13 



be partly overcome by the formation of a business-like 

 association among rice growers and the maintenance of 

 a suitable campaign of education. It is believed that in 

 the further development of the rice industry in the 

 Islands, the white farmer must take an active part. 



SISAL. 



The only fiber plant at present grown on a commercial 

 scale in Hawaii, is sisal. This plant was introduced in 

 1893, and its cultivation has increased until we now have 

 about 1400 acres of sisal with an output of 200 tons of 

 fiber annually, worth about $20,000. The largest sisal 

 plantation of the Islands will soon plant an additional 

 2,000 acres. This company has its business well organ- 

 ized and is in a thriving condition. If we may judge 

 from the experience of sisal growers throughout the 

 world, it may be safely stated that this is a crop which 

 requires extensive plantings in order to yield satisfac- 

 tory profits. In a thickly settled community it might be 

 possible to produce small quantities of sisal, which could 

 be milled in small machines and distributed by co-opera- 

 tive association. Under our conditions, however, the 

 sisal industry must apparently be carried on in extensive 

 plantations. 



In Hawaii, only the true sisal is grown commercially, 

 and the life of the plant with us extends from eight to 

 ten years. This is a shorter life period than that of 

 henequen in Yucatan, but the leaves have smooth edges, 

 rather than spiney ones, as is the case with henequen; 

 and the value of the fiber is considerably greater. Sisal, 

 therefore, is to be preferred to henequen for our condi- 

 tions. The stock for planting may be obtained from the 

 growth of young plants in nurseries, or from the direct 

 use of pole plants or suckers. Our growers plant from 

 600 to 900 suckers per acre. The first harvest occurs 

 three years after planting, and the average yield of fiber 

 per acre is about 500 pounds. 



Sisal is commonly mentioned as a plant which will 

 grow without care or cultivation. While this is true, it 

 has been found that the growth of the plants may be 

 greatly benefited by cultivation along the rows. This 

 is a fortunate circumstance, since, if cultivation were 

 of no benefit, the sisal plantation might be abandoned 

 until shrubby weeds would make it an exceedingly diffi- 

 cult matter to harvest the sisal leaves. The water re- 



