I went down the rabbit hole of river cane a while back. holy smokes! there are basically no cane brakes left. all we have left are remnants. there uses to be 40 ft tall cane brakes that were impenetrable by man. the only way to cross them was to follow bison trails. it's wild to think that there was so much bamboo here in the US
I know what you mean. I had to hunt far and wide around the area in Citrus County Florida, where my property is located to find a few patches ... then I brought one back and planted it at home in South Florida. So far, it's doing well and springing up some runners, which tells me it probably grew down here at one time, but ... you know ... progress! I did see a lot of fairly sizeable stands along rivers in and around Cherokee NC, and those were the true "River cane" Arundinaria Gigantea, that grew bigger and thicker. The ones in Florida seem to be more of a "switch cane" variety.
This reminded me of the chapter “The Bent Backs of Chang Dong” in The Ugly American. The old people of the village used reed brooms to sweep, for hours every day, and the reeds they had available were only two feet tall. They had to bend over to sweep and their backs stayed bent, leaving them in constant pain. The wife of the American engineer spent hours a day, for months, hunting, until she found a large group of reeds with FOUR foot stems. She brought a clump back and planted it by her house, then used a reed from the clump for a broom; she swept while standing erect with far more power than anyone could while bent over. The villagers noticed immediately and she offered to share her clump, mentioning where she had found it and that one load on a water buffalo could supply the village. The next day, a loaded buffalo supplied the village and the elders were able to sweep standing upright. Months later, after she and the engineer had returned to the States, she received a letter from the headman of the village to thank her for the “lucky accident” of the taller reeds. The backs of the elders were no longer bent over and they were no longer in pain. It was a little thing, but important to them. They had built a shrine in her honor.
Damn, they would've worshiped me when I blessed them with the concept of a broom stick...I wonder if the tools they built the shrine with needed handles, too.
Florida is so cool, wish I could go sometime. I've never worked any cane/bamboo or reed shafts before. Up here in Idaho, I prefer chokecherry or scout berry. A tree that has been pruned or injured will send off young chutes in the direction of sunlight. Bingo. Hardwood shafts are very tough and durable. But the most difficult task in the entire archery carrier is by far straightening hardwood shafts. They will warp eventually and need to season for 6 months or so.
I live in western north Carolina in the mountains still have a big native couple cane breaks I have access to friends who's property butt up to french broad river where big creek connects to it more than I'll ever be able to harvest can go cut 12 dozen shafts every time I go thankful I have access to it
I believe those you are referring to are the true giant cane AKA "River cane". They get up to 10 meters tall and only grow along wet areas. The ones here in Florida are typically growing in shade among the woods and not necessarily near a water source. It is more than likely the type that is also commonly referred to as "switch cane" which is a sub-species of river cane. There is a lot of interchangeable nomenclature with the 3 native bamboo species, and they are all commonly known as "River cane", "switch cane", and "hill cane". There are also various studies and data that sometimes conflict each other with their classifications regarding native cane.
Your very lucky, I live in central North Carolina and here you can’t find nothing but small inconsistently thick remnants. Definitely capitalize on that while it’s still there!
I live in Lincoln Co., NC, where I was unable to find wild rivercane. Ultimately, a couple weeks ago I purchased root balls off eBay to transplant along the edge of the 2-acre pond on our property. Hopefully it establishes successfully!
One of the most thorough demos of actual, native river cane I've seen. Thanks for this. Also great that you've transplanted some to spread it around. It needs to be. The real stuff is not that common.
Save those bamboo spices for good, it's very important in future use for many reasons. Where can I find them when need. Reproduce them in a pot. When it's grow alot, remove them and planting it.
Bought some bamboo like 10 years ago and now, I have arround 10 square feet of impenetrable bamboo forrest. The only problem is that the type of bamboo I have, grows anything but straight and has lots of branches, nothing good for arrows. I realized, it's named fish pole bamboo.... I'm going to buy some authentic Japanese arrow bamboo soon. Thanks for this video.
There is more green vegetation in one acre in Your state then the entirety of My own. I'd love to see someone come to New Mexico and try and replicate what the indigenous people did.
@@andypanda4927 I bet LOTS of searching. The Earth was probably different then too. Not just indigenous Natives but we also have Folsom and Clovis points here that date back 1000's of years. We haven't even figured out how to replicate them in a primative setting
Thank you so much for this information. I found some rivercane on my brother-in-law's hunting Club property and you were right he said take as much as I want LOL. The only thing about it was they had been there quite some time but they weren't very tall. I believe it may have been the shade that was around them because they were in a lot of shade. Thanks again have a great day
The cane being discussed here is not very tall ... usually only 7-8 feet. The other River cane ... one that grow in the Appalachians along rivers ... are the ones that grow very tall ... up to 20-30 feet.
I recognize the bamboo species you have here as Pseudosassa Japonica. River cane has become a term used for this species in the vernacular because for the most part Arundinaria Tecta (what used to be called river cane) has become very rare. In any case you are correct to say that Japonica is the best species for arrows.
Actually, I believe the species Ryan is alluding to in the video is indeed A Tecta which is the variety that grows typically up to 2.5 meters tall. He did mention the difference between that and Japonica. A Tecta grows in various parts of Florida as opposed to the true river cane (A.Gigantea), which only grows in the Panhandle section, along with riparian areas in the Appalachian range. Gigantea grows much larger (up to 10 meters), and more closely resembles the larger, non native bamboo species. Tecta is actually a sub-species of Gigantea and called by both names "River cane" and "switch cane".
Livin' it, you really know your Florida Canes! impressive. I was actually coming on to talk to bob about the same exact thing. I am quite certain at this point that you know more about cane than I do. I am definitely not certain of anything anymore other than I know they feel a little different when working them, but either way I vastly prefer tecta and japonica over gigantea
Excellent info! I wish it was more readily available further north. It’s really borderline on growing outside up in the northern midwest. Doesn’t take particularly well to the winters. I’ve planted some outside and some inside. Hopefully I’ll get the stuff inside to do better. Thanks for the enlightening video!
Interesting as always, one thing I'm interested in is that I have read that southeast native groups who used blowpipes (blowguns) there is little information about this out there have you any?
Have you heard anything about Mule fat (Baccharis salicifolia) out West? Common in CA, I here native tribes used mule fat as arrow shafts but every time I harvest one it's incredibly light and seems too pithy to yield a strong enough arrow. If not no worries, great interesting video!
I was told the best arrow shafts were from what they told me were switch cane and not the giant river cane that gets too tapered and too much taper for decent arrows.
Ryan what is the scientific name for the river cane that you are using? Is it (Japonica), I would like to look it up and plant some indoors in Utah. The only Japonica that I can find is a rice plant. So I think that I am getting the name wrong.
Salutations Ryan, you mentioned the growing cycle of cane and I thank you for that as I wasn't sure if age was associated with height and thickness to any degree. I do have a question though; from my understanding, river cane can get to 18 feet tall while switch cane only about 9 feet, otherwise they look the same with river cane being able to be a bit thicker, are you sure that patch you have isn't switch cane? Most switch cane Iv seen looks better for arrows and is usually 7 to 8 feet tall while the few rivercane patches around me are 2 stories tall and anywhere from 3/8ths to over an inch in diameter.
![АЛАУДИНОВ у Скабеевой: эти их ВСУ нас НЕ ДОГОНЯТ 😁 [Пародия]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/an0anqU4WGQ/mqdefault.jpg)
I went down the rabbit hole of river cane a while back. holy smokes! there are basically no cane brakes left. all we have left are remnants. there uses to be 40 ft tall cane brakes that were impenetrable by man. the only way to cross them was to follow bison trails. it's wild to think that there was so much bamboo here in the US
I know what you mean. I had to hunt far and wide around the area in Citrus County Florida, where my property is located to find a few patches ... then I brought one back and planted it at home in South Florida. So far, it's doing well and springing up some runners, which tells me it probably grew down here at one time, but ... you know ... progress! I did see a lot of fairly sizeable stands along rivers in and around Cherokee NC, and those were the true "River cane" Arundinaria Gigantea, that grew bigger and thicker. The ones in Florida seem to be more of a "switch cane" variety.
Is it possible to send me some seeds to germany? Clearly, I pay for it. arundinaria gigantea
I love river cane and live in the deep south where we still have a few stands but no true breaks.
This reminded me of the chapter “The Bent Backs of Chang Dong” in The Ugly American. The old people of the village used reed brooms to sweep, for hours every day, and the reeds they had available were only two feet tall. They had to bend over to sweep and their backs stayed bent, leaving them in constant pain. The wife of the American engineer spent hours a day, for months, hunting, until she found a large group of reeds with FOUR foot stems. She brought a clump back and planted it by her house, then used a reed from the clump for a broom; she swept while standing erect with far more power than anyone could while bent over. The villagers noticed immediately and she offered to share her clump, mentioning where she had found it and that one load on a water buffalo could supply the village. The next day, a loaded buffalo supplied the village and the elders were able to sweep standing upright. Months later, after she and the engineer had returned to the States, she received a letter from the headman of the village to thank her for the “lucky accident” of the taller reeds. The backs of the elders were no longer bent over and they were no longer in pain. It was a little thing, but important to them. They had built a shrine in her honor.
Damn, they would've worshiped me when I blessed them with the concept of a broom stick...I wonder if the tools they built the shrine with needed handles, too.
@@briargoatkilla They had no wood available, or any other source of broom handle.
Florida is so cool, wish I could go sometime.
I've never worked any cane/bamboo or reed shafts before.
Up here in Idaho, I prefer chokecherry or scout berry. A tree that has been pruned or injured will send off young chutes in the direction of sunlight. Bingo.
Hardwood shafts are very tough and durable. But the most difficult task in the entire archery carrier is by far straightening hardwood shafts. They will warp eventually and need to season for 6 months or so.
I live in western north Carolina in the mountains still have a big native couple cane breaks I have access to friends who's property butt up to french broad river where big creek connects to it more than I'll ever be able to harvest can go cut 12 dozen shafts every time I go thankful I have access to it
I believe those you are referring to are the true giant cane AKA "River cane". They get up to 10 meters tall and only grow along wet areas. The ones here in Florida are typically growing in shade among the woods and not necessarily near a water source. It is more than likely the type that is also commonly referred to as "switch cane" which is a sub-species of river cane. There is a lot of interchangeable nomenclature with the 3 native bamboo species, and they are all commonly known as "River cane", "switch cane", and "hill cane". There are also various studies and data that sometimes conflict each other with their classifications regarding native cane.
Your very lucky, I live in central North Carolina and here you can’t find nothing but small inconsistently thick remnants. Definitely capitalize on that while it’s still there!
I live in Lincoln Co., NC, where I was unable to find wild rivercane. Ultimately, a couple weeks ago I purchased root balls off eBay to transplant along the edge of the 2-acre pond on our property. Hopefully it establishes successfully!
I’m looking forward to this new video schedule of yours.
One of the most thorough demos of actual, native river cane I've seen. Thanks for this. Also great that you've transplanted some to spread it around. It needs to be. The real stuff is not that common.
Save those bamboo spices for good, it's very important in future use for many reasons. Where can I find them when need. Reproduce them in a pot. When it's grow alot, remove them and planting it.
Bought some bamboo like 10 years ago and now, I have arround 10 square feet of impenetrable bamboo forrest.
The only problem is that the type of bamboo I have, grows anything but straight and has lots of branches, nothing good for arrows. I realized, it's named fish pole bamboo....
I'm going to buy some authentic Japanese arrow bamboo soon.
Thanks for this video.
Thanks that explains alot to me!! The cain I find has big nodes !!
Very informative. Thank you.
Thanks Ryan, I love native cane shafts. They are light and strong.
Great stuff man 😎👍💯🔥🏹
I totally agree i grew up in eastern n.c- river cane is rare to find
There is more green vegetation in one acre in Your state then the entirety of My own. I'd love to see someone come to New Mexico and try and replicate what the indigenous people did.
Well, suspect they had quite a bit of trekking about prospecting for useful stuff.
Not a clump of his river cane my near vicinity in cen.ALA.
@@andypanda4927 I bet LOTS of searching. The Earth was probably different then too. Not just indigenous Natives but we also have Folsom and Clovis points here that date back 1000's of years. We haven't even figured out how to replicate them in a primative setting
@@nevillesavage2012 There are also points and tools found in Topper, North Carolina that are 10,000+ years old.
Great video
Thank you so much for this information. I found some rivercane on my brother-in-law's hunting Club property and you were right he said take as much as I want LOL. The only thing about it was they had been there quite some time but they weren't very tall. I believe it may have been the shade that was around them because they were in a lot of shade. Thanks again have a great day
The cane being discussed here is not very tall ... usually only 7-8 feet. The other River cane ... one that grow in the Appalachians along rivers ... are the ones that grow very tall ... up to 20-30 feet.
I recognize the bamboo species you have here as Pseudosassa Japonica. River cane has become a term used for this species in the vernacular because for the most part Arundinaria Tecta (what used to be called river cane) has become very rare. In any case you are correct to say that Japonica is the best species for arrows.
Actually, I believe the species Ryan is alluding to in the video is indeed A Tecta which is the variety that grows typically up to 2.5 meters tall. He did mention the difference between that and Japonica. A Tecta grows in various parts of Florida as opposed to the true river cane (A.Gigantea), which only grows in the Panhandle section, along with riparian areas in the Appalachian range. Gigantea grows much larger (up to 10 meters), and more closely resembles the larger, non native bamboo species. Tecta is actually a sub-species of Gigantea and called by both names "River cane" and "switch cane".
Livin' it, you really know your Florida Canes! impressive. I was actually coming on to talk to bob about the same exact thing. I am quite certain at this point that you know more about cane than I do. I am definitely not certain of anything anymore other than I know they feel a little different when working them, but either way I vastly prefer tecta and japonica over gigantea
Arundinaria Tecta is a smaller subspecies of Arundinaria Gigantia, both being original American species of bamboo.@@huntprimitive9918
Thank you, this helps with the search for arrowshafts.
Excellent info! I wish it was more readily available further north. It’s really borderline on growing outside up in the northern midwest. Doesn’t take particularly well to the winters. I’ve planted some outside and some inside. Hopefully I’ll get the stuff inside to do better. Thanks for the enlightening video!
I am loving these videos.
thank you very much
awesome!
What size diameter shaft are you looking for?
Interesting as always, one thing I'm interested in is that I have read that southeast native groups who used blowpipes (blowguns) there is little information about this out there have you any?
Have you heard anything about Mule fat (Baccharis salicifolia) out West? Common in CA, I here native tribes used mule fat as arrow shafts but every time I harvest one it's incredibly light and seems too pithy to yield a strong enough arrow. If not no worries, great interesting video!
Can it be hardened by holding the shaft over an open fire?
I have heard of mulefat but I have never personally used it. I would definitely say give it a try
I was told the best arrow shafts were from what they told me were switch cane and not the giant river cane that gets too tapered and too much taper for decent arrows.
As always really enjoy qnd appreciated the videos. Do you have to cut cane when the sap is down in the winter, so it doesn't crack???
Im wanting to plant some near me so i have a steady supply, but i dont think there is much around here (central indiana)
Ryan what is the scientific name for the river cane that you are using? Is it (Japonica), I would like to look it up and plant some indoors in Utah. The only Japonica that I can find is a rice plant. So I think that I am getting the name wrong.
Arundinaria tecta which is a subspecies of arundinaria gigantea
@@huntprimitive9918 Thank you.
Pseudosasa japonica
@@raptorjesus2572 Thank you.
Salutations Ryan, you mentioned the growing cycle of cane and I thank you for that as I wasn't sure if age was associated with height and thickness to any degree. I do have a question though; from my understanding, river cane can get to 18 feet tall while switch cane only about 9 feet, otherwise they look the same with river cane being able to be a bit thicker, are you sure that patch you have isn't switch cane? Most switch cane Iv seen looks better for arrows and is usually 7 to 8 feet tall while the few rivercane patches around me are 2 stories tall and anywhere from 3/8ths to over an inch in diameter.
Awesome video.
Btw, some people say river cane from tropical county is bad. Is that true? Any thought everyone?
😎🏹👌🏻
too cold here in New England for river cane
Do you use switch cane and rivercane interchangeably? I use a lot of switch cane because it's more readily available in our area.
Bamboo plant name please
Do u know what the growing zone for that river cane is? Iam in northern Maine zone 4b.
Gil i have a question, would river cane be strong enough for lets say a 55lb bow ? is there a max poundage before cane will break ?... thanks mate !
Yeah it's plenty strong. I shoot bows in the mid 60s and the shafts can spine way up above 100#.
@@huntprimitive9918 thanks Gill
I dont hunt anymore, but I do flintknapp. Do you sell any of the cane shafts to make my own arrows just for display purposes?
Primitive spine testing???
arundinaria gigantea
Can someone send me some seeds zo Germany? Clearly, I pay for it.
If your interested in clumps...I have some I will sell....Seeds are a gamble... Not favorable...but I have some I can sell you...
@@belindawatterson6568 where can we chat?
中国有吗
1st