A New Industry

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVIII, Issue 24, 11 December 1912, Page 32

A New Industry

Sisal Growing in Fiji

By

T. D. TAYLOR, in "N.Z. Farmer.”

X'E <»f the youngest of the iinliis--Ixo/ :,n ‘ making the Fijian Group an increasingly important asset of the British Crown is that of sisal lump growiii". So successful. indeed. has its cultivation proved that it is probable that extensive areas will shortly be planted. The sisal plant is a species of American aloe, and derives its name from the town of Sisal, in Yucatan, whence the first shipments of marketable fibre were exported, and where a large trade i<s still carried on. Its cultivation for fibre on a commercial scale has hitherto been confined to Yucatan. the Bahamas Cuba. Turks Island (West Indies), and Hawaii, but recent plantations have been made in Venezuela, in Santo Domingo. and in the Bombay and Madras presidencies. There is practically only one sisal plantation in Fiji namely, that in the Veisari Valley. through which the beautiful Veisari River Hows, emptying itself into Suva harbour, the plantation being about an hour’s run from Suva. The splendid Hats in the valley were at one time occupied by a prolific and profitable banana plantation, but four hurricanes in five years induced the owner -Captain D. Calder—to turn his attention to a crop that would be practically immune from the disastrous effects of a ’’blow.” So he decided to give sisal a trial, in spite of many warnings that the land and climate were unsuitable. Events have proved that the prophets of disaster were wrong, for the tsoil, on the low hillsides especially, is essentially suited for the plants, which seem to thrive best on stony and comparatively barren ground; though on the flats also their growth has been remarkable.

The plantation at present consists of 150 acres, but it is being enlarged year by year. As in most ventures of this kind, initial mistakes were made, the most serious of which was the planting of "bulbils'* instead of "suckers." The former are the Howers that spring from the "pole" of the plant, and take five years to come to maturity; but the “suckers'’ are the shoots that spring up around the parent bush 12 months after planting, and produce marketable leaves in three years. This was an experience which future planters will profit by. but which proved most expensive to Captain Calder. Another mistake was the installation of machinery unsuitable in an industry in which rapidity ami economy in handling are essentials of success: but the latest machinery for erushing the leaves has been ordered and is now on its way to Fiji. Even with the plant now in use the potentialities of the industry have been demonstrated beyond any doubt, and the fibre produced has been adjudged by experts to be equal to the best grown in any other part of the world -in proof of which the record price of £32 per ton was paid for a consignment of 44 tons sent to Melbourne in September. The cost of production averages £” per ton, and the waste product tow, is also a source of revenue. As the accompanying photographs show, the plantation at Veisari presents a beautiful picture with its numberless rows of plants in all stages of growth. The only pests to be contended against are weeds, the worst of which are the twining "mile-a-minute” and “Koster’s curse,*’ which need constant cutting. When the leaves are mature they fall from a perpendicular to a horizontal position, and are then cut close to the

bole. The plants average GBO to the acre, and from each an average of about 30 leaves is obtained per annum for about 20 years. It is estimated that the annual yield in Fiji will eventually be a ton of dry fibre from each 3 acres,

though with favourable seasons the average may be higher. The leaves attain a length of from four to five feet when mature, and after the pulp is crushed by the machine rollers the resultant fibre is hung on wire

lilies in the eun to bleach for a couple of days, when it is ready foi' baling and the market. The process is extremely simple compared with the preparation of flax, and comparatively inexpensive. Indian labour is employed at a cost of one shilling per day per man, but substantial living quarters have to be provided for them. Some time ago the Fijian Government offered a bonus of £5OO for the first ten tons of fibre suitable for rope-making purposes grown in Fiji, and at time of writing the Veisari Company have pro-

duced 6A tons, while another cutting next month will return five or six tons. The first two tons were Hold in Melbourne for £5O ( £25 per ton), and, as stated above, the second shipment of 4A tons realised £32 per ton. The reported shortage in the output of Manila hemp will stimulate the demand for fibre, and as the Veisari hemp is of esuch excellent quality it will no doubt realise full market rates. Many portions of the Group are suitable for the growth of sisal, and it is

probable that several plantations will be made during the next few years. Next to manila, sisal in the strongest and most extensively used hard fibre. Un fort innately, the climate of New Zealand is unsuitable for the growth of sisal. An unusually cold winter (even a tropical winter) tends to check growth, and causes the plants to send up flower stalks, after which they die. In order to meet such contingencies, at Veisari there is a nursery containing sufficient young plants to stock 50 acres, an.l by thin means, as well as by systematic an I

regular planting, cutting goes on neariv all the year. There can be no gainsaying the fact that sisal is a valuable addition to the products of this prolific group of islands.