EX SITU CONSERVATION OF PHILLIPINE BAMBOO SPECIES¹

by

F.M. Schlegel² and F.T. Tañgan³

BACKGROUND

The bamboo resources in the Philippines were until recently composed of 48 native and introduced species, and are distributed according to environmental conditions from 0– 2400 m.a.s.l.

11 species are considered of high commercial value, see Table 1. These species mainly occur in small stands, rarely in major plantations, making it very difficult to estimate the total area covered with bamboo.

Table 1. Bamboo Species of Present Commercial Value in the Philippines.

There is a long tradition for utilization of bamboo in the Philippines. It is mainly utilized for buildings, scaffolding, fishpen poles, banana props, furniture, handicrafts etc. The sharp decrease in timber production for furniture and handicrafts during the last few years, has severely increased the pressure on bamboo, causing serious genetic erosion.

Bamboo is considered as a potential, very useful component in intercropping schemes of small farmers. A large area of marginal grassland in the Philippines can be converted into such schemes, in order to increase farmers' income and expand working opportunities.

The raising pressure on, and potential and actual use of, the bamboo resource has increased the need to place more emphasis on conservation of the genetic resources of the bamboos and has raised the awareness of the need to widen the genetic base of plantations.

EX SITU CONSERVATION: THE PHILIPPINE BAMBUSETUM

In 1988 the Government of the Philippines, in collaboration with FAO, implemented a range of conservation activities through the project “Bamboo Research and Development Project”, including establishment of the Philippine Bambusetum. A second objective of this activity was the introduction of new bamboo species into the country.

The Bambusetum is located near Baguio, City with an elevation ranging from 1528– 1570 m.a.s.l.. The climate is subtropical, allowing establishment of temperate, subtropical and tropical species. The rainy season extends from May to October, and the mean annual precipitation is 2996 mm. The slopes of the area are north-west and south-west ranging from 25– 33 %. The size of the area is 4.4 ha with a planned expansion to 6.9 ha.

68 species, some of them with several provenances, have been distributed in the three climatic sections of the Bambusetum. Of the 68 species, 4 were already planted at the site, and 17 species are native to the Philippines. Of the 51 introduced species, 12 had been introduced and utilized earlier, 8 were introduced recently, and 31 were introduced for the first time by the Bambusetum. Accordingly, the Bambusetum also functions as an “acclimatization area” for newly introduced bamboo species. This part of the programme is operated through an International Bamboo Species Exchange Programme with foreign research institutions (see Table 2).

A bamboo-propagation area was established for the multiplication of the species in the Bambusetum, including newly introduced species which have shown a good performance. The resulting material is distributed to farmers and development projects in need of specified species and provenances.

A particular exampel of ongoing protection of endangered bamboo species, is the ex situ conservation of the dwarf bamboo, Yushania niitakamayensis (Hayata) Keng. P. (local name “Utod”). This is a clumping species growing at high elevations (2400– 2600 m.a.s.l.) at Mt. Data and Mt. Pulog at Luzon and Mt. Falcon at Mindoro. It grows scattered as a 30– 80 cm high understorey in mossy forest. It is endangered by expansion of agriculture into these forests.

Other species in urgent need of ex situ conservation are:

Cephalostachyum mindorense Gamble.
This very rare climbing species is known only from Mindoro Island.

Bambusa cornuta Munro (local name “Lopa”)
A rare species occuring in the forests of Nueva Vizcaya and Benguet, Luzon Island. An erect bamboo, reaching a height of 7 meters. It also occurs on Java.

Bambusa merrillii Gamble.
This erect bamboo species can reach a height of 15 meters and occurs in Nueva Vizcaya, Luzon Island.

Spaerobambos philippinensis (Gamble) Dransfield.
A rare species known from a single population at Mati, Mindanao Island. It is an erect bamboo, reaching a height of 4– 6 meters.

The efforts undertaken by the Philippine Bambusetum through collection and cultivation of rare native species and provenances provide the basic stock for a future gene bank.

Requests for planting stock (on an exchange basis) should be send to:

Philippine Bambusetum
ERDS, DENR-CAR
Loakan Road
Baguio City 2600
Philippines

Figure 1.

Clonal propagation of Bambusa blumeana. By using two-nodes-cuttings good rooting is obtained in three months. (Photo: F.M. Schlegel).

References

Brown, W.H. & Fischer, A.F. 1918 Philippine Bamboos. Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry, Bulletin No. 15. (32 pp.).

IUCN 1989 The Botanic Gardens Conservation Strategy. IUCN Botanic Gardens Conservation Secretariat, U.K. (60 pp.).

Tañgan, T.T. 1989 Philippine Bambusetum. PHI/85/008 Working Paper No. 18. (13 pp.)

Widjaja, E. 1990 Bamboo Taxonomy. PHI/85/008 Working Paper No. 19. (75 pp.)

Table 2. Bamboo species/provenances in the Philippine Bambusetum

RC: Rooted Cutting.
OS: Offset, Basal Stem Cutting.
CL: Clump
S: Seedling
TE: Temperate.
TR: Tropical.
S: Subtropical.
O: Ornamental (Indicated in climate column as -O).

¹ Article received October 1990.

² Forestry Education Officer, FAO Rome, Italy. Earlier Chief Technical Adviser at the Phillipine Bamboo Research and Development Project (PHI/85/008).

³ Conservator of the Phillipine Bambusetum, Baguio City, the Phillipines.