The Lucky Bamboo..

It will soon be one year since I have a Chinese bamboo plant at my home. My sister had sent me a 3- stalked chinese bamboo plant last year on Raksha Bandhan... It was a small sampling, and now is almost a foot high...

Chinese bamboo plants have a role to play in the Eastern practice of "Feng Shui".. or the bringing of natural elements of water, fire, earth, wood and metal into balance within the environment... Chinese bamboo (or Lucky Bamboo) is believed to be an ideal example of the thriving wood and water element, with the addition of a red ribbon tied around its stalks, is believed to represent "Fire", or the postive flow of energy or "Chi" in the room...
The number of stalks also has some meaning,
3 stalks - Happiness
5 stalks - Wealth
6 stalks - Health

4 stalks are avoided cause the word "four" in Chinese sounds too similar to the chinese word for "Death" !! :O

I have a 3-stalked plant... and lately I had been observing that its leaves are turning yellow, one by one as each day passes by...
This plant was supposed to bring "Happiness" in my house... and now it was dying...
err.... any sane person can interpret what that meant in Feng shui... :(
It had been a long time since my family had experienced Happy times together.. and this thing totally started depressing me further....

My aji is an expert in plants... she had a big garden in our old house at shivaji park... and also at goregaon... she had told me to plant the sappling in soil instead of marbles... also to keep it in sunlight...
well, that was the most stupidest thing I did... that is keeping the plant in sunlight...

Later, I searched the internet and found out that the chinses bamboo is an indoor plant and it needs plenty of indirect sunlight, and that it dies in direct sunlight... damn !!

Here are some of the things you can do to take care of your Lucky Bambo....

• Typically, they are grown in a few inches of clear water, perhaps supported by small pebbles, stones, or marbles. It is important that the water be kept clean and fresh and not allowed to stagnate.

• The Choline/Flurides in tap water is harmful to the plant. Allow the tap water to stand in an open container for 24 hours, allowing the chlorine and flouride to dissipate, before using it with your plants. Or you can use filtered or distilled water.

• The plant needs plenty of Indirect sunlight. Keep it away from direct sunlight.They will perform well under artificial lighting. Too much direct sun can cause burning of the leaves. Too little light will lead to weak growth, stretching and poor coloration. Normal household temperatures are ideal.

Hmm... I followed the instructions for a few days... and I saw that new shoots are coming out...
That surely did bring back a smile on my face.. :)
So you know guys, this Feng shui thing really works... Go get your Chinese bamboo plant :D


P.S. The Chinese Bamboo is not a Bamboo at all ;) It belongs to the Dracaena family (Dracaena sanderiana)