•115 
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 ’and 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. 
Passiftora fcetida (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. 
