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due to imperfect stripping. To strip this variety for any considerable 

 length of time is a trying task and one that is avoided by most strippers. 



Quantity of fiber. — Every 100 kilos of stalk contain from 2.5 to 2.75 

 kilos of dry fiber. 



The Tangoiigon is undoubtedly the hardiest variety, and grows to a 

 fair size even in poor soils and under other adverse conditions, where 

 most, if not all, of the other varieties can not survive. The difficulty 

 of stripping it, its hard and woody rootstock, as well as the size of its 

 stalk and leaves, all show its hardy nature. 



It reaches its limit of growth in alluvial flats subject to overflow by 

 mountain streams. One of the undesirable qualities of this variety is 

 the tendency on the part of the rootstocks to grow above the soil. As 

 a result, quite a number of suckers grow 6 to 8 centimeters above the 

 ground, the hold of the plant on the soil is weakened, and it is in danger 

 of being thrown over during strong winds. 



MAGUINDANAO. 



{Maguindanao, throughout Davao; Ynosa, in Leyte; Samarong puti, in Albay 

 and Camarines; Laoh, in Oriental Negros; and Samponanon, in northern Min- 

 danao and Camigin.) 



Color of stalk. — Greenish, with light purple and brown colors running 

 through it. As a rule, the green color is in excess of the purple and 

 brown, but during long dry spells the reverse is the case. 



Size of stalk. — In its favorite soil — light deep loams — it grows to 

 almost the size of Tangongon, but it does not, as a rule, grow quite so 

 high. Stalks weighing 100 kilos and measuring about 5.5 meters in 

 height are about the limit, though in a few exceptional cases stalks 

 weighing 123 kilos have been observed. 



Shape of stalk. — Even a little more tapering than Tangongon, the ratio 

 between the two circumferences being about 2.3 to 1. 



Tendency to produce suckers. — It produces more stalks to the hill than 

 Tangongon, from 15 to 20 stalks being about the average. 



Quality of fiber. — White, strong, and easy of extraction. 



Quantity of fiber. — Every 100 kilos of stalk contain about 1.75 kilos 

 of dry fiber. 



This is a favorite variety with the majority of planters throughout the 

 Islands, because of the superior quality of its fiber and the ease with 

 which it is extracted. It is reckoned among the hardy varieties, though 

 it falls short of Tangoiigon in this respect. The way the leaves hang 

 on the stalk is peculiar to this variety. As soon as they emerge from 

 the stalk, the leaves arch downwcard in tlie form of a bow, giving the 

 plant the shape of an umbrella. 

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