For some plants, their flowering becomes a real spectacle, attracting even thousands and millions of tourists every year. This happens, for example, with cherry trees. We have in Spain Herte Valley, in Extremadura, where every March people from all over the country come to see how these trees are decorated with bright flowers. Something similar is happening in many parts of Japan. But it is in this country that the flowering is even brighter, because it happens not once a year, but once every 120 years. This is about bamboo blossom of such kind Phyllostachys nigra var. Chenonis.
Given the time it takes for bamboo to bloom, it’s only natural that there are people who never get to witness the spectacle. However, this generation is lucky as it has already begun to flourish in some parts of the country, although most plants are expected to do so within a few years. in 2028. well there were some early plants The fact is that botanists have already been able to begin to study this process.
This is important because the last extensive records of bamboo flowering of this species have been made from in 1908. At that time, methods for researching and storing data were much less efficient, so there are many unknowns that need to be resolved with this “bloom”. Basically, scientists want to know what will happen next, because it is known that the plant, once it blooms, die. How will the fields be restored? That is the question, and the truth is that from the data collected from the early plants, the news does not seem to be very good.
Exceptional bamboo bloom
Flowers angiospermsLike bamboo, they contain male and female parts. Femininity known as gynecologist, and in common parlance, a pestle is such a small vase, wide at the bottom and narrow at the top, which they have in the center. That’s where the eggs are.
On the other hand, the male part stamens, on the edge of which is pollen. It is these pollen grains that are carried by insects or things like wind and water and reach the gynoecium of other flowers, fertilizing the ovule to give rise seed.
Therefore, if the flowering of bamboo occurs every 120 years, the formation of seeds is also delayed all this time. The problem, according to some scholars Hiroshima Universityis that such seed formation is very inefficient.
Analyzing some early-flowering plants, they saw that seeds were formed, but most of them were unable to germinate. That is, they cannot give rise to new plants. Very slow regeneration can occur, with only a few seeds germinating, but it is to be expected that after the bamboo flowering period, many Japanese fields stay vacant
Severe consequences
Japanese bamboo fields provide shelter and food for countless animals. Therefore, if they disappear, many of these species their population could be drastically reduced. They also help protect soil from erosionfor they have powerful underground stems, called rhizomes, which extend and intertwine for great distances, protecting the soil from damage by runoff.
And besides, bamboo is an important source of income for the Japanese, because they use it to make all kinds of products from its leaves.
Therefore, if the mass flowering of bamboo expected in 2028 is similar to the flowering of these early plants, the result could be catastrophic. It may be a beautiful sight to see all the flowers after a century of waiting, but what comes next doesn’t look good.
It is true that it is not the only type of bamboo in Japan, but it is one of the three most common types. Therefore, these scientists call on the Japanese anticipate events and develop growing plans to try and improve the germination of the few useful seeds that come from those expected flowers. It may not be necessary in the end; but, just in case, you’d better be prepared.
Source: Hiper Textual
