90 THE WHOLE ART OF RUBBER-GROWING 



out also from the upper branches 60 to 80 feet from 

 the ground, being first as thin as whipcords but 

 very soon increasing in size after they have reached 

 the ground. It thus frequently happens that the 

 trees on which the young rubber seedling first ger- 

 minated is killed by the more vigorous growing Ficus 

 elastica, which in this respect resembles the well- 

 known banyan tree, and is one of the largest growing 

 members of our mixed forest in Assam ". The 

 seedlings, \vhen raised, are not planted on the ground 

 in the common way, but on small mounds, 3 to 4 feet 

 high, of earth and the cut wood and rubbish close at 

 hand, which suits the epiphyte habit of this tree. 



To ensure the greatest possible amount of moisture 

 in the atmosphere, the plantations of Ficus elastica 

 have been made in moist evergreen forest near the 

 foot of the hills, through which lines 40 feet in width 

 were cleared 100 feet apart from centre to centre of 

 the lines, thus leaving 60 feet of forest standing 

 between the lines. On these cleared lines the mounds 

 for the planting of the seedlings or saplings are 

 thrown up at distances of 25 feet apart ; care has to 

 be taken afterwards to prevent the forest trees left 

 standing closing in above over the lines and the 

 rubber trees planted on them, which they have always 

 a tendency to do. High ground is always best, and 

 swampy ground where water lodges should be 

 avoided ; but the tree grows very well on alluvial 

 flats on the banks of rivers, even though they be 

 inundated for a few days once or twice a year. 



Uncertainty of yield has always been an unfavour- 

 able feature with the Ficus, and for this reason the 



