DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 



323 



strong fiber, used by Indians to make bowstrings, twine, rope, etc. (Represented in 

 the Bot. Mas. Harv. Univ. by one sample of very good fiber.) U. breweri probably 

 yields tbe same kind of fiber. (Dr. V. Harare!.) 



The Treasury of Botany mentions many species of Urtica tbat have been prized 

 for their fiber, in different countries, but in the modern nomenclature these have 

 been referred to ether genera, such as Boehmeria, Girardinia, Debregeasia, Laportea, 

 Maoutia, Pilea, Pouzolzia, Touchardia, Villebrunea, TJrera, and others, which see. 

 The principal species still retained in the genus are described below. 



Urtica dioica. The Common Stinging Nettle of Europe. 



Common NAMES. — The stinging or great nettle. In India it has been given such 

 names as Bichu, Chicru, etc., meaning the scorpion or stinger. 



Fig. 102.— Plant of TJrera tenax. 



Common in the United States in waste places, Nova Scotia to Ontario and Minne- 

 sota; southward to South Carolina and Missouri. Introduced from Europe where it 

 is a common species. Found also in India, in the Himalayas, at altitudes of 8,000 to 

 12,000 feet. 



Bast Fiber. — Has not been reported as a fiber plant in the United States, but is said 

 to have been prepared in Germany, the "fiber made to become as fine as silk." Is also 

 used in Europe for fish lines and, it is claimed, has been manufactured into fabrics. 

 Savorgnan states that it is known as Swedish hemp, and that the plant is cultivated 

 in Sweden, and its fiber used for cordage and cloth. In India the "stems yield a 

 well-known fiber, which is said to rival in tenacity the best hemp." (George Watt.) 



