PARA RUBBER. 81 



The latex rapidly dries on the tree in hot dry weather; this can, 

 however, be overcome by the use of ammonia, formalin, &c, placed 

 in the drip-tins at the top of each incision. In the Amazon valley 

 the native collectors never tap the trees when in flower, as they 

 believe the amount of rubber then obtainable is much less than 

 at other times — an idea supported by Ridley's experiments at the 

 Botanic Gardens, Singapore. 



It is very unlikely that the collection of latex will be limited to the 

 dry period, when the trees pass through their foliar phase, and in 

 practice tapping almost every month is much more likely to be 

 adopted. 



Results at Henaratgoda. 

 Regarding this question the results given below may be of value. 

 The trees marked '• H" were first tapped when the leaffall com- 

 menced, and the operations were continued through the period of 

 leaffall and renewal. The trees marked " I " were tapped from the 

 first of October right through the rainy and dry seasons ; on a few 

 days tapping was not carried out owing to inclement weather. The 

 experiment was made at Henaratgoda. 



Yield of Dry 

 Number of Times Rubber 



tapped. per 5 trees, 



lb. oz. 

 Trees tapped every day from 



October 1, 1905, (I) . . 157 . . 38 12| 



Trees tapped every day : first 



tapped on February 1, 190G (H). . 68 .. 13 14& 



The tapping operations (I) were continued at Henaratgoda right 

 through the dry months of January to April ; towards the end of 

 the latter month the flow of latex was proportionally less, and in 

 some cases the coagulation, instead of being complete in 24 hours, 

 required a period of nearly two days. 



On estates possessing rubber only it is difficult to see how the 

 labour can bp kept employed if tapping is suspended during the dry 

 months, and the point to determine is the maximum frequency that 

 the trees can be tapped with the minimum damage to the tree 

 during these months. The above phenomena were observed in 

 trees (I) which had been regularly tapped twice or three times per 

 week from September, 1905, to April, 1906, during which period 

 the trees shed all their leaves and produced new foliage and 

 flowers. 



What part of the Day to Tap. 

 The best flow of latex with the minimum quantity of scrap 

 rubber is obtained in the early morning or evening on sunny days, 

 but tapping may be done further on into the day, when the temper- 

 ature is low and clouds and moisture are abundant. In a district 

 like Peradeniya the tapping may be continued up to 8 or 9 a.m., 



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