DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 327 



Wharariki (New Zea.). Phorrnium tenax. 



Wheat straw (see Tritwum). 



White cotton tree, of India. Eriodendron anfractuosum. 



White melilot. Melilotus alba. 



White mulberry. Morns alba. 



White silk cotton tree. Cochlospermum gossypium. 



White sweet clover. Melilotus alba. 



Wicopy (U. S.). Direct, palustris. 



Wikstroemia canescens. Ganpi, of Japan. 



Exogen. Thymelwacece. 



This genus is distributed over the warmer parts of Asia, Australia, and the Pacific 

 islands, some of them being shrubs and others trees. The genus is related to Daphne. 

 W. canescens is employed to a commercial extent in Japan for paper making. 



Bast Fiber. — Beautiful examples of the raw and prepared bark, and a large series 

 of samples of paper made from it, were received from the Japanese exhibit, W. C. 

 E., 1893. 



This plant is very rarely cultivated, the bark being gathered chiefly from wild 

 growth. Soil fit for the plants is clay, of red or yellow color, in an exposed situa- 

 tion, such as mountain or hillside facing south. Seed is sown at the end of March 

 or beginning of April and covered slightly with earth. After germination weeding 

 should be performed, manuring with some liquid manure and drawing the earth 

 around the plant. In the dry summer of the first year litter from horse or cow 

 stables is spread around the plants and watering is repeated as required. In the 

 succeeding years hoeing and weeding are done during the summer, weeds being col- 

 lected around the plant and allowed to decay there. Harvesting time varies, accord- 

 ing to circumstances, from the third to the seventh year from the time of sowing. 

 It is harvested by pulling instead of cutting, and new shoots come up from the old 

 roots left in the ground ; moreover, seed dropped germinates naturally, and plants 

 do not need to be transplanted again. The product from 1 acre of land is estimated 

 at about 500 or at most 700 kilograms of the raw bark. The bark is at once stripped 

 on the farm, for if the stems become dry the fibers are difficult to get out, and 

 scraping the coarse outer bark should be done while the stems contain some moisture. 

 In performing the latter operation, the raw bark is steeped in water and scraped 

 carefully with a knife, and then Avashed thoroughly with water to free it from 

 adhering matters, and dried perfectly by hanging on bamboo poles. (Cat. Agl. Prod- 

 ucts of Japan, W. C. E., 1893.) 



Wikstroemia viridiflora. 



Native Names. — The Alia of Hawaii ; Ovao of the Tahitians ; Mail of the Yitians ; 

 the Sinn mataivi of the Fiji Islanders. 



A treelike shrub, 2 to 4 feet, found in the valleys of all the Hawaiian grouj), and 

 also in the Fiji, Society, and Viti islands, eastern Australia. 



Bast Fiber. — Derived frcm the bark. The bark is extremely tough, but is easily 

 separated. The fiber obtained is used for making rough native cordage, nets, fish 

 lines, etc. Hillebrand does not mention the species economically, but the U. S. Nat. 

 Mus. contains specimens of rope and twine prepared by the Hawaiians from its 

 bark under the name W. foetida. (Rept. Nat. Mus., 1890.) 



Wild cotton of Natal. Ipomcea gerrardi (according to Bernardin). 



Wild hemp. Mdoutiapuya. 



