Approved Species Summus bamboo

[Engineering core]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: Create a plant species for the planet Thalia
• Image Credit: X
• Canon: N/A
• Permissions: N/A
• Links: Thalia

GENERAL INFORMATION

• Name: Summus bamboo
• Origins: Thalia
• Other Locations: No other locations
• Classification: Grass/ evergreen perennial
• Average Growth Cycle: Summus bamboo starts out as a small, flat seed roughly 2.5 cms long. A rapid grower, this bamboo will reach their full 30 meter height with ninety days. Also known as the immortal plant, Summus bamboo will regrow from the same root system over and over again. Because of Thalia's climate, this bamboo can grow year round.
• Viability: Summus bamboo enjoys humid climates with lots of rainfall. This bamboo thrives in the Rain Bringer mountains, where the soil is loamy with a slightly acidic PH. They struggle in the valleys below, where the soil is mostly clay, volcanic rock and saturated from rain water that runs off the mountains.
• Description: A tall, fast growing bamboo with a dark green base that grows lighter as you reach the crown. Thin branches protrude out from where the joints in the trunk meet, these end in narrow leaves that reach a meter long. Branches at the top of the tree are wider with two meter long leaves that are light green in color. This bamboo possesses a widespread, interconnected root system. When one bamboo dies, another grows in its place from the roots. This makes it seem as if the same plant is growing all over again.

PHYSICAL INFORMATION

• Average Height: 30 meters
• Average Length: N/A
• Average Diameter: 30 cms
• Color: Varying shades of green
• Nutritional Value: None
• Toxicity: Highly fibrous, can cause stomach issues
• Other Effects: No other effects
• Distinctions: Summus is a sturdy bamboo that can be used for building small homes or structures. When growing, it can be bent into different shapes and will keep that same shape throughout its life. Lumber from this plant can be easily bent into shapes for furniture and other items, once dried it will retain the shape. Leaves of the summus bamboo can be processed into sugar.

Strengths:

• Extreme growers: Summus plants grow at an extraordinary rate, reaching their full thirty meter height in only ninety days. This makes them an excellent source of soft lumber and sugars production for the people of Thalia
• Versatile: The summus bamboo, despite being a perennial grass, has several uses that have benefited the people of Thalia, such as lumber. Wood from this bamboo is lightweight but sturdy, while not as strong as hardwoods, it can be used to build small structures, storage huts and traps for fish or shrimp, it can also be used to make other lightweight items. When ground into pulp, it can be used to make paper or soft plywood. The wood can be steamed and bent into shapes for making furniture. The leaves from this plant can be used to make sugar.

Weaknesses:

• Lightweight: While sturdy for what it is, wood from the summus bamboo isn't as strong as hardwood, or some softwoods. This limits the size of the structures it can build. While good for small structures such as huts, piers or storage houses, it can't compete with the sturdiness of a real tree.
• Nutrient siphon: The summus bamboo is a rapid grower and to fuel such rapid growth, it needs nutrients and lots of them. When large patches of summus take over an area, they can completely drain that spot of all nutrients. These become known as dead zones, where all plants within that area die off, including the bamboo. Not all is lost, however, when the bamboo dies, ot decays and leaves behind nutrients for other plants to grow.

HISTORICAL INFORMATION
The first settlers to the planet of Thalia were followers of the goddess Ikona, a deity of agriculture and nature. These followers wished to live close to the planet and use more nature materials such as lumber and stone. The first structures they built were from the summus bamboo, which they discovered growing on the mountains of the Rain Bringers. A fast growing source of lumber was exactly what this growing colony needed to ensure that both the colony was built and to keep from damaging the planet right off the start. The settlers quickly learned that not only did the plant grow quickly, but the lumber could be easily shaped. Sugar was the second discovery from the bamboo, a product that was now both abundant and easily accessible. The Thalians use the bamboo for a variety of items, such as storage huts, baskets, traps for shrimp and many other items.

 

[Allyson Locke]

Approved