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 Nepalese Bamboo Textiles

Bamboo textiles are any type of cloth, garment or woven fabric that is made out of natural bamboo fibres. Natural fibres are identified by their air permeability, antibacterial properties, moisture release abilities, increased biodegradability, and apparent lack of release of any harmful substances, in comparison to many man-made fibres. The increase in technology has turned the bamboo fabric into a resilient, soft fabric. The bamboo textile manufacturing process requires much less pesticides and fertilizers than traditional cotton processing; most bamboo textiles are considered “bamboo rayon” which is made from dissolving the bamboo pulp into its cellulose component and then spun into viscous fibres.

Bamboo: The Plant
Bamboo (Bambuseae) is a perennial plant of the Poaceae grass family of the Bambusoideae subfamily. Bamboo grows in shoots and consists of a culm (the hollow shoot), the node (the connecting joint), and the internode (the section between the nodes). Bamboo is self-propagating because of the underground storage stems, known as rhizomes. Bamboo is considered one of the fastest growing plants in the world; as the plants are know to grow over 3 inches in one day, 30 days for a full height culm to grow, and it fully matures within 2 years. Some species have been known to grow up to 100 ft in height. The root system is relatively shallow, as the roots do not reach more than 30 cm below the surface.

Where and how bamboo is grown
More than 53 species of bamboo are found in Nepal. Because of the varying species, there is no concentrated growing region but most are found in the rolling mid-hill region, Pahad region, of the eastern half of Nepal, with altitudes between 800-4000 metres above sea level. Bambusa nepalensis and Drepanostachyum annulatum are found in natural uncultivated forests, whereas Bambusa balcooa and Bambusa nutans only exist when cultivated. Nepalensis is the most commonly used type of bamboo to create textiles.

Bamboo can be planted at any time of the year in moderately acidic loamy soil, with minimal soil cultivation to allow for air penetration.

Planting bamboo can be very simple intervention to benefit hillside farmers. Most species of bamboo must be propagated through some kind of division; through the detachment of the separation of bamboo culms. The fallen flowering leaves from the shoots provide the necessary seeds that are able to get recycled back into the soil. Because of its horizontal culm root system, bamboo is an excellent crop to prevent soil erosion.

Agronomic issues
Bamboo is extremely resilient; too much or too little water being among the few issues for improper growth, is virtually pest and disease free, and requires little to no chemical fertilizers. A simple intervention for hillside farmers would be to dig a shallow trench around the culm to increase to allow the correct amount of moisture to penetrate down to the roots

Although bamboo grows relatively quickly in terms of other plants, 1-2 years to maturity, the adoption rate of traditional bamboo planting techniques is declining because of the increased food insecurity in Nepal. This is the reason bamboo planting is slowly declining because subsistence farmers cannot wait 1-3 years for the plant to mature to reap its benefits so subsistence farmers plant food crops instead of bamboo. A simple intervention, like a constant market in developed nations for Nepalese bamboo, would entice farmers to increase bamboo cultivation.

Environmental Sustainability
In addition to its environmental regeneration qualities of carbon sequestering, bamboo shoots can release up to 30% more oxygen than other trees. Textiles that are made entirely out of bamboo are labelled as having environmentally friendly or health-enhancing qualities. Because bamboo textiles are organic and require such few pesticides, there is a market of consumers who are wiling to pay a higher price for this premium product. With proper forest management, the production of bamboo textiles would be perfectly sustainable.

Economic Impact on Women & Children
Bamboo entrepreneurship is part of a key instrument for the development of the socio-economic status of subsistence and poor farmers in Nepal, as bamboo comprises the majority of the livelihood for poor Nepalese. Because of the renewability and sustainability of bamboo, textiles are almost biodegradable. Although the creation of bamboo textiles are considered a cottage industry, a continued market would be beneficial as there is a projected net return to labour of 50-100 Nepalese rupees a day or Rs. 9,500 per year/hectare if managed at a national level.