For centuries, people of tropical Asia have been utilizing bamboos collected from the wild, as well as from species already domesticated. In Thailand, young shoots of Thyrsostachys siamensis were collected from the wild for local consumption only, but recently they have become very popular and they are now canned for export. Most shoots are still collected from bamboos growing in the wild.
Paper mills have been built in areas where Dendrocalamus strictus, a bamboo producing good quality pulp, grows abundantly. In Peninsular Malaysia, Gigantochloa scortechinii becomes abundant in logged forest. In the past it was used only for making rough baskets for carrying vegetables, but recently this bamboo has become a major wild-growing resource for developing cottage industries. Bamboo here is often overexploited, giving rise to a shortage of raw material, which is a serious problem in the local cottage industry. In the past, local people exploited these wild bamboos in a sustainable way. In Indonesia, in particular in eastern Java and southern Sulawesi, Bambusa bambos has been overexploited because it is a major resource for paper mills. A similar situation has developed in Sumbawa where it is used as a raw material for a developing chopstick industry.
Some bamboos have been planted for centuries in parts of Asia for local use. In Java, for example, useful bamboo species are only found in cultivation and were presumably introduced from mainland Asia. They are planted around villages, often becoming naturalized and growing spontaneously. Traditionally, villagers have used bamboos on a more or less sustainable basis, renewing their gardens by planting new plants.
In several areas of South-East Asia, plantations of bamboo have been established for various purposes. In Thailand, plantations for shoot production (mainly Dendrocalamus asper) are located in Prachinburi Province (4465 ha). Plantations for culm as well as shoot production are found at Chiang Mai, Kanchanaburi, Songkhla, Khon Kaen, and Phitsanulok. Species included are Bambusa bambos, B. blumeana, B. burmanica Gamble, Dendrocalamus asper, D. brandisii (Munro) Kurz, D. strictus, Gigantochloa albociliata and Thyrsostachys siamensis. In Indonesia, there is a plantation of Dendrocalamus asper, D. giganteus Wallich ex Munro, D. latiflorus and Gigantochloa pseudoarundinacea in Lampung (1100 ha), and a 50 ha plantation of Dendrocalamus asper for culm production has been established at Mojokerto (East Java).