Gums, Resins, 



204 



[March 1908. 



INDIA-RUBBER CULTIVATION 

 IN BRAZIL. 



(From Der 1'ropenpflanzer, Dec, 1907.) 



Other South American States such as 

 Equador, Bolivia and Colombia began 

 planting rubber several years ago, and 

 Equador, for example, was able to ex- 

 port as much as 520 tons of plantation 

 rubber in 1904. In Brazil, however, it is 

 only quite recently that any attempt 

 has been made to make up for the 

 diminishing supply of wild rubber by 

 planting Manihot. No cultivation on a 

 large scale exists at present, and such is 

 not to be expected for some time on 

 account of the unfavourable agricultural 

 conditions. 



Still, although labour and the neces- 

 sary means of cultivation are wanting 

 in the greater part of the country, a 

 few favoured regions do not fall under 

 this category, and we observe with 

 pleasure that German enterprise has 

 recently established itself by the Options- 

 vertrag of large stretches of country, 

 for the purpose of carrying on Rubber 

 cultivation on a large scale. We may 



refer specially to a private estate of over 

 500,000 ha., lying between the towns of 

 Razo, Soure and Tucano, the purchase of 

 which by the proposed Bahia India- 

 rubber Company is under consideration. 



As Dr. Ule, the expert to the syndi- 

 cate (?) of this Company, can certify, this 

 region is not only admirably adapted for 

 the cultivation of rubber, but contains 

 already a great wealth of fully grown 

 wild rubber trees. Dr. Ule estimates 

 the Mangabeira trees standing on only 

 four out of the fifteen Facendas at 500,000 

 at least, a circumstance not to be over 

 looked, as it will enable the concern to 

 pay its way even in the first year of its 

 existence before the planted trees are in 

 a condition to be tapped. 



The best prospects for cultivation are 

 shown by two species of Manihot newly 

 discovered by Dr. Ule. Manihot piauhy- 

 ensis a n. sp. and M. Leptaphylla n. sp. 

 which are perhaps destined to lead the 

 cultivation of rubber into new and 

 wider channels in our own Colonies as 

 well— especially in East Africa. 



* See p. 199. 



