Taichung City's Dakeng area abounds in bamboo shoots. With the mild climate, rich land and farmers' care by promoting planting techniques, the bamboo shoots are all fresh, crispy and tender. They also taste sweet. The special thing about Dakeng is the bamboo shoots here have no chemical fertilizer but organic. In addition, farmers also buy expired milk from Taiwan Farmers' Association to increase bamboo shoots' crisp and taste. For this reason, some people say Dakeng's bamboo shoots are planted with milk. During the cultivation, the temporary employees would turn over the dirt and then store the bamboo shoots from zero to two degrees to keep them sweet and prevent from occurring though fiber. "Dakeng's bamboo shoots"  represents not only delicious taste but also health. Bamboo shoots own good quality and public praise that is well-known in Taiwan and is popular with the consumers.

  There are about 300 hectares for planting bamboo shoots in Dakeng area, including the high mountains and plain area. The amounts are about 3000 tons each year! They are the main agricultural products of Dakeng and the main economic products for farmers' living. The productive period is very long--from April to October and from May to July. The amounts in Dakeng are not as many as  in Jiayi and Jhushan of Tainan, but the quality is the best in Taiwan.

  After picking bamboo shoots, their respiration would work vigorously and occur the phenomena of browning and fibrosis. Most bamboo shoots sold on the market are often added preservative (Sodium hydrosulfite) to prevent from rottenness, but it cause negative affects on people's health. Under the guidance and assistance of Taiwan Farmers' Association, farmers wash bamboo shoots after picking and distribute them by rank. Farmers would then keep the bamboo shoots in cold water(that is below 5 Celcius degree) for 50 minutes. After that, farmers would send them to "Pressure Pre-cooling Room" for 40 minutes. Finally, they would pack Dakeng's "Golden cold bamboo shoots." There is no other bamboo shoots areas adopt this pre-cooling technique except Dakeng's bamboo shoots, which passed "GAP" (Good Agricultural Practice) standard; Dakeng's bamboo shoots are all fresh, safe and delicious. The taste of bamboo shoots is almost the same as the delicious but expensive green bamboo shoots (Leleba oldhami Nakai), but it only costs the half bamboo shoots' price. People can taste the delicious and sweet bamboo shoots with a much lower price, so don't miss the golden period of bamboo shoots if you want to take a bite. 

Let's study.

  Bamboo shoots can be divided into two types--Taiwan Giant Bamboo (Dendrocalamus latiflorus Munro) and Leleba (Neosinocalamous affinis). Majhu(Bamboo) shoots and Green bamboo shoots are different from Moso bamboo shoots. Bamboo shoots or green bamboo shoots belong to Leleba, but Moso bamboo shoots belong to Taiwan Giant Bamboo. The deep roots of Leleba are short and get together, which can be planted by ramet or cutting.( Leader Gu showed us the parental plant while picking the fruit. )Ramet means to select a new bamboo two years ago and then cut its bottom to be a culm about 1.5 meters long with at least four joints. After that, plant it in the garden below 70 centimeters. The plain area for bamboo shoots is 5X5 meters and the mountain area is 8X7 meters. The plain area for green bamboo shoots is 4X4 meters and the mountain area is 6X5 meters. The survival rate of cutting is 100 percent and the survival rate of cutting is 80~90 percent. The roots of Taiwan Giant Bamboo is round. They spread around on the ground and produce intensively with many fibrous roots.  The production of Taiwan Giant Bamboo is also planted the new bamboo two years ago so that it can survive. To get rid of the bottom, leave the twigs three or four layers, pull out the root and plant it to another land.

 Kinds of bamboo shoots

Majhu (bamboo)

Bamboo shoots are important vegetables, planted in the central and southern Taiwan. They are the most and the tallest bamboos. In addition, they can be the made dried bamboo shoots, bamboo shoots’ sauce and so on. Bamboo shoots can also be applied to the buildings, bamboo rafts, farming utensils and paper. Bamboo leaves can also be made wine through fermentation. The productive season of Majhu(Bamboo) is from March to October. It is also the main agricultural product. Majhu (bamboo) is planted in Dakeng, the main income for farmers. You can also see it in Taichung Turkey House and Kylin-Peak Hot Spring.

Green bamboo

The green bamboo is named for its color.Its subterranean stem is bushy. Its productive period is from April to October. Because it should be separated from sun, it needs to be dug out before harvesting. The shape of the bamboo is like the sheep’s horn and tastes well. The bamboo can also made for paper. It’s mainly planted in Sip Tea shop, Dongsheng Hall of Liangkeng Lane, Jing Yuan Coffee Restaurant and near Shanshuilong restaurant. 。

Hulu (Bamboo)

Hulu (Bamboo) is also called Buddha Bamboo or Buddha’s Belly Bamboo. It is green about 1.5 or 2 meters tall. It is suitable for the warm and enough light place. There are two kinds of bamboos—normal and abnormal. It grows in the fertile lnad, it would grow as straight as the other bamboos. If it grows in the barren or the pot, then it would grow like a calabash, so it would be used as the decoration.It’s mainly planted near Dakeng Yi Mei Garden or in front of Tian Shan Wu Ying Jiao restaurant.。

Phyllostachys nigra (Lodd.) Munro

The color of the bamboo is purple black, so it is also called the ink bamboo or the black bamboo. In the first year it is green and some distributions of black spots like black sesame.  In the third year, it would get ripe and become purple black. This kind of bamboo is small, so it is suitable for planting, garden decoration and art work. It is mainly planted near Tian Shan Wu Ying Jiao restaurant and Yi Mei Garden

Square Carved Bamboo

Square Carved Bamboo is named for its appearance. The bamboo has a right angle and round shape inside. Its unique shape attracts people’s eys. The bamboo can be used for decorating, planting and beautifying the garden. It’s not easy to plant as it is only suitable for the cold environment. It’s mainly planted in front of Shuang Sheng Fu De Cih (shrine) of Jhuo Shui River and near Yi Mei Garden.

How to select tasty Majhu ( Bamboo) Shoots

1.

Choose bamboo shoots that are without knots, those are the fresher and less bitter ones.

2.

Use fingernail to poke the surface of the bamboo. The deeper trace is, the more delicious it will tastes.

3.

Make sure the top of the bamboo shoots is not green, it won't taste good if the top is green.

Dakeng’s special product—Majhu (Bamboo) Shoots

Hulu (Bamboo) in Macaque Park