Abstract

To determine the structural basis of rattan biomechanics, mechanical testing and anatomical investigations were carried out on 25 species of Indian rattans, comprising three genera, viz., Calamus, Daemonorops, and Korthalsia. As a mechanical adaptation to the climbing habit, the scandent slender stem of rattan palm has low stiffness and density values compared to the arborescent coconut palm, dicotyledons, and bamboos. The stiffest mechanical zone, at the periphery and toward the stem base, probably provides the mechanical requirements of a semi-self-supporting stem. Fibers, accompanied by the characteristic sclerides in Korthalsia, constitute the mechanical tissues which account for about one-third of the total stem tissues. The fiber wall thickness alone explains half the variation in stiffness. The increasing wall thickness of polylamellate fibers is the single most important structural factor that appears to meet the incresing mechanical demands of the growing stem. The