THE HEMP INDUSTRY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume L, Issue 40041, 19 December 1929, Page 2

THE HEMP INDUSTRY.

RESEARCH COMMITTEE’S * REPORT. ‘

Several matters of importance to the hemp industry came before the Flax- Research Committee of the Departnient of Scientific and Industrial Research, which niet in Palmerston North yesterday. Dr. J. S. Yeates .reported upon investigations being carried out at Massey College. The main work during the past three months has been the planting out of seedlings and the cultivation of the . area. Seedlings grown in the open showed beneficial effects from superphosphate manuring and also from covering with scrim during the winter. As.arranged at last meeting, mammal experiments for'the control of yellow leaf had been carried out. A total of five acres had been treated, including three different soil types. Thanks were clue to :Ali(ranui, Ltd., and to Mr. B. B. Wood for the facilities and help afforded us in carrying out the work on their land. The present summer is to be spent chiefly in carrying out observations and experiments on the pollination flax. Some results of interest a<re already indicated by the seedling plants which have been grown. Two \ arieties of white butted flax, each give a mixture of white butted and red-butted seedlings in about equal numbers. Seed of several brown or purplish varieties has been grown, and in evejry ease gives rise to a mixture of bronze and green seedlings.

It was decided to push on with the yellow investigations beicg conducted by Dr. Yeates, Atessrs Afeadows and Water’s at Massey College. Bleachidg experiments were reported on and it was agreed that £3 15/- was justified for bleaching and drying complete to produce a superior fibre. FIBRE STRENGTHS. More expeditious methods of testing fibre strengths were fixed up. It was reported that as a result cf information that research work was proceeding and that energetic: efforts were being made in other directions to improve the quality,etc., British firms were now well disposed towards phormium which had formerly become estranged. Two of the largest potential consumers were willing to. take up minimum 10-ton lots to give a practical report on the quality and general suitability of the fibre.

A report was received on tests carried out by the Imperial Institute’on tensile tests of ropes made from New Zealand flax. The av-, evage breaking load of tropes made ' from commercial New Zealand hemp varied from 74001b5. to 8103 lbs. (3-inch ropes) and 18731b5. to 25381b5. (lj-ineh ropes).- Sea- - wafer tests were also being earned out at Devonport by the Admiralty. It was hoped that if it was possible to cut out paddocking a decided gain in strength would be obtained. MECHANICAL DRYING.

As regards mechanical drying of flax by a special process, it was reported that it was generally estimated that wet phomiium fibre could be squeezed iintil one pound of fibre (dry weight) contains one and one-half pounds of water. That is, one and one-half tons of water require* evaporation to produce 1 ton of fibre. According to the maker’s statement, lib. of water evaporated requires 21b of steam. Assuming a fairly efficient boiler with an 8.1 evaporation ratio, the weight of coal required to produce one ton of dry fibre would be three-eighths of a ton, which with coal at £2 per ton would be 15/- per ton for fuel alone. The report was not optimistic regarding the use of the mechanical dryer on phomiium, as at present decorticated and washed, the difficulty being the removal or the changing of the green colouring matter. However, mechanical. drying would be of immense benefit to the industry if the preliminary -preoesses resulted in suitable material being brought-for-warcl to the dryer. If the dryer in question could give the same quality and colour of fibre now obtained !by paddocking and sun drying, then it merited serious . consideration. feWith ' sisal the mechanically dried fibre retained a certain amount of the green colour finishing up with a greenish tinge in spite of the more efficient stripping and washing -,; of . the fibre. Phomnium as treated by' present methods must have sun bleaching or some other method of Chemical oi soap treatment to eliminate the green colour. Mechanical drying, although.' it-would cut down labour costs, would, result in green fibre which 'would probably be unmarketable. Thus, either a new effigienU:metJho.d3p|;)stripping must be used, or eke a' bleaching process of mechanical drying could be adopted. .

In .the .’afternoon the committee niet ,Ali’. ;> B t uflpr,; of Hokitika, and discussed with jiim a new process for decorticating fibre which may be revolutionary.