40 PHILIPPINE FIBER PLANTS 



grades the stems are split. The splitting is done when the 

 stems are fresh or, at least, before they become dry. Mats made 

 from balanggot are very attractive. The manufacture of slip- 

 pers of this material is carried on to a considerable extent in 

 some towns of Bulacan Province, Luzon. 



Cyperus malaccensis is a rather coarse, usually gregarious, 

 perennial sedge reaching a height of from 0.5 to 1.5 meters. 

 The stems are leafless and sharply three-angled, almost three- 

 winged near the top. This sedge occurs in brackish swamps, 

 along tidal streams, bordering nipa areas, and is often abundant 

 back of the mangrove swamps when this area is not wooded. 

 In some regions it is very plentiful. 



CYPERUS RADIATUS VahL Alinang. 



Local names: Almang (Bikol, Bisaya) ; halahalanggutan (Tagalog) ; 

 bal-Iaayang (Union); dagko, obod-obod (Bisaya); iipopi (Cagayan). 



In some parts of the Philippines the outer portions of the 

 stems are stripped, dried in the shade, and used for weaving 

 mats, mattings, and screens. This utilization is apparently 

 local. 



Cyperus radiatus is a coarse sedge 0.2 to 1 meter in height. 

 The leaves are one-half to two-thirds as long as the stems and 

 7 millimeters or less in width. The inflorescence is subtended 

 by long, leaf-like bracts. It is widely distributed in the settled 

 areas of the Philippines at low altitudes, and occurs in shallow 

 swamps and open wet places. 



Genus Fl M BRISTYLIS 



FIMBRISTYLIS DIPHYLLA VahL Tabtabin. 



Local names: Muthd (Manila); panai (Benguet) ; tabtabin (Zambales) ; 

 tayok-tayok (Zambales, Panay, Occidental Negros). 



The stems of this species are used for much the same pur- 

 poses as those of Fimhristylis fjlobulosa, but are inferior to 

 them. The material is prepared by drying in the sun. 



Fimhristylis diphylla is a small, slender sedge growing in 

 wet situations. The leaves are slender and grow in considerable 

 numbers from the base of the stem. 



This species is found throughout the settled areas of the 

 Philippines and is the commonest representative of the genus. 



FIMBRISTYLIS GLOBULOSA Kunth (Plate XV). TfKUG. 



Local names: Anahiuan, tdyok-tdyok, tikog, tikug, jnlokong (Bisaya); 

 badang-baddng (Ilocos Norte) ; mutd (Pampanga) ; pakupakuan (Bulacan) ; 

 sud-sud (Moro). 



This is apparently the most important matting sedge in the 

 Philippines. It is extensively utilized in the Bisaya Islands 



