a lot more attuned to the distinction.