20 RUBBER IN SOUTHERN NIGERIA 



and 1,388,009 lb. iii 1909. The dimmiition in 1907 

 was stated to be due to the prohibition of tappmg in 

 some of the principal rubber districts, whilst the low 

 price of rubber in 1908 no doubt adversely affected the 

 production in that year. Dvu4ng 1910 the exports 

 increased to 2,634,023 lb., nearly double those of the 

 previous year, whilst in 1911 and 1912 they were 2,104,286 

 lb. and 1,579,200 lb. respectively. 



It must be remembered that the exports of rubber 

 from Southern Nigeria include the amount obtained in 

 Northern Nigeria, which forms a considerable percentage 

 of the total (see p. 12). 



The indigenous rubber-yielding plants of Southern 

 Nigeria are Funtumia elastica and species of Landolphia, 

 Clitandra, and Carpodinus vines. 



The Funtumia rubber is usually prepared in the form 

 of " lump " by methods similar to those employed in 

 the Gold Coast, which have been already described, and 

 the product suffers from the same defects. 



Persistent efforts are bemg made by the Forestry 

 Department to induce the natives to adopt improved 

 methods of tapping the trees, to abandon the practice 

 of mixmg inferior latices with that of Funtumia elastica, 

 and to prepare the unadulterated rubber in biscuit form. 



The most important of the rubber-yielding vines 

 indigenous to Southern Nigeria are Landol'phia owariensis 

 and Clitandra elastica, Che v., both of which furnish good 

 rubber, which is usually collected in the form of balls. 

 Landolphia Thomjjsonii and two species of Carpodinus, 

 C. hirsuta, Hua, and C. fulva, Pierre, also occur and yield 

 the inferior product Imown as " flake rubber." Ficiis 

 Vogelii is found in Lagos, but does not appear to be 

 tapped regularly by the natives. 



The question of rubber cultivation has received con- 

 siderable attention in Southern Nigeria. Government 

 plantations of Funtumia elastica have been established, 

 and the natives have been encouraged to plant these 

 trees in considerable numbers in proximity to their 

 villages. Many of these native plantations are now 

 reaching the producing stage, and the rubber obtamed 

 in the first tapping experiments on a large scale has 

 been sold in London at very good prices. 



Similar action has been taken with the Para tree, 



