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ON THE TREE MALLOW (LAVATERA
ABBOREA) AS AN AGRICULTURAL PLANT FOR CATTLE-FEEDING, PAPER-MAKING, AND
OTHER PURPOSES.
By William Gorrie, Rait
Lodge, Trinity, Edinburgh.
[Premium—Ten Sovereigns.]
Having, on the 4th May
1870, exhibited a specimen of the highly promising, but hitherto
neglected, bunch grass of British Columbia in the Edinburgh Corn Exchange,
the young spring growths of which measured at that early period from 3 to
3˝ feet in height, I was invited to show it the same day at a conference—
between the Directors of the Scottish Chamber of Agriculture and a number
of paper-makers from the surrounding districts— "on the practicability of
growing a useful material at home for the supply of the paper
manufacturers, as a substitute for esparto grass." In reply to inquiries
that were there made, I stated that if the straw of ordinary corn crops,
and that of our stronger growing native grasses, such as the common reed {Phragmites
communis), the reed canary-grass (Phalaris arundinacea), and others,
possessed sufficient tenacity for paper-making, I believed that the bunch
grass (Elymus condensatus) would prove equally suitable; and that a
greater weight per acre of material could be got from it than from any of
the forementioned. In this opinion I am now more fully confirmed, from my
original plant, which was reared from seed in 1866, having since annually
yielded very dense close crops of both barren or leafy, and fertile or
seed-bearing stalks, which in each of the past six years measured from 9
to 9| feet in height. Having thus been led to look out for "paper-fibre
plants," I have now several highly promising exotic kinds under trial,
besides that indigenous one which forms the subject of the following
communication.
In July 1870 I spent some
days near Kildonan, in the south of Arran, when I was much struck with the
gigantic size and showy appearance of the many fine tree mallows which
were there grown for cottage-garden ornamentation, and had become
naturalized in some waste places. Two of the former were found to measure
fully 12 feet in height, while few were under 9 feet. In a long,
hedge-like belt of the latter I came upon a continuous mass of fibre,
stretched among a thick growth of grassy herbage, which turned out to be
the only remains of a large mallow plant that had fallen or been broken
down the previous season, and all else of which had rotted away. This
fibre I took with me, along with a sample of fresh bark; and having
subsequently secured specimens of the matured plants, as well as a supply
of the ripe seeds, I handed a portion of each to David Curror, Esquire,
secretary to the Chamber of Agriculture, who had the bark tested for its
fibre properties by Messrs A. Cowan & Sons, of the Valleyfield Paper
Mills, Penicuik; and the seeds analysed by Dr Stevenson Macadam. In a note
which Mr Curror sent me, dated 21st November 1871, he stated, "the results
are. that the stalks are worth L.5 per ton for paper-making; and the seeds
as valuable for feeding as linseed cakes."
Messrs William Blackwood &
Sons, of Edinburgh and London, having kindly transmitted a plant, and
sample of the green tree mallow bark to Messrs J. Dickinson & Co., of the
Nash Paper Mills, Hemel-Hempstead, for their opinion as to its properties,
they stated, in a letter, dated January 1873, "that the bark of the plant
contains a large proportion of fibre well adapted for paper-making
purposes, and possibly also for the manufacture of common cordage." They
estimated the market value of the bark at about L.8 per ton, and, by way
of encouraging an experiment, offered to take two or more tons at that
price. They also kindly inclosed a specimen of "half stuff " prepared from
the bark, and " showing the fibre to be of fair strength even when highly
bleached." Messrs William Tod & Sons, of the St Leonard's Paper Mills,
Lasswade, having made some experiments on a limited scale with the dried
bark, were so well pleased with the results that they offered, "at least,
L.10 per ton for it," that being the price they were then paying for
esparto grass, or about the same as the forementioned, L.5 per ton offered
by Messrs Cowan for the stalks, the bark and woody matter in these being
each nearly equal in weight. Mr Henry Bruce, of Kinleith Paper Mills,
Currie, having expressed a desire to experiment on a largish scale with
the mallow bark, his manager applied for from 1 to 5 cwts. of it—which
quantity I was unable to supply. This application, and the preceding
offers, induced me to undertake the aftermentioned culture of the tree
mallow in the Island of Bute, in which I was obligingly assisted by
Charles Duncan, Esquire of Woodend, Rothesay.
On the 7th of last August I
addressed a letter to Fletcher Norton Menzies, Esquire, secretary to the
Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, of which the following is
an extract:—
"Agricultural Plant for
Cattle-Feeding and Paper-Making.—
A selected variety of the
tree mallow (Lavatera arborea), the natural habitats for the normal form
of which in Scotland are the Bass Rock, with other islets in the Firth of
Forth, and Ailsa Craig. Its ordinary heights vary from 6 to 10 feet, but
it can be grown to more than 12 feet. It is a biennial, but the first year
it may be planted, after the removal of any early crops, and matured in
that following. From the limited experiments which I have been enabled to
make, its products in seed, bark, and heart-wood are estimated at about 4
tons of each per acre. Chemical analysis by Dr Stevenson Macadam, and by
Mr Falconer King of its seeds, show these to be about equal in feeding
properties to oil-cake, the present value of which is about L.10 per ton,
and paper-makers offer the same price, at least, for the bark that they
now pay for esparto grass, which is also about L.10 per ton, thus showing
a return of about L.80 per acre for the seed and bark; and it is expected
that the excess of fibre in the latter will allow of the heart-wood being
mixed up with it, which will add very considerably to the above-stated
value of crop. The paper-makers who have had the tree mallow bark under
limited trial for me are Messrs Dickinson, Nash Mills, Hemel Hempstead; Mr
Henry Bruce, Kinleith Mills, Currie; Messrs A. Cowan & Sons, Valleyfield
Mills, Penicuik; Messrs William Tod & Sons, St Leonard's Mills, Lasswade;
and Messrs William Tod, jun., & Co., Springfield Mills, Lasswade— all of
whom think very highly of it, and are most anxious to try it on a large
scale. With the view of having this done, I had plants reared in the
Island of Bute in 1875, and about two acres planted with them after the
removal of a crop of early potatoes. These plants throve well till a fall
of snow took place early in the winter, when the whole were destroyed by
rabbits. Bute was chosen for this trial in consequence of the winters on
the east coast being sometimes too cold for the mallow plants, many of
which suffer when the thermometer falls to about 15° Fahr., and most of
them are entirely killed when it falls much below 10°; which excesses of
cold, although occasional on the east coast, are never experienced on the
western coasts nor in the Orkney Islands, in various parts throughout
which, where the mallow has been tried, it has invariably been found to
thrive well; and I feel confident that it might there be made to yield
higher pecuniary returns, from hitherto comparatively worthless ground,
than ordinary agricultural crops do in the best cultivated districts of
Britain. Having already been at considerable trouble and expense in thus
experimenting with the tree mallow, and not caring to incur further
outlay, I have handed over my stock of seeds to Messrs P. S. Robertson &
Co., of the Trinity Nurseries here, who have now plants ready for
supplying any who may be desirous of carrying out its cultivation,
charging only 2s. 6d. per 100 to cover expenses."
The preceding communication
was read at the first meeting for the season of the Directors of the
Highland and Agricultural Society, and on the 2d November I was favoured
with the following:—
"Dear Sir,—At the
Directors' meeting held yesterday I was instructed to thank you for your
communication on the tree mallow. I sent your letter to the newspapers to
give the matter all the publicity we could.—Yours faithfully, F. N.
Menzies."
In course of the past
autumn I sent circulars of like import with the preceding to a
considerable number of landed proprietors and others, chiefly connected
with the western and northern coasts of Scotland, many of whom have now
fairly embarked in the experimental culture of the tree mallow.—See list
appended. The following are the analytical results above referred to:—
"Analysis of sample of
'Tree Mallow Seed,' received from D. Curror, Esquire, secretary of the
Chamber of Agriculture, Edinburgh. Grown at Kildonan, Island of Arran.
"The tree mallow seeds
possess the nutritive constituents of a good feeding stuff, and well
deserve a trial by the feeders of stock. It is not so rich in albuminous
or flesh-producing ingredients as linseed, or other well-known cakes, but
considering the loss of nutrient value in the manure when the richer cakes
are given to cattle, it is possible that the tree mallow seed would not be
much behind ordinary cake in feeding qualities.
"Stevenson Macadam, PhD.,
F.R.S.E.,
"Lecturer on Chemistry. "Analytical Laboratory, "Surgeons' Hall,
Edinburgh, 8th November 1871."
"Laboratory of City Analyist, "Edinburgh, 19ft December 1874.
"Analysis of Tree Mallow Seed, received from, and grown by, Mr W. Gorrie,
at Rait Lodge, Trinity.
"From the foregoing results
it is evident that this seed will form a valuable feeding stuff. It
contains quite as much oil as the generality of linseed cakes; and
although the amount of albuminous substance is lower than in ordinary good
linseed cake, it is not far out of proportion to the heat-giving
ingredients.
"J. Falconer King.
The following results have
been reported by parties to whom I previously gave seeds for trial:—
Mr Archibald Gorrie, then
wood manager for the Earl of Leicester, Holkham Hall, Norfolk, wrote on
the 17th August and 3d September 1874:—"A plant of the tree mallow No. 1,
grown by itself, yielded 10 lbs. of green bark, which was reduced to 4
lbs. by drying, and its dried seeds weighed 2 lbs. 13 oz. Plants 2, 3, and
4, grown in a row about 2 feet apart, yielded 16 lbs. of green bark, which
when dried was reduced to 8 lbs., and their dried seeds weighed 7 lbs."
Mr Robert Henderson,
manager for Colonel F. Burroughs, Island of Rousay, Orkney, writing on the
30th of October last, stated that—"The plants reared from your tree mallow
seeds, which were sown here in May 1875, have all flowered except three,
and we only want a little dry weather to ripen and secure the seeds well.
The average height of the plants is from 6 to 7 feet, and I send you by
steamer a sample." These plants came safe to hand, two of them were well
furnished with good ripe seed, and the tallest one measured 9 feet 3
inches in height. One of the other two, neither of which had flowered, was
5˝ feet high, with seven branches; and the other was a 2 feet high young unbranched plant. These last two plants having lain with their coots fully
exposed to the weather till the 14th December—in all about 6˝ weeks—were
then found so retentive of vitality that I had them replanted, with
seemingly every prospect of success. This unusual vitality in unmatured
plants seems dependent on the larger proportion of mucilage which is
contained in their bark.
Mr J. Smith, gardener,
Lewis Castle, Stornoway, writing on the 6th of last November, states:—"The
tree mallows raised from the seeds you gave me in June 1875 were much cut
up by hares, which appear to be very fond of them. Of those left the
tallest one is now about 7 feet in height, although it has not flowered. I
may state that last winter, or rather spring, was one of the severest on
record about Stornoway, and more than the usual amount of snow fell, with
which the ground was covered for nearly six weeks. The 2000 plants
received this autumn from Messrs P. S. Roberston & Co. have been
temporarily planted in the kitchen garden, where they will be safe
throughout the winter from the hares, and will be retransplanted in
spring. They are now growing nicely, not one of them having been lost."
The Rev. James Ingram, U.P. Manse, Island of Eday, Orkney, in a letter
dated the 4th December 1876, reports:—"My experience of the tree mallow
cultivation has been confined to the garden here, where, with a south
exposure and near a 7 feet wall, it attained a height of 9˝ feet, with 2
inches in diameter of stem, and there were numerous branches on all sides
wonderfully prolific in beautiful red blossoms. It continued flowering
three months, and almost the latest flowers produced ripe seed. The plants
in the east and west borders were not so large, being only 6 feet high and
proportionately small in other respects, but they produced a large
quantity of ripe seeds. I have not had a single plant uprooted by the
storms, though cabbages frequently suffer in that way." David Curror,
Esquire of Craigduckie, writes from Rosythe Cottage on the 26th
December:—"In 1875 about a dozen of the mallow plants, reared from the
seeds you gave me, had attained in their second year to a height of 14
feet, with 9 to 10 inches in girth of stem above the ground. These plants
blossomed freely, and a large quantity of seeds matured on each. An
unflowered plant, raised from seed last spring, which I measured
yesterday, was 83 inches in height by 8 inches in greatest girth of stem,
so that the growth of the tree mallow has been a perfect success here,
close to Rosythe Old Castle, on the north side of the Firth of Forth."
William Hay, Esquire,
Rabbit Hall, Portobello, planted a number of tree mallows in 1871, where
they were fully exposed to the north-east sea blasts, and where the
hardiest of sea-side trees and shrubs did little more than merely retain a
stunted existence. Here some of the mallows grew to fully 10 feet in
height; and one, bearing a full crop of seeds, having been broken down in
autumn 1872, these were greedily devoured by turkeys, and other domestic
fowls that, having thus acquired a taste for them, proceeded to attack
those on the standing plants, where it was amusing to see them flying up
and holding on by the slender top branches, devouring every seed they
could possibly get at. Writing subsequently to Mr John M'Kelvie,
schoolmaster, Kildonan, and Mr Robert M'Niell, Breadalbane Cottage in that
vicinity,—to both of whom I am indebted for specimens and
information,—they replied confirmatory of the liking for the mallow seeds
displayed by domestic poultry. And this farther points to their
applicability for feeding winged game and many other kinds of wild birds.
In addition to the cattle-feeding and paper-making properties of the tree
mallow, it may be beneficially and economically employed for other
purposes; such as—
Sheltering sea-exposed
gardens, and other grounds. At a meeting with the Largo Naturalists' Field
Club, some years since, the late Mr Dickson, one of the original
proprietors and editors of the "China Mail," who then resided at Elie, in
Fife, told me that his garden was so directly exposed to the sea winds and
spray that he had to grow a hedge-like belt of the tree, or, as it is
there called, the Bass Rock mallow, on the sea-ward side of his crops, for
their protection, and that it answered that purpose admirably. At a
meeting of the Scottish Arboricultural Society, held on the 1st of
November last, I recommended the tree, or as it is sometimes called the
sea mallow, as a nurse for sea-exposed young plantations, it being
peculiarly adapted for affording protection to the young trees before
these attain sufficient sizes to shelter one another. When thus employed
it is advisable to sow the mallow seeds in nursery drills or beds towards
the end of June, so that they may not flower next year, and transplant
them as soon as they are 4 to 6 inches high, where the forest trees are to
be planted next spring. For succession, another planting of like sized
mallows should be made in July or August following, to remain green and so
maintain the shelter after those first planted have seeded and been
harvested. Afterwards the seeds that will get scattered annually, even
with careful harvesting, will suffice to keep up a sufficient succession
as long as the sheltering aid of the mallows may be needed.
That "nutritive mucilage"
which is peculiar to the Malvaceae, or mallow family, and for the
esculent, emollient, and other properties of which the okra (Hibiscus
esculentus), the marsh mallow (Althea officinalis), and others are much
reputed, is also abundantly present in the tree mallow, from which it may
be obtained in sufficient quantities to allow of its being used as a
condiment in the less nutritious animal foods, such as cut straw, chaff,
&c, in addition to its more extended employment in culinary dishes,
comfits, and the manufacture of toilet soaps. The okra above mentioned is
extensively cultivated in tropical and subtropical countries for its pods
and seeds, the former in their young state being pickled like those of
kidney beans; the latter impart a mucilaginous thickening to soups, and
are used in the manner of green peas; when ripe they are boiled like
barley, and roasted as a substitute for coffee. The okra has also been
long recognized as a textile plant, and a patent has recently been taken
out in France for making paper from its fibre, for which it is being
extensively cultivated in Algeria. Its fibre is prepared solely by
mechanical means, in a current of water, without any bleaching agent, [See
"British and Foreign Paper-Makers' Review" for August 1876, p: 19.] a mode
that is also likely to be applicable to that of the tree mallow.
For green manure, to be dug
or ploughed into the ground, the rapid and luxuriant growth of the tree
mallow renders it particularly suitable. Some have assumed that, in
consequence of its immense growth, it must be a very scourging or
soil-exhausting crop. In reality, however, this does not appear to be the
case, for the plants have comparatively few, and by no means far-spreading
roots, and throughout the whole period of their growth, but more
especially in that of the first year, they shed an abundant, continuous
succession of their large succulent leaves, which overspread the ground
surface with a thick leaf-manure covering. Thus the plants are not only
large producers of their own nutriment, but seemingly derive much of their
sustenance from the atmosphere, as is evinced by the forementioned
tenacity of life in the unmatured plants.
For distillation, the seeds
of the tree mallow are likely to be useful. A friend to whom I showed
them, and who in America had much experience in distilling from buckwheat,
as well as from Indian corn, and the ordinary cereals, stated he had no
doubt but they would yield over a gallon of proof spirit per 50 lbs.
For the textile and cordage uses of the tree mallow, see after remarks,
page 295.
Cultivation.—The tree
mallow accommodates itself to a wide range of soils and situations, not
excluding from the former bog-peat, if sufficiently drained to free it
from stagnant moisture; and although it thrives inland provided the
temperature does not fall too low, it is most at home on the cliffs, and
among the earth-mixed debris of sea-side rocks, or among sea sand-hills on
their partly consolidated slopes and hollows. Under cultivation it will
grow on most soils that are suitable for ordinary farm crops, and in many
places where the exposure is too much for these. Ordinary farm-yard manure
may seldom be available for tree mallow culture, but a convenient
substitute will often be found in those immense quantities of sea-weed or
wrack that are often thrown ashore near places that are highly suitable
for its growth. The droppings of sea birds on its native cliffs suggests
the application of guano; and in inland localities common salt could not
fail in being highly efficacious. The period at which plants naturally sow
or disperse their seeds is generally deemed the best, or at least a good
time for sowing them in their native countries. To this rule, however, the
tree mallow may be deemed an exception; as a good many of its earliest
fallen seeds vegetate in mild periods of the succeeding autumn and winter
months; and although in very sheltered places these may escape yet in
many cases most of them will succumb to the succeeding winter and
spring frosts. Hence it will generally be found preferable to sow the
seeds between the middle of March and the end of April, as if much longer
delayed many of the plants will not flower the next year, but assume a
triennial in place of a biennial duration. The seeds being sown either in
drills or broad-cast, the young plants, when about 6 to 10 inches high,
should be transplanted to where they are to remain, or in case of the
ground being then filled with an early crop, such as early potatoes or
pease, they may be temporarily transplanted at 4 to 6 inches apart till
such crop is removed and the ground prepared for them; when they should be
planted out either by the dibber or plough at from 18 inches to 4 feet
apart; till more experience shows the distances that are most suitable for
them in different soils and situations. When to be grown on the most
exposed sea-coasts, either as an exclusive crop or for sheltering young
plantations, they should be planted out when about 4 inches high, or the
seeds sown in the places where they are to grow. No plants—those of kale
and cabbage not even excepted—stand transplanting better than those of the
tree mallow; but when its seeds become sufficiently abundant, it may in
some cases be found best to sow them by machines, and afterwards thin out
the young plants as is done with turnips. Intending cultivators should
guard against getting their seeds off inferior varieties, such as that of
the Bass Rock, which is dwarfer, as well as more horizontally spreading
and more branching than the one here recommended. They should also avoid
getting seeds from Southern Europe or other warmer climates than those of
its British habitats. This last precaution may be deemed as of only
temporary application, seeing that from the number of experimental
growers, and the quantity of plants they have already planted out, or that
will be so sufficiently early next summer, an abundance of home seed for
sowing, as well as for practically testing its cattle-feeding qualities,
will be produced in the autumn of 1878. And as with other cultivated
plants the tree mallow can doubtlessly be improved by selection, careful
cultivators will do well to select their " stock seeds " always from the
best plants.
The thrashing or separating
of the seeds front the stalks or haum, may either be done by rippling
combs, as with the flax; by flails, or by machinery. It is probable that
it may be found advisable to cut off or separate the seed-bearing twigs
from the thicker branches and stems, as doing so would likely facilitate
the after operations of stacking or storing, thrashing, and peeling.
Peeling or stripping off the bark is easily done at all times during the
growth of the plants, and only a little less so when the seeds are
sufficiently matured for pulling or cutting the crop: while even after the
stalks are dried by stacking, or standing them out on end through the
winter, the bark comes off quite freely if they are saturated for a short
time in water, or even thoroughly wetted by rain.
The principal advantages to
be derived from the cultivation of the tree mallow are its production of
two crops or returns—seeds and fibre—either of which would alone
remunerate its growers; its suitability for extensive districts which are
now almost worthless, or only capable of bringing low pasture rents; the
prevention or abatement of river pollutions, as little if any caustic soda
or other deleterious chemicals will be required in the preparation of its
fibre; its resistance of injury from wet weather at, and after harvesting.
And for the encouragement of such as wish to try it where the winters are
occasionally too cold, it may be stated that plants of only one season's
growth will yield a profitable return of good fibre, should they happen to
be killed by frost. In addition to the forenamed Scottish habitats of the
tree mallow, it is also indigenous on some parts of the south-west of
England and Welsh coasts; while in the "Cyble Hibernica," by Dr David
Moore and Alexander G. More of the Glasniven Botanic Gardens, it is stated
to be found wild in five of the twelve divisions that therein comprise the
map of Ireland, only one of which is on its eastern, and the other four on
its southern and western coasts. So that in the western and northern
coasta of Scotland, its Western Isles, the Orkneys, and probably the
Shetland Isles, added to the other sufficiently mild tempera-tured
districts of Great Britain and Ireland, it may be safely inferred that a
much greater extent is available for tree-mallow culture than would
suffice for all the wants of our home paper manufacturers,—and that
without lessening materially the land surface presently devoted to
ordinary agricultural crops. Continental Europe, it may be remarked, is
too cold in winter for the Lavatera arborea, except those districts which
border on the Atlantic and Mediterranean; and the same may be said of the
Northern United States. In short, as beforementioned, no place' is
suitable for its regular cultivation where the temperatu frequently falls
below 15° Fahr. in winter.
In Lawsons'
"Agriculturists' Manual," published in 1836, the Lavatera arborea is
included in the section "Plants Yielding Fibre," from its having been
shortly before recommended by M. Cavanilles for "producing a very strong
fibre which may be employed for making ropes," &c. In August 1876 Lady
Orde kindly favoured me with the perusal of a letter from Mr Freer of
Rayden, Norfolk, in which he stated that Mr William Billington, who was
deputy-surveyor for the woods and forests at Chopwell, Durham, and
afterwards resided at Bay Towers-on the west coast of county Mayo, where,
exposed to all the storms of the Atlantic, Lavatera arborea flourished in
native wildness, recommended its fibre for paper making. He also used it
in his garden for tying instead of bast; but the use of its seeds as
cattle food does not seem to have occurred to him." In a syllabus of
lectures on substitutes for paper material, delivered by Dr W. Lauder
Lindsay at Perth in 1858, the "tree mallow" is named in conjunction with
the common mallow, in a list of 75 paper-yielding plants. In September
1875 Dr W. L. Lindsay directed my attention to an article "On the
Manufacture of Hemp and Paper from the Lavatera arborea," which was read
before the Royal Dublin Society on the 25th of March 1859 by Mr Robert
Plunkett, and published in the "Natural History Review " for that year.
Having failed to obtain a copy of that publication in Edinburgh, I applied
to Dr D. Moore of the Glasniven Botanic Gardens, who being equally
unsuccessful in Dublin, kindly had the article copied verbatim, and sent
to me on the 16th of December last,—from which it appears that at the said
meeting were exhibited "products of the sea tree mallow, patented by
William George Plunkett, July 29, 1857. No. 2069." These products were
taken from plants over 6 feet in height, that were sown in spring and cut
in October; as well as from a year and half old plants of 10 feet in
height. They consisted of three specimens of hemp, made from the bark of
the stems and branches; card boards made from the fibre and wood of the
plant, of which those from the wood were lightest in colour; together with
five kinds of rope and cordage; but no paper seems to have been shown. Mr
Plunkett having, however, sent a series of specimens to Mr Cooke of the
Trinity House Museum, Lambeth, that gentleman, in a contribution to "The
Art Journal " for the 14th of January 1859, stated that "another patent,
or rather series of patented paper pulps, are those of Mr Plunkett of
Dublin, whose papers are made from four different kinds of plants. These
are the tree mallow, red clover, hop bine or straw, and the yellow water
iris; to the first of these we may look perhaps for the most satisfactory
result." Mr Cooke farther added, that "specimens of the plant, wood, hemp,
cordage, fine thread, and lace made from the bark, together with paper
made from the wood, I shall be happy to show any one interested in the
experiment." This employment of the heart-wood for paper-making is
confirmatory of the anticipated use of it as stated in my previously
recorded letter to the Highland and Agricultural Society, page 287. In a
recent conversation with Dr D. More, he told me that, when at the Brussels
Great Centennial Horticultural Exhibition last spring, the cultivation of
the Lavatera arborea for papermaking in Belgium was then talked of by
several gentlemen he met. But it is feared that Belgian winters are
generally too severe to admit of this being done successfully. The
"Gardeners' Chronicle " of 11th November last contained an abridged copy
of my letter, quoted at page 287, which was concluded by the editorial
remark, that "years ago the utilization of this plant was suggested by the
late Mr Hogg and by the editors of this journal."
The above series of
quotations show that I have no claim to the original discovery of the tree
mallow being a fibre-producing plant, although my attention was drawn to
it in entire ignorance of these prior claims. Hence my investigations and
experiments with it are likely to be the more useful, from having been
conducted independently of previously ascertained facts and failures
regarding it. The use of the seeds for feeding, and some of the other
purposes for which I have recommended the plants and their products, have,
however, claims to novelty; and I trust that the means I have taken to
bring its merits fully before both cultivators and manufacturers may
result in the complete realization of the advantages herein held out to
both. A usual question that has been put to me is: If the tree mallow is
really so useful as you represent it, how does it happen that its
usefulness has not been previously known? The preceding paragraph shows
that its properties have not been altogether, although partially,
overlooked; but even such as were ascertained do not seem to have been
brought under the notice of those most deeply interested in any practical
form. A patent taken out for the manufacturing of mallow fibre is just one
of that class most likely to be shelved or laid aside and no more thought
of. For in the first place a manufacturer requires a large and constant
supply to justify him in making the requisite machinery alterations to
allow of the new material being successfully wrought out; and he would
have to set about providing for his new supplies of material about two
years prior to the first crop being produced. And in the second, place few
tenant farmers, even if permitted by their leases, would care to embark in
experimental cultivation of any kind that would take about two years
before pecuniary returns could be realized, and that more especially in
the face of patent restrictions. Hence it is only by the combined efforts
of landlords and manufacturers that tree mallow cultivation and its
products can be fairly introduced. But when this is once successfully done
tenant farmers, if allowed, will soon take to this new branch of
agriculture.
In order to facilitate the
exchange of opinions regarding results among the growers; and that other
interested parties may know where to see, and judge for themselves, the
following list is given of the names of those who up to the date of
publication have embarked in the cultivation of Tree Mallow:—
His Grace the Duke of
Argyle, Inveraray Castle.
His Grace the Duke of Buccleuch, Dalkeith Park, &c.
His Grace the Duke of Richmond and Gordon, Gordon Castle.
His Grace the Duke of Sutherland, Dunrobin Castle.
The Most Noble Marquis of Ailsa, Culzean Castle.
The Eight Hon. the Earl of Derby, Knowsley.
The Eight Hon. the Earl of Stair, Lochinch House.
The Eight Hon. Lord Kinnaird, Rossie Priory.
The Eight Hon. Lord Henry Scott, Beaulieu, Southampton.
Sir E. C. Dering, Bart., Surrendew-Dering, Kent.
Sir J. D. H. Elphinstone, Bart., M.P., Logie Elphinstone.
Sir James Matheson, Bart., Lewis Castle, Stornoway.
Sir J. P. Orde, Bart., Kilmory, Lochgilphead.
James Alexander, Esquire of Red Braes, Bonnington.
John Anderson, Esquire of Denham Green, Trinity.
Alexander Baird, Esquire of Urie, Stonehaven.
C. Bates, Esquire, America Farm, Doyenham.
John Binning, Esquire, Brae, Dingwall.
Colonel F. Borroughs, Island of Rousay, Orkney.
James Brown, Esquire, Goodrington House, Devon.
Henry Bruce, Esquire of Ederline, Ford, Ardrishaig.
John Bruce, Esquire of Sumburgh, Shetland, and Fair Isle.
Higford Burr, Esquire, Aldennaston, Reading.
------Callingford, Esquire, 7 Phillimore Gardens, Kensington.
J. J. Caiman, Esquire, Carrow House, Norwich.
Donald Cameron, Esquire of Lochiel, M.P., Auchnacarry.
Blanchard Clapham, Esquire, Algoa Bay, South Africa.
Charles Davidson, Esquire, Kirkwall, Orkney.
William Delf, Esquire, Great Bentley, Colchester.
Jerome Dennison, Buegar House, Evi, Orkney.
------Drattry, Esquire, Oakdale, Holmwood, Dorking.
Charles Duncan, Esquire, Woodend, Island of Bute.
James Duncan, Esquire of Benmore, Kilmun.
H. Newby Fraser, Esquire, Home Farm, Roseneath, Kilcreggan.
R. W. Ganssen, Esquire, of Brookman's Park, Hatfield, Herts.
A. Gibson, Esquire, Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
John Gordon, Esquire of Cluny.
A. M. Sutherland Graeme, Esquire, of Graemes' Hall, Orkney.
David Milne Home, Esquire, of Wedderburn, Paxton House,
Berwick. Edward Humphries, Esquire, Mount Pleasant Hall, Worcester.
James Hunter, Esquire, 1 Doune Terrace, for the Neilgherry Hills, East
India.
Rev. James Ingram, U.P. Manse, Island of Eday, Orkney.
Charles Jenner, Esquire, Easter Duddingstone, Portobello.
Professor G. Lawson, Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Charles M. M'Donald, Esquire, Largie Castle, Island of Islay.
Kenneth Mackenzie, Esquire, Dundonnel House, Ullapool.
Angus Mackintosh, Esquire of Holme, Inverness.
George Marwick, Esquire, Bu Farm, Hoy, Stromness, Orkney.
H. K. Morran, Esquire, Inveryne, Tighnabruaich.
Walter Ovens, Esquire of Torr, Torr House, Castle Douglas.
H. 1ST. Palmer, Esquire, Down Place, Harting, Petersfield.
Dr Robert Paterson, St Catherine's, Inveraray.
Donald Robertson, Esquire of Pennyghael, Island of Mull.
J. M. Robertson, Esquire, Acuttipone Tea Co., Cachar, East India.
John Shaw, Esquire, Bowden, Manchester; and Southport Gardens, Liverpool.
William Sim, Esquire, Rosefield Nurseries, Forres.
John Tod, Esquire, St. Leonard's Paper Mills, Lasswade.
Colonel Tomlin, Orwell Park, Ipswich.
Charles Turner, Esquire, Royal Nurseries, Slough.
J. W. Webb, Esquire, Cradley, Malvern, Herefordshire.
A. P. Welch, Esquire, Hart Hill House, Luton, Bedfordshire.
Monsieur A. W. Welch, La Tour, Ajaccio, La Corse, France.
James Young, Esquire of Kelly and Durris.
Messrs J. Ballantyne & Son, Nurseries, Dalkeith.
Messrs A. Cowan & Sons, Valleyfield Mills, Penicuick.
Messrs Robert Craig & Sons, Newbattle Paper Mills.
Messrs Dickson & Co., nursery and seedsmen, Edinburgh.
Messrs Little & Ballantyne, nursery and seedsmen, Carlisle.
Messrs P. S. Robertson & Co., nursery and seedsmen, Edinburgh.
Messrs E. Sang and Sons, nursery and seedsmen, Kirkcaldy. |
