THE ASSAM RUBBER TREE 229 



taken iii conjunction with some other industry. In Java, 

 however, large plantations of Ficus elastica have been 

 established by the Forest Department, and are stated 

 to have given satisfactory results, although the returns 

 are much inferior to those from Para trees. 



Cultivation. — Ficus elastica can be easily propagated 

 from seeds or cuttings, or by layering. The plants are, 

 however, usually raised from seed, which should be sown 

 as soon as possible after collection. The seed is very 

 small and is best sown in shallow boxes of rich soil which 

 are covered with sheets of glass. Good, fresh seed will 

 germinate in from five to fourteen days, and as soon as 

 the seedlmgs are a few inches high they should be trans- 

 ferred to a well-drained nursery bed, being planted 12 to 

 18 in. apart. The plants may require to be protected 

 from the sun for a short time, but shade should be dis- 

 pensed with as soon as possible. When 5 ft. high the 

 seedlings may be planted out, the roots being first pruned. 

 In Assam it has been found difficult to protect the seed- 

 lings from wild animals if they are planted out at an 

 early stage, and the plan has been adopted of transferring 

 the young plants to a well-fenced nursery in the forest, 

 where they remain until they are 10 to 12 ft. high and 

 can be put out without risk. 



The trees are planted in lines cut in the forest, or upon 

 completely cleared land. In Assam lines 20 ft. wide 

 are cleared at distances of 66 ft., and the trees are 

 planted 66 ft. apart in the rows. Formerly the lines were 

 cut east and west, but latterly they have been made north 

 and south in order to shade the plants from the afternoon 

 sun. On cleared land the trees are planted from 35 to 

 50 ft. apart. 



Ficus elastica is a siu:face feeder, and it is customary in 

 Assam to plant the trees on prepared momids of soil 

 which are usually made 4 ft. high, 10 ft. in diameter at 

 the base, and 4 ft. at the top. After the young trees are 

 planted, the mounds are covered with grass in order to 

 prevent the roots from being scorched. 



Attempts to grow the trees as epiphytes, by depositing 

 seed on other trees in imitation of the natural method 

 of propagation, have not been successful m Assam. 



Rate of Growth. — The size attained by cultivated Ficus 

 elastica trees is shown by the following table giving the 



