82 CROPS 



Number of seeds in 1 lb.— 18,500. 

 Yield-600 to 1,000 lb. dry fibre. 

 Percentage of fibre to dry stalks— 16 to 17. 

 Percentage of fibre to green stalks— 4. 



SUNNHEMP. 



( Crotolaria juncea-) 



Tamil Sanappu or Shanal. 



Telugu ... Janumu. 



Malayalam .. "Wuckoo. 



Kanarese Sonabu. 



Oriya Soin. 



Tulu Talambu. 



Area in Madras— 216,400 acres. 



The crop is found very extensively as a mixture through- 

 out the uplands of Kistna and Guntur and pure as a second 

 crop after paddy in the deltas. It is grown as a pure 

 crop in parts of Godavari, Tinnevelly and Chingleput. It* 

 use as a green manure crop is rapidly extending, and has 

 caused a heavy demand for seed. The fibre is used for 

 making gunny bags, tails of mhote buckets, harness of pack 

 bullocks, etc. Fishing nets in coastal tracts are exclusively 

 made of this. | 



Seed-rate— 40 to 60 lb. up to 100 to 150 lb. in places. 



Volume weight— 1 M.M. weighs 3*12 lb. 



Weight of seed— 1,000 seeds weigh 46*4 grammes. 



Number of seeds in 1 lb.— 9,800. 



Yield— 500 to 800 lb. of fibre ; grown as a seed crop 400 

 to 600 lb. of seed may be expected. 



Percentage of fibre to dry stem— 8*2 per cent. 



AGAVE. 



{Agave vera Cruz : Agave sisalana.) 



Tamil ... Anaikkattazhai, 



Kattazhai. 



Telugu Kalabanda. 



Malayalam ... . ... Wakkuchan. 



The American or Railway aloe (misnamed) is commonly 

 seen in all parts of the Presidency as a hedge plant. It is 

 generally propagated by means of plantlets which arise as 

 suckers on the roots of the older plant, or by bulbils. 



Attempts have been made to grow the sisal agave on a large 

 scale but without much success. It can only pay when rents 



