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Custom Bamboo Garden

Kalo, Teresa's brother, is on site to create a gift garden for the homeowners. He is weaving split, green-bamboo partition fences that are held together simply by the friction of the reeds. Kalo, a weaver, has learned textile techniques in Taiwan that he is applying to the fence. He has created a Zen space within the garden and various sections for plantings, fences, a potted black bamboo, and stones. Kalo's niece is splitting the bamboo that he uses for the woven fences. He warns that bamboo is razor sharp once cut and takes tremendous attention and gloves. Kalo shows Bob how he uses four warps, or horizontals, for the bracing that will hold the vertical reeds in place. The fence will age and weather from green, to gold, to grey, and ultimately to black before it is replaced. Jim's two daughters are also working on the garden project, mulching the beds in front of the bamboo garden.

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Clip Transcript For:

Custom Bamboo Garden

computer-generated transcript - may not be 100% accurate

" OK and we're still working with a bamboo we've got a few minutes left to. Look at one of the projects that's taking place out here in front of the house this is real natural stuff that's been split. And this is beautiful black bamboo which is a very popular ornamental clumping form it won't take over whole yard. And -- is gorgeous pot but the real action is. Our homeowners' brother. -- Is visiting from Thailand where he lives and you're creating a special gift garden here for your sister and brother and off into. It's it's it's it's green bamboo right yeah we split everything when it's green that's easiest way to work. And what you're creating is well we're gonna see it next week when it's all done -- you're creating a series of these little fences."

" Just woven -- and no hardware no fasteners strictly the friction of the weave. To create a little partition fence and is this technique that you've picked up living in Thailand is this something I don't know this is something that I've adopted in the work that I've done with bamboo over the years and now I'm learning from all the weaving techniques that they use over -- your married to. I've women actually at least do you do not drive. From that Tibetan plateau of China and so some of the textiles that you wearing. I see these are pants that do I make with my family in in northern Thailand and this is actually a -- OK OK investor really into weaving and text on your applying it here in seventy it's taking over my life. That's straight give -- a quick overview of what else is going to happen. Well we've basically tried to create a little zen space inside of all the business everywhere right. And so we've got a some strong planting of vegetation in this corner. Another partition fence on the back corner and hand and then a couple of small proteins that are going to come up been great guys grow tall and slender in front of the windows and you've taught your niece aria who's Teresa's daughter how to cut the stuff she's actually doing all the final splits for the week. The final preparation of splitting before we weave it into the that's very important to wear gloves because bamboo is razor sharp stuff and you split the edges are almost -- and are beyond knife sharp like razor sharp yeah let let us see how you actually weave it together -- sure sure. The ideal the ideal weave is before four warp pieces. And then you alternate just. Each piece goes in front of the four or -- are the horizontal ones that here horizontal. Now is this is still green and fresh will list dry up and become very rigid. It'll get more rigid as it dries. And it'll turn a golden color for a long time in handles are turning gray and then eventually black and they'll be. But then by then you'll hopefully have. Access to more green bamboo into this change it out. That's great thanks god I can't wait to see the finished results I thought we should point out that on the on the front of the property we've got Jim's two daughters who are done doing a wonderful job of putting in the mulch and getting -- the post dressings and this section of the fence is already completed it's very very attractive."

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