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THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [May 2, 1904. 
SOIL CONDITIONS. 
The most important feature of a soil snitable for 
maguey is that itshxUbe well drained. The plant 
is very sensitive to water at the roots, and without 
good drainage will make but a poor growth or will 
die outright. Maguey will grow well either on a 
heavy, or a light, soil and under very adverse 
conditions, but the impression that it will do well 
in any soil is a mistaken ono. Plantings are fome- 
times made close to the seashore in dry sand. Under 
these conditions even this hardy plant cinnot be 
expected to thrive. Undulating land or hilly slopes 
are the most suitable locations, as in such places 
there is usually excellent drainage. On the plant- 
ations in the Ilocos Provinces, the lowl»nd8 are used 
for rice and corn, the small hills, trgtther with any 
sandy or stony pieces of groncdj being reserved for 
maguey. The planters in these provinces will always 
state that ''Only cheap land should be devoted to 
maguey." ^Yhile this may be true wilh the present 
slow and expensive method of fibre extraction, with 
the introduction of fibre-extractiog machinery, it is 
very probable that much of the land now used for 
other crops, which are considered of greater value, 
might well be planted to maguey. This plant will 
grow and yield a certain smount of fibre upon almost 
any soil and with no care ; under more favouiable con- 
ditions, however, the yield of fibre may be greatly in- 
creased. 
ESTABLISHING A PLANTATION, 
The practical question which faces any prospective 
planter of maguey is '■ Where, and under what con- 
ditions, can a maguey plantation be established in 
the Philippine Islands ? " Suitable climatic and soil 
conditions can be found in almost any province in 
the Islands. If the fibre is to be extracted by water 
retting, the location must be near the month of some 
river whsre the tide water can be utilized. This 
method cannot be recommended. It is slow and 
expensive, and requires the use of a great amount of 
labor. If fibre-extracting machines are to be used, 
the location can be made at any point where there 
is a sufficient amount of well-diained laud, heavy 
clays and very light sands being avoided if possible. 
Due consideration should also be given to the facilities 
for transportation, the amount of available labor, 
and a good water supply at some central point. 
The general metbods of plantation management, 
as described in the bulletin entitled " The cultivation 
of sisal in Hawaii," may be advantageously followed 
in these Islands, Owing to the difficulties and falow- 
nese cf transportation, the first sttp to tuke, after 
having secured the land for the plantation, should 
be to order the suckers for planting. These can 
usually be bought in scffici.nt quantities from the 
maguey planters either of Ilccos Norte or Ilocos Sur, 
and cost from $3 to S6, local currency, per 1,000, 
The plantation should then be mapped out, the 
land cleared, and the sites selected for buildings 
and a nursery, 
PLANTING. 
The maguey produces both seed and suckers, the 
former, however, only in small qMantitiee. In starting 
a new plantation, seed is seldom or never used. When 
the maguey plant reaches maturity suckers grow out 
from the axils of the lower leaves and small bulbs 
are borne upon the flower stalk or " pole." Either 
these suckers or the bulbs may be used for the 
new plantition. If it is possible to secure well- 
developed suckerF, these may be planted at cnce in 
the field. When bulbs or pole plants are used, they 
should be first set in the nursery in rows one foot apart; 
and six inches in the row. In about a year these 
nursery plants will be rtady for ti'an? pl»nting. 
The system cf planting followed in llie Philippines 
differs materially from that of Mexico and Hawaii, 
In the latter countries ihe plants are set from 6 to 
8 feet apart, while in these Islai ds they are rsually 
given but 3 or 4 feet. The reason for this close 
planting is said to be that, if given a greater distance, 
the plants will be torn and lacerated during the 
heavy " baguics" or windstorms. This matter is one 
to be largely determined by local conditions, the 
nature of the soil, the climate, and the frequency of 
heavy winds. In a locality subject to typhoons, close 
planting may be neeesssary ; otherwise, the number 
of plants should not exceed 800 to 1,C00 to the acre. 
The time for planting is during the rainy season, 
from June to November. 
CULTIVATION. 
In the nursery the plants should be kept well cul- 
tivated. In the field no cultivation is necessaiy ex- 
cept to keep down the grass and weeds. Owing to 
the sharp teeth and spices which are borne on the 
leaves, the use of animals for cultivating soon becomes 
impossible. When the plants are fully developed, even 
hand cultivation becomes impracticable. Great care 
should be taken when doing any cultivating not to 
injure the leaves, as such injury will lower the 
quality of the fibre. 
INS'CTS AND DISEASES. 
The hardiness of the maguey plant with regard to 
soil and climatic conditions seems to be equally true 
as legards insect enemies and fungous diseases. 
The sisal of the Bahamas was at one time attacked 
by a fungus on the leaves, and a mealy bug has been 
reported as having done some damage. In these 
Islands, however, the plant does not appear to be 
troubled either by insects or diseases . It is stated 
that the only enemy of the maguey, in the Philip- 
pines Islands, is the typhoon, 
EXTBACTION OF THE FIBRE, 
The first crop of leaves can be cut in about three 
years from the time of planting. It is customary 
to harvest once a year during the dry season, from 
January to May. Each plant should then bear from 
15 to 20 leaves The fibre-extraction process should 
commence within twenty-four hours after cutting, 
as otherwise the fibre will be stained at the end. 
There are several different methods used in the 
Philippine Islands for the extraction of the fibre : 
1, The abaca stripping process, 
2 The srlit-bamboo stripping process. 
3, The pina scraping process. 
4. The macearation and retting process. 
The methods of extracting, by which the fibre is 
separated from the pnip without the use of water for 
retting, give a product of very superior quality. 
These methods, however, are slow and laborious 
and are not in any general use. 
THE BETTING PROCESS, 
The retting process has for its object the dissolu- 
tion of the gummy, resinous substance which enve- 
lopes the filaments. This substance, being very ad- 
hesive, prevents the free separation of the fibres. It 
the leaf is not sufficiently retted, the fibres will still 
adhere to each other ; if the process is carried too 
far, the product is seriously injured or rendered 
utterly worthless. 
Two distinct methods of retting are in use. In 
the former the leaves are cut, crushed, or beaten, 
gathered in bundles, and allowed to ferment. When 
fermentation has ceased, the bundles are placed in 
water until the pulpy material has further deteriorated. 
It this process is properly carried out, the leaves 
may be removed from the water after two days of 
retting. By this process one-third or more of the 
product is converted into tow. By the latter method 
after the leaves are cut and the thorns removed, 
they are split into four or five pieces and made into 
bundles, these bundles being immediately placed in 
water ferreting. It is advisable to have the bundles 
small and of uniform size. The coarser leaves should 
be separated from the more tender ones, as the latter 
ferment more quickly. 
