CIRCULAR 5 8 5, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



problems involved in producing the crop is not intended to advocate- 

 its commercial culture but is intended to serve as information for 

 persons interested in experimental plantings and tho3e who may be 

 considering the possibilities of establishing this crop in the United 

 States. 



HISTORY AND BOTANY 



Ramie was one of the principal plant fibers used in the Orient for 

 making cloth before the introduction of cotton, which took place in 

 China about 1300 A. D. Since then cotton has" replaced jamie to a 

 large extent. Although ramie seems to have been known in the 

 Orient during earliest recorded times, it apparently was not known 

 in Europe, Africa, or America until much later. No authentic rec- 

 ords have been found of the occurrence or utilization of this fiber 

 in ancient Egypt, although statements mention its use by the early 

 Egyptians, but these were apparently made as the result of confusing 

 ramie with flax. It was first described by Linnaeus, an eminent 

 European botanist, in 1737 from specimens obtained from China, 

 but apparently it was not known as a fiber plant west of central Asia 

 until a century later. 



Boehmeria nivea (L.) Gaud, is the botanical name of the plant 

 known as ramie. Several closely related species produce fiber, but 

 they are not so extensively utilized as B. nivea. It belongs to the 

 nettle family but does not have the stinging hairs common among 

 nettles. However, the shrublike stem and leaves are covered with 

 inconspicuous hairs. The plant grows from perennial roots that pro- 

 duce stems or canes, as they are more commonly called. The canes 

 may reach 8 feet in height and have little or no branching. Thev are 

 small in diameter, usually less than one-half of an inch, and bear 

 round to heart-shaped leaves that are dark green on the upper and 

 white on the under surface. If the green stems are not cut and are 

 allowed to mature, they usually turn brown and produce at the top 

 clusters of male and female flowers, the latter developing very small 

 seeds. 



If the canes are cut during the growing season to obtain the fiber, 

 a new crop of canes begins to grow, and under favorable conditions 

 three or four crops may be obtained in a season, as the growth may 

 be very rapid. 



The name "rhea" is used in India in place of ramie and also was 

 used formerly to designate the fiber produced in India. Although 

 the name ramie is used in several languages to designate the common 

 fiber plant, the crude fiber, which is obtained in China, is known in 

 commerce as China grass. This crude fiber is prepared by hand- 

 cleaning in China and has adhering gums. It is in strands from 3 

 to 5 feet long, greenish to yellow in color, and rather stiff because of 

 the gum present on the fiber. These gums must be removed in 

 manufacturing to obtain the beautiful lustrous fiber that has the 

 appearance of silk. 



WHERE CULTIVATED 



China grass has been exported from China and Japan for many 

 years, and these countries were the only source of supply until about 

 1938 when a small supply of fiber from acreage set out in the Philip- 



