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Bamboo Farm to hold first bamboo festival
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The Southeast Chapter of the American Bamboo Society has chosen Savannah’s own Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens for its first Bamboo Festival. The all-day event will be on Feb. 16, from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. As always, admission is free.

"We have had enormous success with our strawberry and fall festivals,” said Dr. Stephen Garton, superintendent of The Gardens. “A Bamboo Festival is a natural for us. Over the years, we are seeing an increased interest in bamboo as an element in the home garden, so we expect a strong response to the first annual Bamboo Festival.”  

American Bamboo Society experts will present educational lectures in the morning and demonstrations throughout the day, including the basics of growing bamboo and share some techniques for bamboo crafting. Bamboo experts will lead tours of the Farm's bamboo groves at the Gardens that feature 130 different types — the largest public bamboo garden in the U.S.

Vendors will offer bamboo plants and bamboo crafts.

“Aside from bamboo’s ornamental value in the garden, it's very eco-friendly, absorbing more than twice as much carbon from the air as any other plant,” said Dr. Garton. “Thanks to bamboo’s remarkably efficient growth, its value in manufacturing — from flooring to T-shirts— is just beginning to be appreciated.”

The Southeast Chapter of the American Bamboo Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to gaining knowledge and educating the public on bamboo, with emphasis on research, preservation and propagation of endangered bamboos. The society sponsors lectures, conferences, tours and plant sales. More information is available at www.sec-bamboo.org.

The Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens is part of the University of Georgia College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences. In addition to its vast collection of bamboo, The Gardens include large collections of camellia species and palms, a formal rose garden, lotus ponds, and much more. It's located at the intersection of U.S. 17 South, going toward Richmond Hill, and Canebrake Road (address, 2 Canebrake Rd.), a quarter mile south of Wal-Mart and a mile north of the Ogeechee River bridge. For further information about the Bamboo Festival, call (912) 921-5460. The Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens is open weekdays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sundays from noon-5 p.m.