Variation of microfibril angle in developmental Phyllostachys pubescens culms by two forestation methods

To provide a scientific basis for reasonable exploitation of bamboo resources，temporal and spatial variation patterns of the microfibril angle（MFA） in Phyllostachys pubescens（moso bamboo） were studied. Buried rhizomes （R） and seedlings （S） aged 30，54，and 78 months were measured and analyzed by X-ray diffraction estimation. Results showed that when the distance ranged from bark to pith for all bamboo，MFA radial variation of secondary cell walls for the three ages decreased or had no pattern. The maximum MFA（R） was 12.05 and MFA（S） was 10.97 with the minimum of 7.67 ［MFA （R）］ and 8.24 ［MFA （S）］ for a difference of less than 5. There was a significant difference between age and MFA（P＜0.05） but no regular pattern. No pattern for longitudinal variations of MFA with bamboo height were found with bamboo rhizomes having a base of 9.64，a middle of 9.25，and a top of 9.34，significantly（P＜0.05） more than bamboo seedlings of 9.73 for the base，9.82 for the middle，and 9.58 for the top. ［Ch，4 fig. 3 tab. 22 ref.］