Variation of Nutrients and Functional Properties within Young Shoots of a Bamboo Species (Yushania alpina) Growing at Mt. Elgon Region in Western Kenya

Yushania alpina is an indigenous bamboo species growing at Mt. Elgon forest in Western Kenya and its young shoots are consumed by the local people as a vegetable. This study was done to determine some physico-chemical properties and their distribution within the shoot. Each shoot was divided into the upper and lower portions which were analyzed separately, and results were expressed in dry weight basis. On proximate composition, there was no significant difference (p 50 of 1 mg/ml compared to 5 mg/ml for the lower part, and higher Hunter’s L* value.