Yushania boliana Demoly, Bambou 35: 3. 2000.

  Synonyms: Borinda boliana (Demoly) Stapleton, Himalayacalamus intermedius Hort.

Rhizome necks solid, 0.1–0.5 m, internodes short. Culms 3-5 m tall, 1–2.5 cm thick, forming open spreading stands, initially erect, becoming pendulous from heavy branching; internodes short, 12–25 cm long, cylindrical, finely ridged, apically sparsely to densely brown-pubescent at first, uniformly thinly white-powdery initially, becoming matt olive-green and basally purple after exposure, wall 3–6 mm thick; nodes not raised, with weakly prominent supra-nodal ridge; sheath scar thin, not raised, brown-tomentose at first. Branches ca. 15–25 at first, to 75 later, subequal and spreading, with central dominant and more erect, branchlets becoming purple-red after exposure. Culm sheaths tardily deciduous, narrowly triangular, shoulders concave, distally papery, longer than internodes, basal sheaths orange-red, others green with margins and apex drying to contrasting brown, with sparse to dense short soft brown setae at first, margins glabrous, apically arched and rolled, apically ca. twice width of blade; auricles small or indistinct; oral setae stout, light brown, erect to reflexed in tufts of 12-18 each side; ligule 2-3 mm, arched, curved inwards, initially dark, glabrous with 1-2 mm fringe; blade narrowly triangular or subulate, 8-18 cm, not reflexed but recurved along with sheath apex, glabrous, margins basally ciliate, often apically crinkled at first. Leaf sheaths glabrous or initially distally sparsely tomentose, tinged red after exposure, margins glabrous and membranous; auricles absent, or an irregular thickening of the sheath shoulders; oral setae 6–12 each side, 3–8 mm, dense, erect or/and spreading, soft, light brown, persistent; ligule ca. 0.5 mm, truncate, initially ciliate; external ligule distinct, bilobed, glabrous; blade narrowly linear-lanceolate, 10–16 × 1–1.7 cm, glabrous or abaxially proximally pilose beside midrib, secondary veins 3–4-paired, transverse veins distinct, margins scabrous. Named after Gerald Bol, Californian collector of bamboos from around the world in the 1980s & 90s, and founder of the pioneering bamboo nursery Bamboo Sourcery.

Yushania boliana is thought to be native to Sichuan Province of China, and was introduced to the Fuji Bamboo Garden in Japan, where it was initially thought to be a species of Himalayacalamus. It was later thought that it was probably closer to the Fargesia/Borinda/Yushania group than to Drepanostachyum/Himalayacalamus/Ampelocalamus despite its short buds. As young plants it formed clumps like those of a Borinda species, but as it developed to full stature in warmer countries the rhizomes reportedly became longer and it was considered to be a species of Yushania instead on the basis of its open clumps and irregular foliage arrangement. However, in the UK the rhizomes still have not attained the length expected for a Yushania species of this stature, and it does not fit well in any known genus. The combination of short buds like those of Himalayacalamus, very strongly tessellated leaf blade venation, and erect culm sheath blades continuous with the sheath proper above a steeply arcuate ligule is unique. It also has curious, very persistent and rather friable oral setae. Inflorescences from sporadic flowering in Gold Beach, Oregon are terminal ebracteate racemes with extended rhachis and pedicels essentially consistent with those of Yushania and Borinda, but with smaller florets.