Black Bamboo (Phyllostachys nigra)

Family: Poaceae or Gramineae | Edibility: Choice Edible (4/5)

Form: Upright or erect.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Shoots

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Fall, Late Summer, Spring

Flavor & Culinary Uses

taste and aroma. — Young shoots - cooked.; Somewhat acrid when raw, they are prepared for eating by boiling in one change of water, the water being changed after 8 - 10 minutes.; A distinctive taste and aroma.; The shoots, which are about 5cm in diameter, are harvested in the spring when they are about 8cm above the ground, cutting them about 5cm below soil level.

Habitat & North American Range

Fertile and moist places, also by streams. In open forests, on slopes or in valleys at elevations of 1100 - 1200 metres. (Zone 7, Zone 8, Zone 9, Zone 10)