BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1901-08-16
Agricultural Experiment stations.
0
THE ABACA PLANT.
BY
R. A. Van Middeldyk.

Abaca musa troglcditarum textarla
tie inferior lip of the corola is almost
ylth;ut stays or petals, Eve stamen, no
rud ment of sixth, fruit with 3 ribs and
many perfect s; father Blanco the
Philippine boaoist considera this banana
as variety of the Musa trogloditarum
srrars; 1t is one of the most useful plan 8
know in the East and IS carefully cultivsi |
ell n the province OF Camsrines and otter
parts; at first SIGHT no difference is observed
eta cen this and the other trees of tue
banana-family Tue fruit is edible and
small, that which have seen was scarcely
more than two inches long; Tie seeds
ripen perfectly. The uses to which this
plant is put are many; ropes and cables are
fineness TO utilize it f)r manufacturing pur
poses, the tree is cut at the foot and at Its
other extremity arhen 1T IS on the point OF
producing fruit, the leaves and leave stalks
or stems are carefully taken oft one by one,
an incison is then made a cross them on
the ins' de, in the middle with knife in
order to pull off the skin or pellicle that
covers them; The stalk thus deprived of its
interior skin, is cut into strips of about two
| fingers wide which are passed one after
the olber under the edge of knife fastened
to long cane, the longest end of which
Il Is fixed in the ground thus forming
kind of spring knife; the strips of abaca
are then pulled along the edge ct this knife
exterior surface apmard; this is repeated
oncs or twice and the threads are now Wis
ible; half OF the fibre il of course wasted by
this clumsy method the strips are a1terwerds
passed through kind of kackle, somewhat
like our haxcombs and the threads are nov
separated according to their fiueness by the
women WHO by long practice have acquired
such taciile dexter;ty that they can separate
tie flores even in the dark.
II the abaca is 10 be woven into cloth, it
is fl st made into skeins the size Of a child's
head;-lhS is thrown into the domestic
utenslkor mortar for peallng rice and then
beaten with the wooden peste which makes
tee abaca flexible and less liable to break.
Tnis done all that remaiES is TO tie the
end OF tte threads together, an occupation
attended to exclusively by, women and chll-
dree; The weaving is done like that OF cot
ton, when the fibre is very fine it most be
woven indoors or under shed,as the wind
is sufficient some times to break the threads
of The w00f
When the cloth is woven it is soaked
for q haus IN Water with the addition Of
little lime, dried and stretched.
The abaca grown in the province of
! BataDgas and oIher parts is not SO prlzed as
that of Camarines aud this in it's turn is
uoted inferior to that of Panav and Ma.
Bdnque,-though opinions differ on this
point. 1t rs probable however that the
plants in these other localfiea are of
fferent species from those IN Uamarines,
lie ause the ffuit If the Batangas tree Is
u ell as food and that OF the trees in CANA
rinss is bitter and not eaten; The Ahaca fible
| is easily dyed blue or red; from time I'M
IN 4morIal the leaves Of a bush and of a
creeper, known in CamArines by the names
re, prctively of "pa, anguit and" arnguit,
have been employed to glvs it fine blue
colour.
The red colour is obtained in Camarines
from decoction OF tie raots Of the "mo
rnda with, some lime or alum until tue
desired tint IS 0bialned
The natives who dedicate themselves to
the extraction Gle ,nng and preparing Il
the fire receive, AS a rule, no wages bit
divide the result OF their labors with the
proprietor of the plantation who pays tnem
for their share ,ut the ruling rates; The
market p.lce flucluates very much; it has
been known to rlsa from four to twelve
pesos per picul (137a ib) 10 few days
England is the prlncpI consumer.
This product was and is still the prin-
cipal source of the wealth of the Northern
part of the Philippine Archipelago. 1t is
as yet product without Competition, for
the plaDtaln producing it is supposed to be
a native Of the Philippines exclusively and
that only of the Southern part Of the island
OF Luzon in the provinces. above mentloned;
liz is said that the English in India, the
Hollandrrs in Java and the French in
Saigon and Cochin China nave not sue
ceeded in their endeavours tointroduce the
plant in their respective possessions.
The average annual export Of Abaca fibre
from the different ports in the philippine
Archipelago 10 the period from 1885 to
1895 was over 90 million of kilograms.
Absca is made the whole year round and
the plants after cutting are reproduced aoith
an exubersnce only conceivable to those
who have lived in tropical regions; 1t re-
qpres no digging, plowiDg, no fertilising
and with only the ordinary cleankeepiDg Of
the ground around it the best kind OF fore
n : - :. 4