98 NOTES ON AGRICULTURE IN CYPRUS 



Sample No. i was valued at 13, and No. 2 at 12, per 

 ton, with Sicilian sumach at i 5 per ton ; the lower value 

 being due to the lower tannin contents, owing to the 

 presence of sand, dirt, etc. It may be assumed that if 

 more care in preparing clean samples were taken, Cyprus 

 sumach would greatly improve its market value. 



Valonea 



There are a few well-grown specimens of valonea oak 

 (Quercus dLgilops) to be seen, but being a slow grower 

 and as it takes many years to reach the stage when it yields 

 a profit, it does not commend itself to the Cypriot tree 

 planter. It prefers deep soil and requires artificial irriga- 

 tion or a greater rainfall than we have in Cyprus. 



It has been tried at Salamis and failed, and also at 

 Machaera with the same result. It has been grown also 

 on Troodos, but after six years' growth attained a height 

 of only i foot. 



Only an insignificant quantity of Valonea cups are 

 locally produced. These come from the Paphos district 

 and are said to be rather poor in tannin. The bulk comes 

 from Anatolia. The pre-war price for the latter was 55. 

 per cantar of 44 okes, that for the locally grown was 20 

 paras per oke on the spot, transport charges bringing up 

 the price to about i copper piastre per oke delivered. 



Acacia Barks 



Acacia pycnaniha has been grown in Cyprus, but does 

 not acclimatise well, and neither the soil nor climate seems 

 favourable. A. mollissima also has not shown any very 

 successful growth. A. cyanophylla and A. longifolia, on 

 the other hand, thrive excellently. They are great drought- 

 resisters and grow on almost any soil. They have been 

 very extensively grown by the Forest Department in every 

 district for fuel and along the coast upon sand dunes. 

 They have not been utilised so far for the extraction of 

 tanning, except experimentally. Samples of the barks 

 of the two last-named species were found on examination 

 at the Imperial Institute to be too poor in tannin to be 

 worth exporting, but they should be quite suitable for use 



