584 HORTICULTURE, FORESTRY, FLORICULTURE 



add fertility to the soil The first crop of outer leaves of the plants 

 is cut at the end of three years when grown from suckers, or four 

 years when grown from mast plants. From ten to twenty leaves are 

 produced each year for a period of twelve to twenty-five years in 

 Yucatan, ten to fifteen years in Cuba, and six to twelve years in the 

 Bahamas. An unusually cold winter at any period tends to check 

 growth and cause the plants to send up flower stalks, after which 

 they die. 



Sisal fiber is cleaned from the leaves by machines which scrape 

 out the pulp and at the same time wash the fiber in running water. 

 It is then hung in the sun to dry and bleach for from one to three 

 days, after which it is baled for market. The average annual yield 

 is about 600 pounds of clean, dry fiber per acre. 



Sisal fiber of good quality is of a slightly yellowish-white color, 

 2% to 4 feet in length, somewhat harsher and less flexible than 

 manila fiber, but next to that the strongest and most extensively 

 used hard fiber. It is used in the manufacture of binder twine, 

 lariats, and general cordage, aside from marine cordage and derrick 

 ropes. It can not withstand the destructive action of salt water, and 

 its lack of flexibility prevents it from being used to advantage for 

 running over pulleys or in power transmission. It is used exten- 

 sively in mixtures with manila fiber. 



NEW ZEALAND HEMP. 



The plant producing the fiber known in the markets as New 

 Zealand hemp or New Zealand flax is a perennial belonging to the 

 lily family, and is technically known as Phormium tenax. It is na- 

 tive in the coast regions of New Zealand, and is cultivated commer- 

 cially only in those islands. The plant is hardy, withstanding a 

 considerable degree of cold and drought. It is cultivated as an orna- 

 mental plant in parks and private grounds in the coast region of 

 California, and also on the west coasts of Ireland and Scotland. 

 Several different varieties are cultivated in New Zealand, some with 

 leaves 6 to 8 feet long, others with leaves only half that length, 1% 

 to 3 inches in width, and of rather thin texture. The fiber is cleaned 

 from the freshly cut leaves by scraping, washing, and drying. The 

 scraping process is performed chiefly by machinery, but no machine 

 has yet been used which will do all of the work satisfactorily. 



The fiber is 40 to 60 inches long, nearly white, fine, and rather 

 soft for a leaf fiber. It is used as a substitute for sisal in binder twine, 

 baling rope, and medium grades of cordage, and is made up largely 

 in mixtures with manila or sisal, except in the cheaper tying twines. 

 By extra care in preparation and hackling, a quality is produced al- 

 most as fine and soft as the better grades of flax, and when thus pre- 

 pared it may be spun and woven into goods closely resembling linen. 



MAURITIUS. 



Mauritius fiber or mauritius hemp, as it is often called in the 

 market, is obtained from the large, fleshy leaves of an agave-like 

 plant (Furcrsea fcetida). This plant is widely distributed in the 

 tropics of both hemispheres. In Porto Rico it is known as maguey, 



