6 



k< At present we have two kinds of rubber trees growing here, 

 the Manihot Glaziovii or common Ceara Manicoba, and the other 

 Manihot .Tequie (Manihot dichotoma) which is a native of the State 

 of Balm." In a subsequent letter (dated June 30th, 1906) Mr. Davy 

 writes : — " as regards the Jequie variety of Manihots, this plant orig- 

 inates in the Municipality of Jequie, State of Bahia, and is at present 

 looked upon as a better latex producer than the Manihot Glaziovii or 

 Ceara." 



The Kew Bulletin goes on to state that in October, 1906, Mr. J. 

 P. Rowe (since deceased) of Messrs. Anderson and Howe, Bahia, 

 wrote: — " I have much pleasure in sending you particulars of the 

 different varieties of Manicoba Rubber trees which are found in great- 

 numbers in the district of Jequie. 



"According to my agent in this district, who has studied the 

 subject there for three years, there are seven varieties which he has 

 examined. In my opinion, however, there are more. 



" Of the seven varieties my agent has selected for cultivation and 

 is planting largely two which vary but very slightly, both being of 

 most vigorous growth, developing very quickly, flowering and seeding at 

 an early age, with bark very smooth, soft, and easy to tap. 



" Of one (a) called by the natives " Manicoba bianco " (white 

 Manicoba) the leaves (three lobed) are pale green on the under surface 

 with ribs of greenish white, the contrast of the leaf with the ribs being 

 sufficiently well marked to enable the variety to be identified at a 



glance by the natives, the latex is pure white, flows freely, 



and coagulates immediately without the use of any agent. 



" The seeds you have sown at Kew ought to be all of this variety. 



" Of the other (b) the ribs of the leaves on the under side are of a 

 purplish colour, the leaf itself being of a darker here than the ' white ' 

 Manicoba. This variety is called by the natives ' Manicoba rouxa ' 

 (purple). It is as vigorous in growth as the ' white ' variety and the 

 latex is equally white and flows and coagulates as readily. 



" Of the {a) and (b) varieties we have cultivated trees the trunks of 

 which at 14 months old were 4 inches in diameter at 3 feet from the 

 ground, and 10 feet high. Some of these young trees were flowering 

 and seeding at this age. 



" Our plantations are mostly formed of young seedlings taken 

 from the forests, which contain vast numbers. They are transplanted 

 1,000 to the acre, and do not appear to be too crowded. The trans- 

 plantation causes no apparent set-back, and the close planting has a 

 good effect in keeping down the scrub and undergrowth. At three 

 years old cultivated trees of the first mentioned varieties (a, and (b) 

 have yielded 7 ounces of dry rubber on the average." 



A wardian case of 100 plants raised from seeds sent by Mr. Rowe 

 was received at the Botanic Gardens, Singapore, from Kew Gardens in 

 July 1907. These plants will be experimented with in order to ascer- 

 tain if the species is suitable for planting on a large scale in Malaya. 



A few of the plants have been sent to Christmas Island where 

 Ceara flourishes so well, see (Bulletin VII No. 12). 



A further supply of "Manicoba seeds" was received from Mr. H. 

 Stevenson, H. B. M.'s Acting Consul at Bahia, and reached Kew in 

 March, 1907. 



