PHORMIUM TENAX.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XXIII, Issue 2, 20 August 1921, Page 103

PHORMIUM TENAX.

THE NEW ZEALAND FIBRE INDUSTRY.

ESMOND H. ATKINSON,

Biological Laboratory, Wellington.

V. GRADING, MARKETS, AND USES.

GRADING. It. has been already pointed out how unreliable was the quality of the fibre exported in the early days of the industry, and what the' various considerations were that led to the passing, in 1901 of the Flax Grading and Export Act, which provided for the compulsory grading by Government experts of all fibre prior to its leaving the country. The original regulations have been considerably modified from time to time, and it is unnecessary to quote them here, what follows being an account of the present-day procedure in grading phormium-fibre, or “ hemp ” as it is termed in connection with the grading-system. Bales for export must conform approximately to the following dimensions and weights: Hemplength 4ft., width 2ft., weight not exceeding 4 cwt. Tow — 4ft., width 2ft., depth 3ft., weight not exceeding 2> cwt. Stripper-slips—length 4 ft., width 2 ft., depth 3 ft., weight not exceeding 2| cwt. Before it leaves the mill each, bale must have placed in it a piece of wire 2 ft. long with , a tin tag at its inner end (in the middle of the bale) and a leather or canvas tag at its outer end (hanging outside the bale), each tag bearing the registered brand of the mill and the number of the bale (see-Figs. 1,2, and 3). . ...

The , following are the standards on which the grades of phormium (“ hemp ") are determined : A grade (superior), 90-100 points ; B grade (fine), 80-89 C grade (good-fair),-70-79; DD grade (highfair), 65-69; , D grade (fair), 60-64 ; E grade (common),. 50-59 ; F grade .(rejected),: under 50. The maximum points for allotment are as follows : For stripping, 25 ; scutching, 25 ; colour, 25 ; strength, 25": .total, 100. . ~ n■; : - ■ ■- -■ .

r.) Tow is divided into three grades No. i grade, 80-100 points.; No.. 2, 60-797 No. 3, 40-59. No .'grader’s certificate is issued in respect to..any; tow scoring less than 40 points. Stripper-slips are divided into two grades No. 1 and No. .2. Both with tow and stripper-slips the grader’s certificate . states only . the grade awarded, the points scored being only for the grader’s guidance. : ... At the grading-store the grade of each parcel ’of hemp, . tow, or stripper-slips submitted ;.for grading is determined by the grader upon opening at least;io: per cent, of the bales, and such further number as .he deems necessary, and also, in the case of . hemp, upon drawing hanks from as many additional bales as he considers necessary.. It is also provided that .no grader’s certificate shall be issued in respect to any fibre which in the grader’s opinion is unfit for manufacture ■, or for any other trade purpose. ... . . . > ..- When grading is completed the line is repacked, and the outer tag is stamped according to the grade awarded. A report is then forwarded to the miller on every line, so that he may be able to note and remedy any defects. A certificate signed by the grader, giving particulars of the number of bales graded, the grade awarded, and, in the case of hemp, the number of points, is sent to the owner of the fibre or his agent. It is on these certificates that the fibre is sold to overseas buyers. ’ .. MARKETS, USES, AND RIVAL FIBRES. . The largest buyers of phormium-fibre outside New Zealand (taking the average of the figures for the last six years) are the United Kingdom, United States of America, Australia, and Canada, in the order given, the quantities credited to other countries being almost negligible in comparison. ~ It is known; however,- thatin pre-war days, at any rate—a considerable quantity of the phormium-fibre imported into the United Kingdom .ultimately found its way to the Continent of Europe. In addition to that exported, a certain quantity of phormium is used in rope and twine works in the Dominion. ’ -‘ ■ /’?.’< ~ The vegetable textile fibres of the world may be roughly classified, according to their origin, character, and use, into three : groups': ■ (1) cottons ;" (2) soft fibres, including flax (Linum), hemp, (Cannabis), jute ((Cor chorus), and ramie CBoehmeriai) ; (3) hard fibres, including manila (Musa), sisal (Agave), and phormium, the latter being the only important hard-fibre plant of the temperate zones. If phormium-fibre could be placed on the market equal in softness, silkiness, and whiteness to the Maori product it would doubtless enter into competition with some of the soft fibres, but at present it is known commercially only as a hard fibre, its chief rivals being manila -and sisal. All three fibres are used for making binder-twine, phormium being considered by many authorities as the best of all materials for this purpose. Complaints have been made that it is liable to deteriorate in strength to 'a greater degree than either manila or sisal, but as a rule the durability of'binder-twine is

not a matter of the first importance. In Canada it is said to be preferred to the other two for this purpose owing to its stray fibres being more easily digested in the chaff, &c., by young stock. As a material for ropemaking phormium is used both alone and in combination with manila, to which it bears so close a resemblance in appearance that expert knowledge is required to distinguish readily between the two fibres. Phormium is flexible and somewhat elastic, and stands salt water better than any other commercial hard fibre except manila. The comparative strengths of manila and phormium are given by Holmes from tests made by Messrs. Frost Bros., London, as in the ratio of 245 to 143, that of sisal being 128. The grade of phormium used is not stated.

Phormium tow is used for the manufacture of rough cordage, as a binding-material in certain kinds of plaster, for stuffing mattresses, and for many other purposes. As a papermaking material tow has

great possibilities, and is manufactured in New Zealand into wrappingpapers, which are very, strong, though not equal in appearance to woodpulp paper. , . Use by the Maoris. ' It may not be out of place to give here a brief summary of the uses to which phormium was put by the Maoris in pre-European days. As a fibre-plant it was employed, broadly speaking, in two distinct ways, as follows : (i.) The leaves were used just as they were obtained from the plant, with no other preparation than that of splitting them into strips of the required width for the larger fishing-nets (which were very often of great size and strength), for plaiting into ropes for various purposes, and for making baskets, rough mats, &c., of a great many different kinds. Colenso records that the' Maoris of southern .districts made sandals of the split leaves for wearing on the snow when they ascended the mountains. • ' (2.) The fibre, obtained from the leaves in the manner already described, was twisted, plaited, or woven in an almost endless number of ways, and made into clothing of all kinds, from that used every day

to the most elaborate dress mats of the chiefs. The dressed fibre was also largely used for smaller ropes and cords, fishing-lines, smaller fishing-nets, and innumerable other purposes. In many cases the dressed and undressed fibre was used in combination. The fibre took very successfully the various dyes used by the Maoris, which were chiefly obtained . from the bark of certain trees and from earths. Apart from its great primary use as a fibre-plant, phormium served the Maoris in several minor ways. The dead flower-stalks, on account of their extreme lightness, were tied in bundles and made into rafts, particularly by the Morioris in the Chatham Islands, where there were no large trees suitable for canoes. When " the -flint and steel were introduced by the first Europeans the dried stalks came to be used as tinder. The long fibrous roots were woven into fish-traps, according to Colenso, who also records that the shorter leaves were used as splints, while the white butts were roasted, and after being pounded up were applied as poultices in certain diseases. Both the gum found in the bases of the leaves and the abundant nectar secreted by the flowers were collected and eaten. The bitter principle of phormium has decided. medicinal properties, and was considered tonic by Church Transactions of the - New Zealand Institute,” Vol. vi, p. 260). A decoction of the root was used by the Maoris as a strong purgative, and also as an anthelmintic. Utilization of By-products. ' Although a certain proportion of the more fibrous parts of the waste from the stripping process is now saved and marketed as "stripperslips,” there still remains a great deal which up to the present has been little used. A complete analysis of this refuse was made in 1900 by Mr. B. C. Aston, Chemist to the Department of Agriculture, and a partial one in 1904, the latter showing it to consist of 60 per cent, of water, and 40 per cent, of dry matter containing 6’34 per cent, of ash, 074 per cent, of nitrogen equal to ammonia, o'ls per cent, of phosphoric acid, and 2‘io per cent, of potash. The opinion was expressed that’ this would make a good fertilizer if it were well rotted and easily obtainable. Experiments were accordingly carried out with potatoes, the results in the case of a plot dressed with 30. tons per acre of waste comparing very favourably with the best results obtained with artificially dressed plots. In another trial with mangolds the refuse by itself did not make much showing, but in combination with . superphosphate, took second place in a trial with twenty-two different mixtures of artificial fertilizers. One great advantage possessed by phormium-refuse over such a fertilizer as stable manure is its freedom from weed-seeds. Phormium Honey. In those areas where phormium is abundant it is not without importance to the beekeeper. The honey is very thick in consistency and dark in colour, and therefore is not a good commercial table honey, though it might be used in manufactures. It cannot be extracted in the usual way, but has to be melted out. In phormium districts the honey is collected in large quantities by the bees, and is of real use in supplying winter feed for them, leaving the higher-grade honey collected from other plants, such as white clover, &c., available for marketing. (To be continued.)