May 1*. 1887. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
379 
Insects never trouble young plants-if grown in clean places and the i 
method of culture detailed is carried out. properly. They are, however, 
subject to mealy bug and scale. The mealy hug generally appears in 
the small leaves when growth is completed, and also in the (lower stems. 
These should lie picked out with the hand and destroyed. Scale infests 
the plants if they become checked, hut as they ap[>car should he re¬ 
moved with a sponge and a solution of Fir tree oil and water.— 
Wm. Bardxey. : 
THE SANSEYIERIAS—BOWSTRING HEMP. 
The May number of the “ Kew Bulletin ” gives interesting particu¬ 
lars concerning the species of Sansevieria and their uses, several of the 
plants being well known in gardens as curiosities, and are also employed 
in snb-tropical gardens. Seven -well marked species are named and de¬ 
scribed, grouped as follows:—1, Leaves comparatively thin and flat: 
S. guineensis, S. Itmgiflora, S. Kirkii, and S. thyrsiflora. 2, Leaves 
semicircular in transverse section at the middle, deeply hollowed down 
the face : 8. r.eylanica. And 3, Leaves club-shaped, more like stems 
than proper leaves : S. cylindrica and S. sulcata. The following parti¬ 
culars are given concerning S. guineensis, one of the two oldest and 
best known species. It was first figured and described, long before the 
days of Linnaeus, i;i the .year 1701, by Cpmmelinus in his “ Horti Medici 
Amstclodamensis Rariorum Plantar u in Descriptio ” (tab. 20), under the 
name of “ Aloe guineensis radice gcniculata foliis ex viridi et atro undu- 
latim Tariegatis.” Linnaeus classified it under the genus Aletris, and so 
did Jacquin, who figured and carefully described it in 1770 in his 
“ Hortus Vindobonensis,” vol. i., p. (17, t. 84. It has hornjp erect, lanceo¬ 
late leaves, 3 or 4 feet long, 3 inches broad at the middle, narrowed 
gradually to an acute apex, not distinctly bordered with red, copiously 
mottled on both surfaces with broad irregular bands of white. The 
flowers are in a lax, simple spike, which "rises to the same height as the 
leaves, in clusters of three to six, with a whitish perianth about 2 inches 
long, ot which the six segments are about as long as the cylindrical 
tube. It is a native of Guinea, from which we have wild specimens 
gathered by Barter and others. We have it also from Central Africa, 
collected by Schweinfurth and Grant, and Abyssinia by Beccari, and 
what is most likely the same from the Zambesi country, gathered by 
Sir John Kirk in 1860, the latter accompanied by a sketch made on the 
spot when he was botanist to the Livingstone expedition. 
On the Zambesi 8. guineensis appears to be called “ Konje,” and Sir 
John Kirk speaks of it as “yielding a valuable fibre similar to Manila 
Hemp.” It is described as (‘ growing in great abundance in many places, 
keeping to the shade of woods.” 
Mi-. Horne, Director of the Royal Botanic Garden, ramplemousses, 
mentions that— 
“ This plant thrives well in Mauritius in damp marshy places in the 
lowlands. I have no doubt that it would thrive well in the wet up¬ 
lands.” 
It is widely distributed in the West Indies, and has been grown 
experimentally for the sake of its^fibre at St. Thomas, Jamaica, and 
Trinidad.- -- 
As regards cultural treatment,- the following information is taken 
from notes prepared by the late Director of the Botanical Department, 
Jamaica, on this and 8. zeylanica :— 
“ In the first instance plants may be put out at 3 feet by 3 feet, 
which, allowing for roads and paths, would give about 3000 to the acre. 
If the soil is kept well broken and moist these plants, by the extension 
of root suckers, will spread in all directions, so that ultimately the whole 
ground, with the exception of certain paths, which should be kept per¬ 
manently open, will be covered with plants. As regards the time which 
must elapse between planting out and the first yield of leaves suitable 
for fibre, there would appear to ,be a great difference of opinion. Plants 
which I saw at St. Thomas at three years old were only just ready to be 
cut; and Baron Eggers, who had planted and kept them under close 
observation during the whole of that time, was of opinion that Sanse- 
vieria plants could not he depended upon to yield a crop before three or 
three and a half years. 
“ My own experience coincides with this,-hut necessarily mueh must 
depend upon the nature of the plants when first put out, the character 
of the soil, the amount of moisture received, as-well as on the system 
of cultivation pursued, 
“ From actual trial tests in India, where one-third of an acre was 
cultivated with Sansevieria zeylanica, it appears that full grown leaves 
of 3 to 34 feet long (their actual age is not mentioned) yielded about 
1 lb. of clean fibre for every 40 lbs. of fresh leaves. That is, the weight 
of clean dry fibre was at the rate of 2\ per cent, of the fresh leaves. 
Dr. Roxburgh calculated that one acre would yield 1613 lbs. of clean 
fibre at a gathering, two of which may be reckoned on yearly, ‘ in a 
good soil and a favourable season, after the plants arc of a pro [sir 
age.’ 1 
“ This would be at the rate of 1 \ ton of fibre per acre per annum 
at the end of three or three and a half years (of the gross value 
(at the rate of .4430 per ton) of £45. Whether this return can be 
depended upon for the West Indies on an extensive area I am unable 
to say.” ’ " 
In an experimental trial carried on at Jamaica, 1185 lbs. of green 
leaves of S. guinecusis yielded 29 lbs. 10 ozs. of dry fibre. This was 
cleaned by machine. The reports of brokers were as follows :—(>1) 
“Value, £18 per ton, mixed fibre partly uncleaned;” (A) “Poorly 
tdsaned, a good deal of mixture ip it, not so strong, value about £25 
per ton ( 0 ) ‘.‘No good in the state sent; it has a. lot of bark in it, 
and requires more dressing.; both, ends are clean, but the centre is 
dirty. Price, if dressed propgrly, would he as good, as S. zeylanica—viz., 
£30 per ton.” 
In, September last his Excellency Sir William Robinson, Governor of 
Trinidad, forwarded .to Kew samples of fibre of this species, which he 
stated had .been prepared “ at the convict depot at Chaguanas without 
the aid of machinery of any kind,”. The report of Messrs, hie & Christie- 
on the Trinidad sample was as follows :— 
“In point of cleanness and softness of fibre it seems well prepared-; 
but to compete successfully with Manila Hemp it would require to be 
of abetter colour, anil of,equal if not .superior strength. We value it 
for rope-making purposes at £20 per ton in London. The small piece 
of Manila fibre which we enclose has a value to-day (September 24th, 
1886) of £31 per ton.” 
A few leaves taken from plants grown at Kew were recently passed, 
through Death’s fibre machine, but the result, owing to the smallness qj > 
the quantity and the necessity of adjusting the machine to the size of 
each leaf, was not satisfactory, but It is not'devoid of interest. The 
report of Messrs. -Me" A -Christie on the sample of-fibre -submitted to, 
them was as follows :—“Short and only moderate strength. Value: 
£23 per ton. . We reported on fibre from this plant from Trinidad, 
in September last, when we valued the sample at £20 per ton. The 
difference now is due solely to the advance in the price of Sisal 
Hemp.” . 
Of samples of fibre fef S, guineensis the Kew Museums contain one. 
specimen machine Qleangd.from Jamaica, sent by Mr. D. Morris, 1884, 
with the following no(e Leaves 3> to 4 feet long, broader than 
S. zeylanica, mottled, unarmed, common, and easily propagated.” A. 
specimen from Trinidad, cleaned by hand, forwarded by Governor Sir 
William -Robinson, and valued by Messrs. Ide & Christie at £20 per 
ton. Also a leaf, rope, and fibre from south-east Africa, sent by Mr. 
T. Baines. A specimen of leaf and fibre from Sir John Kirk appears 
under the following label r—“ Maculated Sansevieria, Called ‘ Konje,’ 
near Lupata, i860.” This is probably identical with S. guineensis. 
CHRYSANTHEMUM AUDITS. 
AMOXG the several audits taken of the Chrysanthemums none has 
appeared to me to be more practical and useful than that given by 
“ B. D. K.” in the Journal for the 28th ult.. Mr. Mawley’s was useful in 
a sense, but to take any given show or any given date is not a safe 
criterion to go by, as there are so many of our finest exhibition flowers 
that vary in different seasons. Some varieties that may be generally at 
their best at a particular time one season, may be a week later or earlier 
another season, yet they may be just as useful- to the exhibitor for some 
other show. Especially is this the case with exhibitors at the “ National,” 
who mostly have their own local and other shows to attend later or 
earlier in the season. If we take the two audits under notice there are 
several illustration^ of my remarks. I, will; give, two. First,, Duchess 
of Albany : this variety, according to Mr. Mawley’s list, would.not appear 
to be a show flower at all, it is not mentioned once, yet in “ B. D. K.’s,” 
it has thirteen prizes alone. The second variety, is Belle Paule. Now, 
Mr. Mawle-y tells us this was only shown six times altogether-at the 
National. And why ! Simply because nearly all the early buds that 
would have given blooms for the National or Kingston were literally 
burnt, whereas those who were fortunate in having later buds, escaping 
the few days’ excessive heat, came out grand for the later shows, and we 
find in “ B. D. K.’s ” list that the variety was actually shown in twenty- 
three first prize stands, .thus placing Belle Paule nearer its proper posi¬ 
tion. Another season growers will be more on the alert and protect 
their plants at the critical time. There are not many varieties .that give 
such minute buds as Belle Paule, or the few excessively hot dryys we 
usually have at tho end of August and beginning of September, would 
play more havoc among the buds than it did with this variety last year. 
If the plants are removed to a shady position, or paper caps put over the 
buds during the hottest t art of the day till the danger is over, we shall 
have plenty of Belle I’aules another season. 
Looking.down the list, of forty-eight Japanese varieties given, by Mr. 
Molyneux in his hook, I think there is room for much improvements 
Of course, every yoar in this section we add two or three new varieties 
that in the course of a year or two soon alter the position of previous 
lists ; but with the long list of really line varieties that we now possess 
we can hardly understand why such inconstant varieties as Sceptre 
Toulousaine, Sarnia, and Red Gauntlet should be recommended, or that 
such varieties as Dr, Macary, Madame Deveille, La Nymphe, anil 
L’Africainc should shut out Striatum and Comtcsse de Beauregarde. 
Mrs. Mahood, again, is very fine when it can be obtained, but it is so 
seldom that it is good that it should not retain the high position given 
it in the list. I should say it should change places with Elaine. How 
many of the- 250 new Japanese lately introduced will find a place in 
the first forty-eight it is difficult to say, but if we glance down the 
audit we already find Maiden’s Blush, Madame John Laing, Gloriosum, 
Oonquete de Castille, and La Triumphante, all introduced since Mr. 
Molyneux framed his list; besides which we have for next season 
Edouard Audiguier, .Golden Meg Merrilies, t’arew Underwood, Itoi des 
Japqnaise, MiRle. Paule. Dufour, all of which will take a very high 
position, while several others will make a good stand. Of the fifty- 
varieties enumerated by “ B. D, K.” just one-half of them have been 
introduced within the past six years, and if the five last-mentioned 
varieties. were, put in their proper places we should find the neweg 
