BUREAU OF PLAXT INDUSTRY. 155 



twine fibers in limited areas in Haiti and o^er a much larger area 

 in sonthern Santo Domingo. A small experimental planting of 

 sisal has been made near La Romona, Santo Domingo. 



In Porto Rico experimental plantings made in former yeavs have 

 resulted in the establishment of a commercial plantation near Yauco. 

 Trial plantings of both sisal and henequen near Quebradillas, in 

 northwestern Porto Rico, and on Mona Island, about 40 miles west 

 of Mayaguez, are making a promising growth. 



A fiber-cleaning machine of commercial type has been sent to the 

 experiment station at Mayaguez, P. R., to demonstrate the produc- 

 tion of henequen and sisal. 



The development of im])roved strains of henequen and sisal by 

 means of selections begun in 1917 at Mayaguez is being continued. 

 Many of the second generation of suckers have been set out, and 

 bulbils from the original selected plants which have sent up flower 

 stalks arc being grown in nurseries. The cultivation in several in- 

 stances of bulbils and suckers from the same parent plant is ex- 

 pected to furnish more definite information than has been available 

 heretofore regarding the relative merits of these two sources of 

 propagating stock. 



In the Virgin Islands excellent conditions for the cultivation of 

 sisal, and probably henequen, are found on St. Croix, and there are 

 now growing on that island sisal plants with leaves nearly G feet 

 long that may furnish stock for starting a plantation. 



In the Philippines the cooperation of the Bureau of Plant In- 

 dustry with the Philippine Bureau of Agriculture in demonstrating 

 the preparation of sisal fiber by means of modern fiber-cleaning ma- 

 chines has resulted in an increased planting of sisal on those islands 

 and in the purchase and installation of machines by private capital 

 to develop the sisal industry on a larger scale. The Philippine 

 maguey plants are being replaced by sisal plants, which yield a fiber 

 l^etter adapted to the requirements of American manufacturers. 



Phor3iium, or Neav Zealand hemp. — The fact that phormium 

 fiber may be used for binder tv>'ine and, furthermore, that this is the 

 only cultivated hard-fiber plant which is grown in the Temperate 

 Zone has led to an insistent demand for investigation to determine 

 whether it may be grown profitably in the United States. The in- 

 formation obtained thus far shows that phormium is cultivated to 

 only a very limited extent in New Zealand, most of the fiber being- 

 obtained from plants growing wild in reclaimed swamps. It has been 

 introduced into nearly all warm or subtropical countries, but only 

 on the island of St. Helena has the production of its fiber become an 

 established industry, and in no place has it been found to grow in 

 areas of commercial size as luxuriantly as it does in its native 

 country. Several attempts by private individuals to cultivate phor- 

 mium in this country have resulted in failure. These failures, how- 

 ever, together Avith the more successful growth of individual plants 

 cultivated for ornament, have demonstrated that phormium requires 

 a climate free from extremes of heat or cold, abundant moisture, 

 and a fertile soil well supplied with humus. 



Seeds of phormium have been secured from New Zealand, and 

 young seedlings h.ave been set out under conditions as nearly as may 

 be found meeting the requirements of the plant. 



