294. . QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. [1 Ocr., 1898, 
In agricultural areas it will not stand the plough, and is therefore not worsa 
than many less valuable weeds. The only way to keep it out of pasturage is 
to pull each individual plant out by the root before seeding, and burn. If 
taken in time the destruction is easily accomplished, but, if allowed to overrun, 
this desideratum can only he obtained by ploughing and reploughing the whole, 
Grass land badly affected by Sida should be cropped for a year or two with 
some crop wherein agricultural implements can be used. Sida is not absolutely 
useless for pasturage, for in time of drought (withstood by this plant) cattle 
eat the tops of the branches, notwithstanding it is somewhat indigestible. 
In regard to its fibre-producing capabilities, and the value of the fibre, the 
following may be of service :— 
For proper cultivation a fairly good soil is required. The land should be 
ploughed and prepared carefully before the seed 1s planted. The season for 
planting will vary in different parts of the colony, but any observant farmer 
knows when Sida first shows in his district. Plant the seed thickly in lands 
about 6 feet broad, leaving trenches between. The fibre is best when the 
plant begins to bloom. The object of planting the seed thickly is to cause an 
erect growth for some 2 feet 6 inches to 3 feet without branches. When fit 
for fibre, the plants should be pulled up by the roots, tied in bundles, and 
placed in water to rot for six or eight days. The fibre is immediately on the 
outside, and, when properly rotted, can be peeled off as easily as a ripe banana. 
The upper portion of the root is left on, when the fibre is required for some 
purposes. ‘The fibre is then hung to dry (in the shade is best). 
Good prices may be obtained for Sida fibre, as will be seen by the following 
letter in regard to some specimens sent to Scotland, and separated by the 
writer. Extract from letter from W. H. Norrie, of C. Norrie and Co., 
Dundee, addressed to his brother in Queensland :— 
“ Sida retusa is a yery fine fibre indeed, much too good and costly, I 
expect, for Dundee. The larger sample you were to send has not yet come 
to hand, but, so far as I and others can judge, it would not do for the 
Belfast wet-spinning. It does not draw like flax, and when wet it comes 
off in short flakes, as you can try for yourself. . . . . In this district 
T think it would only come in to make white goods, as the bleaching and 
waste would be saved. For that I reckon it would be worth £40 or £50 
per ton, but there are other purposes in which it would be of more value— 
such as mixing among spun-silk alpacas, besides a great many small purposes, 
dolls’ hair, &c., which in the lump amount to many tons—hundreds even. 
Ma pes I do not think any mechanical process would give the same 
beautiful shine and colour that your sample has.” 
This letter was written before there was any thought of war between 
America and Spain, and the markets were then in anormal condition. A form 
of Sida weed has for the past few years taken the place of Stda rhombifolia ; in 
fact, it seems to have driven it out of several Northern districts. It has: 
lanceolate leaves, and is of a somewhat lighter colour. It being more branched 
in habit, it probably would not do for fibre purposes so wellas Sida rhombifolia. 
The local name for it is Sida acuminatifolia. 1t is equally as bad as rhombifolia 
in pasturage, and the stock do not seem to eat it so readily as the latter in 
time of drought. Except when the soil is loose, it is somewhat difficult to pull 
any of the Sidas up by the root. In Fiji the Fijian employés were engaged 
during wet weather in pulling up this weed out of pasturage. They used long 
pointed sticks to loosen the earth around the roots. At Kamerungaa fibre has 
also been separated from Hibiscus sabdariffa, Musa Banksii, Bauhinia, Pineapple 
Leaf, Abutilon periflocifolium (the latter an imported Abufi/on from South 
America), and Behemera nivea. The cost of separation by hand is, however, 
very great. Beautiful, although short, fibre may be extracted from the pine- 
apple leaf. It seems valuable for some purpose in ‘he world’s manufactories, 
though seldom noticed in price lists from Great Britain. . The Chinese use 
great quantities of this. In Queensland it is a waste product where large 
