474 



The Supplement to the Tropical Agricultm tst 



SISAL FIBRE TAKES FIRST PLACE. 



A very large and important group are the 

 agave fibres, wrongly called aloes. Every species 

 of agave or Century plant contains fibre, but we 

 may regard some twelve species as yielding 

 commercial fibre. Foremost is, of course, the 

 Sisal hemp, A. rigida var. Sisalana. It is a 

 native of Yucatan and was first introduced to 

 Europe in 1879. The fibre is far superior to any 

 of the hemps. Cordage made from Sisal is much 

 more durable, lighter, and much more pliable 

 than those of hemp. It requires no tarring, and 

 as it stands the alternations of dryness and 

 moisture with little injury it is now largely used 

 in naval cordage. Tarring considerably injures 

 ropes, and on that account Sisal, which requires 

 no tarring, is not only much stronger (some say 

 four times), but has also a much 'onger life than 

 other hemps. Sisal is of comparatively easy 

 culture ; it requires but little attention once it is 

 established, but not having any marginal spines 

 or teeth, it should be protected from cattle when 

 young. The cultivation of Sisal has now spread 

 all over the tropics, and samples from British 

 East Africa h tsfly fetched £35 per ton. We 

 have a larjje number of p'ants that are poling, 

 and I am sorry to see that so little is taken up 

 in the State. While I send some 50,000 bulbils 

 annually upcountry, it pays the Garden, but 

 does not help the State. I should strongly ad- 

 vise takiug up Sisal cultivation. 



MAURITIUS AND MANILA HEMPS. 



Similar to Sisal is the Mauritius hemps 

 Fourcroya Gigantea. Originally introduced to 

 the Mauritius from South America, it is now a 

 valuable industry in the Island. It has a better 

 lustre and firmness and is used for more orna- 

 mental cordage than Sisal, but is not nearly as 

 strong. On the other hand, it is even more easy 

 of cultivation. Another fibre allied to the class 

 is the Bowstring hemp, Sanseveria. There are 

 some four or five species in cultivation, and its 

 fibre has been valued at £30 per ton. Cultiva- 

 tion is comparatively easy and yet one does not 

 often see it commercially grown. No doubt it 

 has a serious competitor in the Sisal and Mauri- 

 tius hemps. Manila hemp will be familiar to 

 you all, as much is being imported and used 

 here. It is furnished by a plantain tree. Musa 

 textilis, and, as its name implies, comes from 

 the Philippines, Manila hemp is still the most 

 used of white cordage fibres and rules the prices, 

 as much as £50 being paid. We have now a good 

 number growing in the Lai Bagh, and as soon 

 as I can find suitable spots in the districts I 

 hope to send it out. In the machine shed you 

 will be able to see a hand machine such as is 

 used in the Philippine Islands for extracting the 

 fibre. It is used here for extracting fibre from 

 the common plantain tree. This fibre, though 

 not by any means comparable with Manila 

 hemp, has its uses, and I should strongly advise 

 growers of plantains to invest in a machine of 

 this type and extract the fibre from the stems, 

 instead of throwing them away. These have 

 so far all been fibres derived from the Mono- 

 cotyledons. 



RAMIE OR RHEA. 



To take a few of the other section. Ramie or 

 Rhea: Boehmeria nivea (a plant of the nettle 



family). There are two forms of the plant yield- 

 ing this fibre. The one furnishing the true China 

 grass has leaves with a v\hite surface beneath. 

 This form grows largely in Assam and is essent- 

 ially a temperate plant. The other form B. nivea 

 var tenacissina, is a tropical plant and furnishes 

 the Ramie fibre proper. It will be evident from 

 the terms temperate and tropical that the first 

 will not do in the temperatures where the true 

 Ramie will do, and it is possible that in many 

 places the failure of the Ramie is largely, if not 

 solely, due to the fact that the two have got 

 mixed up. Even in commercial circles Ramie 

 has been generally mixed up with China grass, 

 and it has led to disputes, so that it is diffi- 

 cult to say which is the better in quality. 

 However, Indian Ramie has generally been 

 considered inferior. This and the difficulties 

 in extracting the fibre and freeing it from resi- 

 nous admixtures caused its cultivation in India 

 to decline. Subsequently, however, better 

 machines were invented, and with the advent of 

 the incandescent mantle came an increased 

 demand for Ramie, so that as much as £50 and 

 £60 has been paid or offered per ton. Ramie is 

 also largely used in the manufacture of electricaj 

 goods, but there is now a new paper patented in 

 Italy, whicr, it is said, will supplant Ramie 

 (so far as;theso industries are concerned at least). 

 On the other hand, there is increased demand 

 for it in the manufacture of underwear in the 

 northern countries of Europe, and now that we 

 are likely to make our holiday trips by aero- 

 plane to the North Pole, instead of to Ootaca- 

 rrand this, demand is bound to increase. 

 P-xmie requires some cultivation, but it is worth 

 taking up. 



THE MADAR PLANT. 



Another fibre I must mention here, which is 

 also largely used for incandescent mantles, and 

 that is the Madar (Calotrovis gigantea). It is 

 growing as a weed throughout India and has, to 

 my knowledge, so far not been in cultivation. 

 Its seed-hair as well as the fibre from its stem 

 are very silky and I presume are largely used as 

 admixture with silk. 



A NEW FIBRE YIELDING PLANT. 



The latest thing in fibres is a plant closely 

 related to this Catotropis, and as this is likely 

 to prove a great success I have put it under 

 extensive cultivation with a view of getting 

 plenty of seed for distribution. There is hardly 

 any literature on this fibre yet, but to describe 

 it I will just read to you an extract of what the 

 discoverer says (in the Gardeners' Chronicle, I 

 think, it was) — Asclepias setnilunata by Chas. A 

 White, f.r.h.s., etc., " When the South African 

 war broke out, I got the war fever, and pro- 

 ceeding to Africa, remained there, having tra- 

 velled from the Cape to the Zambesi, Portu- 

 guese Africa, and then to the Equator and Congo. 

 In all these countries this particular plant was 

 seen in isolated parts, but not cultivated. No- 

 body knew of its value ; only that the silky 

 cotton could be used like kapok for stuffing 

 furniture, and would not pay to export. This 

 is mere'y mentioned to show that it can adapt 

 itself to various climates, although indigenous 

 to the Congo, Uganda and Abyssinia. While 

 at Uganda, planting rubber at the head of the 



