Variation on physical properties of 1, 3 and 5 year old (gigantochload scort echini) from the Universiti Malaysia Kelantan Kelantan Agpr park nutural forest

The study focused on the variation in the physical properties of 1, 3 and 5 year-old of Gigantochloa scortechinii. The bamboo samples were collected from the natural stands in Universiti Malaysia Kelantan Agro Park. The bamboo culms chosen for the research were 1, 3 and 5 year old culms. The physical properties focused on the moisture content, density, basic density and dimensional stability. The internodes from 2 until 30 were used in this research. The moisture content decreases from year 1, year 3 to year 5. This shows that the younger cuim contains higher amount of water content compared to older bamboo. The density increases from year 1, year 3 until year 5. This is caused by the high compact structure of older culm. The basic density increases from year 1, year 3 until year 5. This is caused by the high compact structure of older cuim. For shrinkage process, the shrinkage value decreases from age 1, age 3 to age 5 and increases along with the internodes of the cuim. The shrinkage value increases from 30°C until 80°C. This shows that higher temperature results in higher shrinkage value. The swelling value decreases from age 1, age 3 to age 5 and increases along with the internodes of the cuim. However, the swelling value decreases from 30°C until 80°C. This is due to repeated heating which affect the culm and cause less water entering inside the culm. From the research, it can be observed that physical characteristics vary depending on age and height along the G.scortechinii culms