Taking Root was led by digital artist Ling Tan, exploring the relationship that people living in the UK have with bamboo plants as a sustainable material and as a carbon sink, and its role and ours in tackling the climate crisis.
Taking Root focuses on borinda bamboo, propogated by expert grower Michael Brisbane (Shropshire), who shared how he believes it to be the most suitable species for the UK climate.
This short film tells more:
During 2021, 18 residents from Birmingham began growing a set of UK-grown baby borinda bamboo plants at home as part of a 6-month growing experiment. They used a digital web platform to coordinate on the growing process, share growing tips and learn about the impact of bamboo on the climate.
UK-grown baby borinda bamboo plants were studied as part of a 6-month growing experiment
This process culminated in a Planting Ceremony on 21 April 2022, where bamboo parents planted their baby borindas to take root at the Winterbourne House & Garden, University of Birmingham, as a symbol of their collective commitment to tackling the climate crisis.
The bamboo plants were allowed to take root at Winterbourne House and Gardens in a planting ceremony in April 2022.
During 2022, working with our partners in Liverpool City Region and Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme, a new community of 'bamboo parents' have nurtured their own baby bamboo plants, capturing their observations digitally.
Bamboo parents in Liverpool are recording their experiences of growing borinda bamboo
Children in Stoke plant out their baby bamboo plants
Follow the progress of the Taking Root bamboo babies at https://takingroot.herokuapp.com/2022