软簕竹 ruan le zhu

Culms 4–8 m, 2–5 cm in diam.; internodes 25–30 cm, glabrescent; wall 1–1.2 cm thick; nodes with a pale hispid ring below and above sheath scar. Branches usually arising from basal culm node upward, clustered, central 3 dominant, lower branchlets sometimes shortened into weak or tough thorns. Culm sheaths deciduous, densely stiffly brown hairy, margins ciliate, apex asymmetrically convex; auricles unequal, larger auricle ca. 2.5 × as large as smaller one; oral setae angular; ligule ca. 2 mm, margin dentate; blade erect, broadly triangular. Leaf blade linear, 4–18 × 0.7–1.6 cm, abaxially pubescent, adaxially glabrous. Inflorescence unknown.

* Guangdong (Foshan).

Bambusa latideltata is similar to B. lapidea, but has branches from the culm base, green culms, lower internodes with stiff, gray-white hairs, culm sheaths with dense, brown hairs, and shorter, dentate ligules.