H2 THE RUBBER TREE BOOK 



not grow so quickly, they cannot withstand droughts so well, 

 and they cannot have the vitality which they would possess if 

 the roots had an area three or four times as great to draw upon 

 for the necessary supplies. Close planting thus infallibly means 

 poor root-systems, and all the consequences which follow, 

 for the area which the roots of the one tree might seek to 

 occupy is, it soon finds, already occupied by the roots of other 

 trees which are draining the soil severely and which, in any 

 event, crowd the narrow spaces available. 



It must also be remembered that as trees grow older their 

 girth increases. The bark area, which must necessarily be 

 renewed after tapping, is much greater than was the case in 

 earlier stages. If the trees have been planted at sufficient 

 distances the spread of the branches and, consequently, of the 

 foliage, will have greatly increased, and the trees will be in an 

 equally good or a better position to renew all bark taken off 

 than formerly was the case. 



On the other hand, if the trees have been closely planted 

 at the distances general in the Federated Malay States and the 

 Straits, namely, 14 feet by 14 feet, 17 feet by 17 feet, or 12 feet 

 by 24 feet, their spread of foliage at the age of eight, ten or 

 twelve years of age will be much less than it was at the age of 

 five or six years. The trees will have a far more severe task 

 laid upon them to perform and be in a much worse position to 

 accomplish it. Bark-renewal will therefore be much slower. 

 The attack on the vitality of the trees will eat into their reserves 

 of strength. The proportion of trees attacked by disease will 

 increase. The position of closely-planted estates, considered 

 as a permanent investment, is thus a very doubtful one. 



It is most astonishing that more planters do not generally 

 recognize what is every day before their eyes. Anyone who 

 cares to look at very many of the estates in the Federated 

 Malay States with trees six years of age or older will see a 

 dismal sight. There one can behold gloomy aisles of trees 

 into which the sunlight never penetrates. High overhead the 

 uppermost boughs of the various trees contest with each other 

 for a little air and sunlight. Below are to be seen the evidences 

 of death and decay. As no foliage can grow on the lower 

 branches, owing to the perennial gloom, these decay and fall 

 off. Each year, as the uppermost boughs climb ever higher, 



