20 BULLETIN 9, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
sive scale. In 1896, for example, 494,873 Acacia decurrens were set 
out in one of the Crown forests. At another place 104 acres were 
sown broadcast with this species, and on one-half acre seed was 
drilled in. 
Tanbark acacias have been planted more or less extensively, espe- 
cially since the war in the Transvaal. The assistant conservator of 
the Transvaal forests published a full report on acacia culture in the 
Transvaal Agricultural Journal for January, 1910. In this he states 
that after extensive trials Acacia decurrens (varieties normalis and 
mollis or mollissima and Acacia cycnantha) are found to be the best 
sort, with the decurrens type in the lead. Photographic illustrations 
in the report show dense, mature wattle plantations and also the pro- 
cesses of stripping and preparing the products for market. He states 
that wattles can be grown anywhere in the Transvaal, but most’ suc- 
cessfully at elevations of from 3,000 to 5,000 feet on the high plateaus, 
with a preference for eastern slopes. The most suitable soil is a light 
red or chocolate well-drained loam. The annual rainfall is from 30 
to 40 inches and there are no extreme frosts. Acacia culture is spoken 
of as a most promising industry. 
NATAL. 
Probably the most suggestive and interesting chapter in the history 
of commercial planting of acacias is furnished by the rise of the wattle 
industry in Natal during the past 30 years. The yield from culti- 
vated trees surpasses that which has been obtained from natural 
erowth, the two leading forms of Acacia decurrens being the most val- 
uable kinds, with mollis as the hardier variety. In 1886 the acacia 
tanbark export was valued at $55. By 1902 the exports had risen 
to $370,000 worth, and this does not include any report of material 
used for local consumption. Several companies planted 3,000 acres 
and some are adding at the rate of a thousand acres a year. It is 
claimed for the industry that it yields a high rate of interest without 
high-priced management and utilizes soils unsuited to general cultiva- 
tion. In 1906 Natal had more than 30,000 acres in acacia plantations 
and at the present time this area is more than doubled. Mr. David 
G. Fairchild, in charge of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, 
United States Department of Agriculture, states that the black wattle 
most generally planted has been Acacia decurrens mollissima He 
notes that a few years ago wattle bark reached the price of $82.79 a 
ton and this high price greatly stimulated planting. What is known 
as the Townhill plantation, 2,400 acres, situated 2,700 feet above sea 
level, was begun in 1892. The topography was rolling hills and the 
soil a light red loam with sand, gravel, and clay. The tract was 
1 Miscellaneous Papers, Bulletin 51, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture. 
