The Arthur
& Elena Court Nature Watch Conservancy

Newsletter Features:

• Sustainable Bamboo
• Grizzly Bear Update
• LAIKIPIA
• Brown Hyenas
  of Botswana
• Rainforest Action
  Network Update
• Wild Horse Sanctuary
• Zero Waste
• Solar Power Comes to
  Arthur Court
• Membership Application

Sustainable Bamboo

The newly won popularity of bamboo in the home furnishings industry proves that the consumer appreciates the smooth feel, contemporary look and innate natural elegance of product made from the bamboo plant.
Bamboo is native to the Americas, Africa and Asia. There are 1500 species of bamboo that grow today on every continent except Antarctica. Bamboo often grows in dense forest like groves that can approach heights of 150 feet and girths that reach one foot in diameter.

Bamboo is a grass not a wood. It is extremely strong, durable, stable and flexible. Its hardness is comparable to maple wood. Bamboo is one of the fastest growing plants on Earth. Some species can grow up to two inches an hour. A bamboo plant can mature to harvest in as little as a year. Trees can take decades to produce an equivalent amount of material. For example, an oak tree will take approximately 120 years to reach maturity, and in the case of old growth forests, will never be replaced. The regeneration rate of bamboo is what makes it sustainable.

Bamboo grows from the base up, where trees grow from their tops, so when you cut bamboo at harvest it does not die, new sections grow up from what ever portion is left. The living root system remains between harvests to hold soils together, prevent erosion and stop runoff.

Bamboo is naturally light in color. Arthur Court Designs uses a heating process to darken the bamboo material used in our product, giving it a deeper tone and complementing the aluminum accents. This distinguishes the product as uniquely Arthur Court Designs.