647 



Philippine Islands,. Burma, India, Australia, America and 

 Europe (Watt. Agric. Ledger, I.e. p. 12). 



Var. tenacissima. 



Similar in general botanical characters to the type excepting 

 the leaves, in which the white-felted appearance of the under- 

 side is absent." 



Ill, — Blanco, FL Filip. t. 385 (var. candicans) ; Blume, Mus. 



Ledger, No. 15, 



atavum 



1898, t. 2 {B. tenacissima) ; Queensland, Agric. Journ. xviii. 

 1907, t. 6. 



4 



Vernac. names. — Ramie or Rami (Malay, Morris, Watt).— 

 Green-leaved China Grass. 



Native of Malaya. Cultivated in various tropical countries. 

 For all practical purposes the two plants although distinct 



the same, 



different 



may apply to both ; but 



refer more particularly to the tropical plant. Moreover, in 

 Malaya, IVIr. H. N. Ridley found that the wliite-leaved [nivea) 

 plant after 2-3 seasons developed green-leaves {tenacissima). 



In 



from 



1907 it is reported that a " plot planted last year still kept on " 

 at Old Calabar (Rep. Bot. St. Old Calabar, June Quarter; 

 Govt. Gaz. S. Nig. Aug. 28th, 1907). In 1906, 3 lb. of seeds 

 of Boehmeria nivea (Ramie) were purchased from Messrs. 

 Christy & Co. for the Western Province (Col. Rep. Misc. No. 51, 



1908 (for 1906) p. 90) and at Oloke-Meji experiments in the 

 cultivation were reported as being continued and promising 

 good results (Thompson, Govt. Gaz. S. Nig. Dec. 11th, 1907, 

 Suppl.) and that " considerable attention has been devoted to 



this valuable fibre : 



will 



*' next year, native planters are being persuaded to take it up." 

 In 1910 Ramie Roots were offered by the Agricultural Depart- 

 ment at Ibadan at Qd. per 100 (Govt. Gaz. S. Nigeria, Nov. 30th, 

 1910). Samples of fibre grow^n in the gardens have been forvyarded 

 to manufacturers for valuation (WiUiams, I.e. Dec. 11th, 1907, 

 p. 16). A sample (sent by Farquhar, Dec. 24th, 1907) of de- 

 gummed fibre was reported as "of good quality, but not in the 



market, as manufacturers 



degum 



1908, p. 2). Fibre 



(I.e. July loth, 



the native way — beating — at Warri (Copland-Crawford, Ann. 

 Rep. Cent. Prov. S. Nig. Dec. 1910, p. 21). 



In other parts of Africa experiments have been made with 

 indifferent success — Sierra Leone, " grows well during the rainy 

 season, but the long period of dry weather is detrimental to it " 

 (Dudgeon Agric. & For. Prod/W. Afr. p. 31), Nyasaland— 



imsuited 



Africa 



Imp. Inst. 1909, p. 4 



cultural Department has imported a large number of plants 



