415 



years, producing shade over the ground, growing so luxu- 

 riantly as to exclude weeds without forming a thick turf, is 

 leguminous, has no thorns or spikes to interfere with coolies 

 working, has no leaves, fruit, or flower which will attract 

 vermin or other animals. 



None of the plants at present in use, or being tried in 

 the experimental plots of the Agricultural Department, 

 fulfil absolutely all these requirements, and it is probable 

 that a plant will yet be found better than any at present 

 tried. 



The conditions on different estates in Malaya do not 

 vary very greatly, but the differences are sufficient to make 

 some places specially favourable to one cover plant and 

 other places to other plants. 



In different districts on sloping and flat land with 

 different soils and some estates it is found that in some 

 passion flower will thrive and rapidly cover the land where 

 the sensitive plant of crotalaria do not grow vigorously. 

 On other places the crotalaria or sensitive plant may do 

 much better than passion flower. 



It is easy to decide as to the most suitable plant by 

 planting one or two trial plots. The following plants all 

 have advantages in different ways, and if any one of them 

 can be made to entirely cover the ground in a short time, 

 say four or five months, its acquisition will be a great gain 

 to the estate in improving the growth of the rubber and in 

 reducing the wages bill. 



Abrus precatorius, a native of India, where it is used 

 for cover, is leguminous with a free creeping habit ; it grows 

 about one foot above the ground and the branches from one 

 plant will spread to 15 or 20 feet from the main stem. The 

 pods contain 6 or 8 seeds. The seeds are bright vermillion, 

 about the size of buckshot, with a small black mark at one 

 end; they are used as the karat or standard weight for 

 precious stones and metal in India. 



Pdss'iflora foetida (passion flower creeper), a creeping 

 non-leguminous plant having purple white flowers and yel- 

 low fruits about the size of a walnut, grows very freely on 

 nearly all soils and smothers many other plants of a less 

 vigorous habit. This creeper never gets more than about 

 nine inches to a foot high, and very quickly covers the 

 ground. It has to be kept from twining round young rub- 

 ber plants, but as it is very soft this can be done at extreme- 

 ly small cost. It is a native plant and common all over the 

 Peninsula. 



