January 1, 1913.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



195 



The Rubber Industry in Hawaii. 



SEEING the favorable results of recent analyses of Hawaii 

 rubber at Xew York, interest attaches to a special detailed 

 report on the subject of the Hawaiian rubber industry, by 

 Mr. E. V. Wilcox. Special Agent in Charge at the Hawaii Agri- 

 cultural Experiment Station, Honolulu. The report covers the 

 ground very thoroughly, dealing with cultivation, methods of 

 tapping, the questions of rainfall and altitude, the most effective 

 measures for combatting the ravages of pests and a comparison 

 of Hevea and Ceara as desirable trees for the Hawaiian Islands. 

 It begins with a description of the area now- under cultivation. 



AREA NOW UNDER CULTIVATION. 

 There are at present about 1.500 acres under rubber, and as 

 further plantings are contemplated, there is a possibility of this 



- - %• ■ ■ 



Four Year Old Ceara Trees. 



acreage being considerably enlarged. At the present there a'-;; 

 in all about 1,200 acres planted in Ceara, and 300 in Hcvca. 

 Organized planting dates from the year 1905, though rubber 

 trees as old as 20 years are to be found in the territory. 



Five companies operate the principal part of the industry, wivi 

 the following planted holdings: 



Rubber 



acreage 



planted 



_ Estah- (approxi- 



, ra.-^. ijgi^gj] Capital. mately). 



Nahiku Rubber Co 1905 $150,000 480 



Hawaii American Co 1905 50.000 245 



Koolan Rubber Co 1906 30.000 275 



Nahiku Sugar Co 1906 250 



Pacific Development Co.. 1907 80,000 250 



Total 1,500 



The Pacific Development Co. contemplate ultimately increasing 

 their planted acreage to 600 acres. 



In addition to these large companies there are about a dozen 

 small plantings, aggregating about 50 acres, so that the total 

 area specifically devoted to rubber is about 1,550 acres. 



The rubber companies of Hawaii have so far been operating 

 with local capital, and have been trying to demonstrate the rub- 

 ber possibilities of the territory. .-\t present there are too few 

 trees of tapping age to allow of a definite statement of cost or 

 profit. The results of the tappings at the experimental station, 

 and of those made as trials by the managers of the dififerenr 

 plantations, agree to such an extent, that as long as the market 

 price is from 75c. to $1 per pound, satisfactory results may bo 

 anticipated from plantings of Ceara rubber in Hawaii. 



BENEFITS OF CULTIVATION. 

 It was at first thought that rubber trees would grow suf- 

 ficiently well without cultivation, but it w^as soon found that the 

 cost of cultivation was made up for by the more rapid growth of 

 the trees. Cultivated trees at two or three years of age are, 

 on an average, larger than uncultivated trees at five or six years 

 of age. By the adoption of a suitable method of cultivation, 

 at least two years could be cut off the period of waiting for 

 trees to come to maturity. Cultivating the trees seems a neces- 

 sity under Hawaiian conditions. The unusually rough nature 

 of the land, and the tangle of shrubby undergrowth rendered 

 horse cultivation out of the question, while the cost of hand- 

 cultivation promised to be extremely high. Recourse was had 

 to chemical spraying for destroying the weeds. Sulphate of iron 

 uas fairly satisfactory, but arsenite of soda gave much better 

 results and has been generally applied. The cost of spraying 

 < from $1.25 to $2 per acre. As soon as the woody growth is 

 ulled, the soil can be readily tilled; the tillage and the action 

 •f the sun bringing about the oxidation of the soil, thus greatly 

 improving its physical and chemical properties. 

 TAPPING. 

 Tapping experiments were begun on trees at two years of 

 age and have been continued. During the present season about 

 50.000 trees are being tapped, and from these a considerable 

 imount of rubber will be extracted. Of the various methods 

 used, the half herring-bone system is perhaps the most prom- 

 ising. On account of the Ceara dropping its leaves annually, it 

 seems desirable in Hawaii to allow the trees complete rest from 

 February to May. 



Of the various receptacles for catching the latex, the or- 

 dinary Japanese tea cup has given the most satisfaction. The 

 flow of latex is best from daylight to ten o'clock, the cost of 

 tapping depending largely upon the experience of the worker. 

 -After a few weeks' e.xperience, a man can readily tap twice as 

 many trees as at first. The oldest trees experimented upon 

 arc about five years old. From such trees it is possible to ob- 

 tain a pound of dry rubber for each 100 trees at a single tap- 



Tapping Method. 



ping, and at present price of labor, a pound of rubber seems ob- 

 tainable at a cost of 50 cents. This can probably be reduced as 

 the men acquire greater experience. 



RAINFALL. 



In the regions where rubber is chiefly grown in Hawaii (the 



Xahiku district of Maui and the Puna district of Hawaii), the 



rainfall is rather high (100 to 200 inches a year). Most of the 



land is exceedingly porous, particularly in Puna, where the 



