Bamboo

plants · record-breaker · Asia

World's biggest grass. Bamboo isn't a tree at all, it's part of the grass family, the same group as the grass in your yard. Giant bamboo are the largest grasses on Earth.

Towering giants. One kind, Dendrocalamus sinicus, can grow stalks up to 46 meters (151 feet) tall and 36 centimeters (14 inches) thick.

Super heavy. A single giant bamboo stalk can weigh up to 450 kilograms, that's about 1,000 pounds, heavier than a grand piano!

Teeny tiny too. Not all bamboo is huge. A tiny species in French Guiana has stalks only 10 to 20 millimeters long, smaller than your fingernail.

Loves warm places. Bamboo grows mostly in tropical and subtropical regions, especially across Asia, and most kinds stay green all year round.