Phyllostachys nigra (Lodd.) Munro var. nigra
by W.R. Sykes
black bamboo
Culms becoming black or heavily blotched black in 2nd year. Culm-sheath often with dark blotches towards apex. Branches black.
N.: Hamilton (Awatere Avenue), Bay of Plenty (McClaren's Falls near Tauranga, Opotiki), Wanganui (base of St John's Hill). River banks, plantations.
A popular ornamental bamboo cultivated at least as far south as Canterbury. It is taller and more aggressive in warmer areas. The variation in black mottling on some culms recalls descriptions of forma punctata (Bean) Makino and cultivar 'Boryana', names sometimes applied to cultivated plants. It is impractical to recognise these as separate entities in stands treated as wild because wholly or partly black culms may occur in the same stand.
