‘Bamboo’zled Bangalore sees good luck in cultivating cane

They are available at heights ranging from a few inches to about six to seven feet. And the look of it brings in not just instant freshness indoors, but also luck and prosperity, many believe.

Bamboo has marked its place in the interiors of Bangalore homes. Be it villas or apartments, residential or commercial buildings, bamboo is today one of the most sought after green decor.

A range of bamboos such as Buddha belly bamboo, golden bamboo, black bamboo, Feng Shui bamboo and spiral bamboo are available today. These are available in most nurseries and plant shops and the demand is growing in leaps and bounds.

“According to Feng Shui and Vaastu, the presence of bamboo tree at home is considered auspicious. And the variety of bamboos is not limited to Feng Shui shoots available in a bunch. There is demand for big bamboo trees as well. And because of its aesthetic value, many people go in for bamboo tree,” says Pradeep K, managing director, Garden World, a city-based nursery.

Among the trees, the most preferred is Buddha belly bamboo. “They generally grow to a height of six to seven feet, maximum, and are comfortable in semi-shaded area, like balcony or a place near the window. This variety of bamboo has got wrinkle on the stem in the shape of belly and is in demand as it can be grown easily inside apartments,” says Pradeep.

There are over 2,000 varieties of bamboos available, of which only a handful can be grown inside the house, says M Jagadeesh, botanist and deputy director, horticulture, Cubbon Park.

“Buddha belly bamboo is the most preferred variety because of its ornamental value. Golden bamboo, another variety, is easy to maintain, and is preferred by those with a backyard or garden attached to their house. However, the latest add-on is the black bamboo, a Mexican variety with green leaves and black stem,” he says.

Not just villas and apartment owners, architects too approach us as they are now incorporating bamboo to enhance the aesthetics of the house. Being a fast-growing plant, bamboo indicates growth and prosperity and is believed to be lucky, when kept on the south-west direction of the house.

While that is about bamboo trees, there is also a craze to keep bamboo shoots at home and workplace.

“This need not be the specific Feng Shui bamboo shoots always. People love to experiment with the 1.5 to 2 feet tall bamboo sticks that can be kept in vases at any corner of the house. Among these varieties, spiral bamboos are in high demand,” says Mahesh Gowda, salesperson at a city-based interior shop.
Taniya Singh, a city-based software professional, has a good collection of bamboo varieties in her apartment. “When I decided to make my balconies green, a four-feet-long Buddha belly bamboo was the first plant that I had purchased. That was just because I loved the look of the plant,” says she.

After knowing about the luck factor that bamboos enhance, later she placed the plant at the south-west corner of her balcony. “I have got a couple of golden bamboo trees too grown in pots. Recently, I got five Feng Shui bamboo sticks of about two feet height. I’ve placed them in a glass vase on the south west corner of the living room,” she says.