Bamboo and Trees

Bamboo cannot be categorized as either grass or wood, although it has supported the human culture for a long time. Wood wax was accepted as a past plant, although it will be a major resource of paraffinic compounds when petroleum cannot be used. Eucalyptus is now being planted all over the world for pulp and paper industry, at the same time natural forest is vanishing. Oil obtained from oil palm trees is a resource of biofuel, at the same time the rainforest is decreasing. In this chapter, unique properties with historical and cultural background of bamboo and three representative trees will be described.