THE HEMP INDUSTRY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 1240, 2 May 1914, Page 4

THE HEMP INDUSTRY.

Apparently many millers and their staffs, especially in the Manawatu district, were encouraged last month to do better work by reason of the Improved leaf available. Altogether there is a better appreciation of a sound leaf than was the case in many past seasons. An evidence of this is the decision of the great majority of millers to close their mills this month, in order that new cut clumps may not be effected by the frosts which are usually experienced about this time. Generally the resting of the swamps during the winter will be to their great advantage. Too many millers have been cutting immature leaf, which has not the strength or body necessary for the production of the best quality of fibre. The failuie to give the plant a sufficient rest has a decidedly weakening tendency, and if persisted in will no doubt lead to serious deterioration of the leaf produced or, maybe, will render it useless for fibre purposes. If many of our phormiutn areas were persistently harvested every two years the plants would undoubtedly die out. Indeed, a threeyears rest is often insufficient, though, of course, where good leaf is produced in this lime Irom a particularly vigorous plant it would be well to harvest it. I know of many swamps where the leaf is distinctly inferior to that which was grown there ten to fifteen years ago. A patch of leal I saw growing the other day in a Manawatu swamp was the best quality I have seen for many years in that environment, but the swamp in which it was growing ; was clean and well drained, and ! the leaf was seven to eight years . old. The leaf was about Bft in l length and was remarkably : uniform. When milled, a high- ■ grade fibre was easily dressed i from it. Obviously it is impossible to secure good fibre from * immature leaf and to maintain the plants in a vigorous condition capable of periodically providing a harvest of high-grade leaf. Reference has been made in these notes to the mistaken method of some stripper-keepers in forcing too great a bulk ) f leaf through the machines, leaving too much to the spring of the stripper, thereby bruising the body of the fibre and inducing a “nippy” and “towy” tail. It is gratifying to see that endeavour is being made in several mills to overcome this delect. Fewer leaves are being fed into the machines at a time, and in consequence the body, instead of being bruised, is providing a better and stronger fibre, and though the tails are of a flaxy nature, this defect can be remedied in the scutching, a good clean tail resulting ; whereas with a towy tail any attempt in the scutching to overcome the defect makes the tail worse, while the amount of tow is increased. One miller in particular who has adopted this more sane method of stripping conserving the quality of the fibre in the body of the leaf, and at the same lime obtaining a better tail —is so convinced of the improvement effected by not overloading the stripper that he intends in the future to rigidly adhere to this method. He now realises that in striving after quantity quality can easily be lost. The miller is not altogether blamed for the high proportion of low grade fibre produced during the past season. Diseased leaf has been largely responsible; and when a miller has been working with unsatisfactory raw material for some time it is easy for his staff to get out of its stride, and difficult to come back to a good standard of work when better leaf is available.