Preservative Treatment of Bamboo and Bamboo Products/R. Gnanaharan and C. Mohanan. Peechi, Kerala Forest Research Institute, 2002, vi, 9 p., figs., (pbk) ISBN 81-85041-42-3.

    Contents: Foreword. Preface. 1. Introduction. 2. Need for preservative treatment. 3. Agents of deterioration: i. Non-biological agents. ii. Biological agents. 4. Preservative treatments: i. Short-term protection (prophylactic treatment). ii. Long-term protection. iii. Protection of finished bamboo products. 5. Preservative chemicals: i. Short-term protection. ii. Long-term protection. iii. Food contact. iv. Remedial treatment. 6. Preparation of preservatives. 7. General procedure in the preparation and use of preservatives. 8. Health and safety. 9. Further reading.

    From the preface: "Bamboo has been used by the mankind from time immemorial. Over the years, more than 1500 traditional uses of bamboo have been documented. In the handicraft sector, bamboo is used in round or split form or a slats. Woven products like mats, baskets or intricate curio items are made with bamboo slivers. The major disadvantage of bamboo or bamboo products is that these are prone to deterioration caused by non-biological as well as biological agents during storage and in service. For increasing the service life of bamboo, the institute has standardized the preservative treatment methods for bamboo used in construction sector. The need for such a document for the handicraft sector in a user-friendly language was felt. This handbook on preservative treatment of bamboo and bamboo products meets the requirement."

Return to Botanical Sciences Catalogue

Return to Books on Bamboos