[peaceful traditional
Japanese composition]
(narrator)
In the Blue Ridge Mountains
of western North Carolina,
there is a quiet place.
You can your heartbeat
if you pause to listen...
or the near silent fall
of distant rain--
at least,
that's what it sounds like
as the wind filters
through the grove.
(man, Japanese accent)
(narrator)
Keiji Oshima
and his wife, Stefani,
have created a small paradise
here in Henderson County,
six acres of bamboo forest
that must
be experienced firsthand
to fully
and deeply appreciate.
(Stefani)
We first came
over 25 years ago.
Our land, it was
just open grass.
(narrator)
They started
the Haiku Bamboo Nursery
after becoming convinced that
the climate here was perfect
and a lot like
Keiji's native Japan.
Many species of bamboo
along with soybeans
and some 200,000
other exotics
were introduced to the U.S.
by botanist and plant explorer
David Fairchild
in the early 20th century,
and over the years,
this tall plant
with its familiar
sectional structure
has acquired a reputation
for wild, unmanaged growth.
That's why
it became invasive.
They didn't know
what to do with it,
how to maintain it.
[drums lead]
(narrator)
Given his sensitivity
to this deceivingly
simple plant,
Keiji cultivates over 23
different bamboo species.
Out of 1,400 worldwide,
only three species
are native to the U.S.,
and one of them, hill cane,
was discovered
in Henderson County.
Black bamboo is especially
coveted by collectors.
The stem starts out green,
then gradually
turns a vivid black.
Wow!
(narrator)
The long, skinny
yadake bamboo variety
also is known
as arrow bamboo.
Very beautiful--
this one.
Very beautiful bamboo.
I love it.
(narrator)
From the ground-hugging
dwarf bamboo...
to the large grove
of madake bamboo,
these plants,
actually classified
as evergreen grasses,
provide endless fascination.
Their majestic stalks,
called  culms ,
pull the eye upward.
Each individual plant is part
of an interlinked colony,
feeding nutrients down
and through a network
of underground stems,
or feeder roots,
called  rhizomes .
As the grove matures,
rhizomes spread out
in all directions,
extending
the bamboo grove's reach
and giving the grid
of below-ground roots
a steellike strength--
great for erosion control.
(Keiji)
Ohh!
Like this--netting...
(narrator)
Each spring, the rhizomes
send out new growth.
The culms soon shoot skyward
and quickly achieve
full height and diameter
after only two months.
Bamboo is the fastest growing
plant in the world
and can be harvested
much more frequently
than pines or hardwoods
used for lumber,
making bamboo one of
the world's most eco-friendly,
green, and easily renewable
natural resources.
[flute leads
peaceful composition]
Keiji numbers each culm
for the year it was born
and doesn't let them age
more than five years.
(Keiji,
voice-over)
(narrator)
If a happy forest
is a productive forest,
that would be all the more
true of a grove like this
because bamboo is said to be
the world's
most practical plant...
from huge,
awe-inspiring structures
like houses constructed
from sturdy bamboo poles...
to delicate works of art.
[energetic drums lead]
In the hands of a skilled
artisan like Keiji,
bamboo can become
almost anything...
apothecary jars,
for instance.
It can be used
for medicinal purposes...
and to make attractive
and durable clothing.
Of course,
there's bamboo furniture
and countless other
useful things,
like baskets...
lots of baskets.
Plenty of physical labor
goes into growing
and harvesting this crop,
but it's not all hard work.
Now the Oshimas
have added  bamboo educators
to their titles.
(Stefani)
After we had experience
running our nursery,
we realized,
so many people ask questions.
It has took up all our time.
Good afternoon,
Haiku Bamboo Nursery,
can I help you?
[voice-over]
We decided, we better
open a school now
because they wanna know
more about it.
(narrator)
Classes include
bamboo biology,
soil management,
hands-on farm activities,
and product marketing,
but bamboo's main attraction
remains its grace and beauty.
Just ask people
who take the tours.
(Stefani)
Once they walk in, it's like
a completely different world,
and they don't say a word.
(narrator)
Keiji, of course, is totally
familiar with this phenomenon.
(Keiji)
[peaceful composition]
(Stefani)
Many people have walked
into walking tours
where 35, 40 minutes,
they don't say nothing
until I tap them
on the shoulder,
say, "Let's go."
[both laughing]
[drumming returns]
(narrator)
Flowering bamboo
is something growers may see
only once in a lifetime
because some plants
rarely bloom--
every 65 to 120 years.
What's more,
many bamboo plants
from the same species
flower gregariously,
all at the same time,
regardless
of where in the world
they may have been
transplanted,
and then they die.
(narrator)
Throughout time,
this ancient plant
has provoked
considerable mystery and awe,
and clearly,
there remains much to learn.
(Keiji,
voice-over)