Bamboo

• Common Name: Bamboo
• Latin Name: Fargesia spp., Phyllostachys spp.
• Family Name: Poaceae/Gramineae

Bamboo is a large group of plants within the grasses, consisting of over a thousand species.  We have listed the two genera most commonly grown in the UK under 'Latin name' above. 

Some others commonly grown are:

Arundinaria, spp., Bambusa spp., Chimonobambusa spp., Chusquea spp., Indocalamus spp.,
Pleioblastus spp., Pseudosasa spp., Sasa spp., Semiarundinaria spp., Thamnocalamus spp.

There are no known health hazards, although many tortoises will not find them palatable.  They are very fast growing and make good shelters and hides for tortoises. 

If you are looking to plant a bamboo in your enclosure then do your research carefully and choose one of the 'clumping' varieties, rather than one of the 'running' varieties,  as the 'runners' are too invasive and will soon colonise the whole enclosure.  The smaller bamboos can be grown in containers.