Clump bamboo is like a body, with each stalk forming a limb; hence each stalk, regardless of how old it really is, is the same "age" as the rest of the stalks in the clump. So when one stalk flowers, all of them do. As for running bamboo, how is it that different stalks, or even whole groves, can all flower at once?
單桿竹，像我國的孟宗竹，並沒有一簇簇生長，開起花來卻也「遙相呼應」；尤有甚者，有時在不同兩林、相同品種的竹子，還是會一齊開花。