﻿20 BULLETIN 9, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



sive scale. In 1896, for example, 494,873 Acacia decurrens were set 

 out in one of the Crown forests. At another place 10£ acres were 

 sown broadcast with this species, and on one-half acre seed was 

 drilled in. 



Tanbark acacias have been planted more or less extensively, espe- 

 cially since the war in the Transvaal. The assistant conservator of 

 the Transvaal forests published a full report on acacia culture in the 

 Transvaal Agricultural Journal for January, 1910. In this he states 

 that after extensive trials Acacia decurrens (varieties normalis and 

 mollis or moUissima and Acacia cycnantha) are found to be the best 

 sort, with the decurrens type in the lead. Photographic illustrations 

 in the report show dense, mature wattle plantations and also the pro- 

 cesses of stripping and preparing the products for market. He states 

 that wattles can be grown anywhere in the Transvaal, but most suc- 

 cessfully at elevations of from 3,000 to 5,000 feet on the high plateaus, 

 with a preference for eastern slopes. The most suitable soil is a light 

 red or chocolate well-drained loam. The annual rainfall is from 30 

 to 40 inches and there are no extreme frosts. Acacia culture is spoken 

 of as a most promising industry. 



Probably the most suggestive and interesting chapter in the history 

 of commercial planting of acacias is furnished by the rise of the wattle 

 industry in Natal during the past 30 years. The yield from culti- 

 vated trees surpasses that which has been obtained from natural 

 growth, the two leading forms of Acacia decurrens being the most val- 

 uable kinds, with mollis as the hardier variety. In 1886 the acacia 

 tanbark export was valued at $55. By 1902 the exports had risen 

 to $370,000 worth, and this does not include any report of material 

 used for local consumption. Several companies planted 3,000 acres 

 and some are adding at the rate of a thousand acres a year. It is 

 claimed for the industry that it yields a high rate of interest without 

 high-priced management and utilizes soils unsuited to general cultiva- 

 tion. In 1906 Natal had more than 30,000 acres in acacia plantations 

 and at the present time this area is more than doubled. Mr. David 

 G. Fairchild, in charge of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, 

 United States Department of Agriculture, states that the black wattle 

 most generally planted has been Acacia decurrens moUissima} He 

 notes that a few years ago wattle bark reached the price of $82.79 a 

 ton and this high price greatly stimulated planting. What is known 

 as the Townhill plantation, 2,400 acres, situated 2,700 feet above sea 

 level, was begun in 1892. The topography was rolling hills and the 

 soil a light red loam with sand, gravel, and clay. The tract was 



i Miscellaneous Papers, Bulletin 51, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture. 



