NEW ZEALAND HEMP 191 



feed-roller so as to accommodate the varying thickness 

 of the leaves. The quality of the fibre produced 

 depends largely on the form of the scrapers or beaters 

 and the speed of revolution of the drum, but more on 

 the ease and accuracy with which the machine can be 

 adjusted. 



After leaving the machine the fibre is cleaned by 

 means of revolving brushes, which brush off all the 

 pulpy matter left on it from the stripping-drums. 

 The product is, in some cases, passed through a 

 " finishing " machine, by which the strands of fibre 

 are divided into finer filaments. The fibre is soaked 

 in water for a time, then spread out in the sun to be 

 bleached, and afterwards hung on lines to dry. The 

 dry fibre is made up into hanks of about 5 Ib. each, 

 and these are packed in bales of about 400 Ib. and 

 pressed for shipment. 



YIELD 



The yield of fibre from the green leaf of Phormium 

 tenax is usually given as about 10 to 14 per cent. 



It is stated that there is a great difference in the 

 yield per acre afforded by ordinary swamp flax, that 

 is, Phormium grown in the ordinary way, and the 

 cultivated plant. The average yield of green leaves 

 from an acre of uncultivated ilax is 10 to 15 tons, rich 

 lands sometimes furnishing as much as 25 tons, whilst 

 an acre of cultivated flax grown on good soil yields 

 45 to 55 tons. Moreover, the cultivated plant gives a 

 much higher percentage of fibre ; the yield is one ton 

 of fibre from 7 tons of leaves of the cultivated plant, 

 and one ton from 8 or 9 tons of uncultivated. *The 

 fibre from the cultivated plant is also of better quality 

 than that from the uncultivated. 



The cost of production varies to some extent accord- 

 ing to the locality and the conditions, but it has been 

 estimated that at Wairoa a ton of fibre ready for 

 shipment costs about 14 to produce. 



