PORCSTUY SD .A3 BUHR B >%&£&%& £S Philippine Palms and Palm Products By William H. Brown, Ph.D. "Chief, Division of Investigation, Bureau of Forestry; Professor of Botany, University of the Philippines; and Plant Physiologist, Bureau of Science and Elmer D. Merrill, M. S. Botanist and Director, Bureau of Science Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources Bureau of Forestry Bulletin No. 18 Arthur F. Fischer, Director of Forestry MANILA BUREAU OF PRINTING 1919 186908 Forestry 5U ■A3 i Philippine Palms and Palm Products By William H. Brown, Ph. D. Chief, Division of Investigation, Bureau of Forestry; Professor of Botany, University of the Philippines; and Plant Physiologist, Bureau of Science and Elmer D. Merrill, M. S. Botanist and Director, Bureau of Science Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources Bureau of Forestry Bulletin No. 18 Arthur F. Fischer, Director of Forestry MANILA BUREAU OF PRINTING 1919 166908 GIFT OF ESTATE OF HE1NRICH HASSELBRUW OCT 1 6 14 CONTENTS Illustrations 5 Preface 9 Introduction ^ 11 Key to Genera of Philippine Palms 12 Description of Species: Actinorhytis 15 Adonidia 16 Areca „ 16 Arenga , 24 Calamus (rattans) 34 Caryota 66 Cocos (coconut) 60 Coelococcus (ivory-nut palm) 68 Corypha (buri) ...'. 68 Daemonorops 81 Elaeis (oil palm) 84 Heterospathe 84 Korthalsia 88 Licuala 88 Livistona 90 Metroxylon (sago palm) 96 Nipa : 98 Oncosperma 107 Orania 108 Oreodoxa (royal palm) 110 Phoenix 112 Pinanga 112 Plectocomia 118 Ptychoraphis 118 Zalacca 118 Summary of Useful Products ; 119 Index 125 3 ILLUSTRATIONS Plate I Coconut trees on the beach, Camiguin Island Frontispiece. Plate II P*ge. Adonidia merrillii. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. C, 5 (1909) 17 Plate III Fruit of Adonidia merrillii. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. C, 5 (1909) 18 Plate IV Fruits of Areca catechu. From Philip. Journ. Sci., 14 (1919) 21 Plate V Fruits of Areca catechu. From Philip. Journ. Sci., 14 (1919) 22 Plate VI Fig. 1. Fruit of Areca parens. From Philip. Journ. Sci., 14 (1919).. 25 2. Fruit of Areca macrocarpa. From Philip. Journ. Sci., 14 (1919) 25 3. Fruit of Areca camarinensis. From Philip. Journ. Sci., 14 (1919) 25 4. Fruit of Areca ipot. From Philip. Journ. Sci., 14 (1919) 25 Plate VII Arenga pinnata. From Philip. Bur. Ed. Bull. 49 27 Plate VIII Fruits of Arenga pinnata. From Philip. Bur. Ed. Bull. 49 29 Plate IX Arenga tremula 33 Plate X Rattans (Calamus) in forest 35 Plate XI Male inflorescence of Calamus usitatus (mollis) . From Ann. Bot. Gard. Calcutta 37 Plate XII Fruits of Calamus usitatus. From Philip. Ag. Rev., 6 (1913), No. 10.. 39 5 g ILLUSTRATIONS Plate XIII Page. Fruits of Calamus ornatus var. philippinensis . From Ann. Bot. Gard. Calcutta 41 Plate XIV Rattans (Calamus) forming the bulk of the undergrowth in a forest in Camarines 45 Plate XV Caryota rumphiana 55 Plate XVI Inflorescence of Caryota rumphiana 57 Plate XVII Leaf of Caryota rumphiana 59 Plate XVIII Coconut palm in fruit, Mindanao 61 Plate XIX Coconut plantation in the Philippines. From Philip. Agr. Rev., 9 (1916) 62 Plate XX Coconut grove with bamboo poles in trees for gathering tuba. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. A, 6 (1911) 63 Plate XXI Coconut palm tapped for sap. On the left of the trunk at the level of the man's head is hung a bamboo tube for collecting the sap. The tube is almost hidden by the leaves. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. A, 6 (1911) 65 Plate XXII Coconut palm tapped for sap 67 Plate XXIII Rafts of coconuts. From Philip. Agr. Rev., 1 (1908) 69 Plate XXIV Corypha elata and two specimens of Caryota. From Philip. Bur. Ed. Bull. 49 71 Plate XXV Corypha elata in flower. From Philip. Bur. Ed. Bull. 49 73 Plate XXVI Young specimen of Corypha elata. From Philip. Bur. Ed. Bull. 49.... 75 ILLUSTRATIONS 7 Plate XXVII Page. Fig. 1. Outer and inner halves of one Calasiao hat. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. C, 6 (1911) 77 2. Completed buri-midrib (Calasiao) hat. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. C, 6 (1911) 77 Plate XXVIII Portions of Philippine hats magnified four diameters. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. C, 6 (1911) 79 Fig. 1. Buntal (Lukban) 79 2. Buntal (Baliuag) 79 3. Calasiao 79 4. Buri leaf 79 Plate XXIX Daemonorops mollis (gaudichaudii) . From Ann. Bot. Gard. Cal- cutta 83 Plate XXX Elaeis guineensis 85 Plate XXXI Fruit of Elaeis guineensis 87 Plate XXXII Heterospathe elata. From Philip. Bur. Ed. Bull. 53 89 Plate XXXIII Licuala spinosa 91 Plate XXXIV Livistona sp. in a clearing. From Philip. Bur. Sci., Pub. 13 93 Plate XXXV Livistona cochinchinensis 94 Plate XXXVI Livistona rotundifolia. From Philip. Bur. Ed. Bull. 53 95 Plate XXXVII Metroxylon sagu. From Philip. Agr. Rev., 9 (1916) 97 Plate XXXVIII Nipa fruticans on mud flats 99 Plate XXXIX Fig. 1. View from top of San Esteban distillery. Nipa swamps as far as the eye can reach. Nipa houses in the foreground. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. A, 6 (1911) 101 2. Uncultivated nipa swamp. Legaspi, Albay Province. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. A, 6 (1911) 101 8 ILLUSTRATIONS Plate XL Page. Cultivated nipa swamp. Bulacan. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. A, 6 (1911) 103 Plate XLI Fig. 1. Collecting the nipa sap. Showing a native collector and two bamboo joints (tuquils) in position to receive the sap. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. A, 6 (1911) 105 2. Nipa palms in fruit. From Philip. Journ. Sci., Sec. A, 6 (1911) 105 Plate XLII Orania palindan 109 Plate XLIII Oreodoxa regia Ill Plate XLIV Pinanga philippinensis 113 PREFACE The present Bulletin attempts to give a more or less popular account of Philippine palms and their products. Available publications on Philippine palms are, for the most part, either of a highly technical and systematic nature, or else are scientific papers dealing with the technical side of certain industrial phases of the subject. Extensive accounts of the alcohol and sugar possibilities of the more prominent species have been given by Gibbs (The alcohol industry of the Philippine Islands, parts I, II, and III. Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. 6, 1911, and Vol. 7, 1912) ; while hats made from palm fibers have been dis- cussed at length by Miller and Robinson (Miller: Philippine Hats. Bureau of Education Bulletin No. 35, 1910. Robinson : Philippine Hats. Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. 6, 1911). Arnold (Rattan supply of the Philippines, Special Agents Se- ries, No. 95, Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Wash- ington) has written a long discussion of the rattan supply. These sources have been drawn on extensively in the prepara- tion of the present paper. The systematic consideration of Philippine palms has been much simplified by the appearance of a recent paper by Beccari (Philippine Palms. Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. 14, 1919). The keys to, or rather the conspecti of, the species of the various genera are taken from that paper. William H. Brown. Elmer D. Merrill. PHILIPPINE PALMS By William H. Brown and Elmer D. Merrill INTRODUCTION The palm family is well represented in the Philippines, and from an economic standpoint is a very important group of plants. They furnish alcohol, starch, sugar, oils, fibers, building mate- rials, edible fruits and buds, numerous substances used in in- dustrial work, and other minor products. The species of palms known to be native to the Philippines number 123. Besides these there are five widely cultivated spe- cies, some of which may be native. More than 100 of the native species have not been reported from other countries. The one large genus is Calamus, the climbing or rattan palms. Most of the other genera are represented by few species and in several cases by a single one. Some of the most important econo- mic palms, such as the coconut palm, are not natives of the Phil- ippines, but were introduced in prehistoric times. The native species are mostly sylvan. Palms grow from sea level to alti- tudes of at least 2,200 meters. There are very few species of palms in the settled areas, but they are frequently conspicuous either on account of their abundance (coconut palm) or their great size (buripalm). One of the very few strictly gregarious species is the nipa palm. This occurs over considerable areas of salt-water swamps, to the almost entire exclusion of all other vegetation. In a few places the buri palm (Corypha) is dominant and gregarious, while Livistona cochinchinensis (tarau) is gregarious and occurs in immense numbers in the Cagayan valley. The coconut palm is artificially gregarious on account of its cultivation over vast areas. In ordinary forests, the palms, with the exception of the climbing species Calamus and Daemonorops, are not usually numerous, most erect palms being of local occurrence. The climbing palms (rattans) are usually very numerous and cons- picuous in most forests, except where they have been extensively cut for commercial purposes. In fact, the most conspicuous plants in the ground-covering of virgin forests at low altitudes often are immature specimens of rattans. 11 12 PHILIPPINE PALMS Key to the genera of Philippine palms. 1. Leaves simple, fan-like. 2. Leaves divided almost to base into 14 to 20 segments; stems tufted, small. 13. Licuala. 2. Leaves not deeply divided; trunk stout, never tufted. 3. Trunk smooth, with annular scars; inflorescences axillary, pen- dulous. 14. Livistona. 3. Trunk without annular scars, often 60 centimeters or more in dia- meter; flowering-shoot terminating the trunk, the plant flowering once and then dying. 8. Corypha. 1. Leaves bipinnate, leaflets cuneate at the base, rhomboid, oblique, the tips resembling the fins or tails of fish. 6. Caryota. 1. Leaves pinnate. 2. Climbing spiny palms; leaf-sheaths and mid-ribs armed; fruit covered with scales, usually shiny. 3. Leaflets rhomboid or wedge-shaped, whitish beneath; leaf -sheaths usually inflated and occupied by ant nests. 12. Korthalsia. 3. Leaflets elongated, never rhomboid. 4. Branches of the inflorescences covered with very large, broad, overlapping bracts concealing the flowers; the plant flowers once and then dies. 22. Plectocomia- 4. Branches of the inflorescences only slightly expanded, bracts not concealing the flowers; the plant flowers many times. 5. Spikelets in the axils of tubular or funnel-shaped spathels; flag- ellae from end of midrib or from the leaf -sheaths. 5. Calamus. 5. Spikelets in the axils of large boat-shaped or open deciduous spathels; flagellae always from end of the midrib. 9. Daemonorops. 2. Not climbing. 3. Tufted, spiny palms. 4. Growing in fresh-water swamps, the inflorescences terminating the tall, mature trunks; the sago palm. 15. Metroxylon. 4. Growing on dry ground; stem short or none; inflorescence from base. Rare, known only from Lanao. 24. Zalacca. 3. Stems creeping in the mud of salt-water swamps; trunks none; in- florescences on short, erect stalks from the rhizomes, the infruc- tescence a large globose head; the nipa palm. 16. Nipa. 3. Erect, simple palms, the stems never tufted (except some species of Arenga) , the inflorescences always lateral, never terminal. 4. Inflorescences from the trunk at the base of the leaf -sheaths. 5. Trunks covered with long, slender spines. 17. Oncosperma. 5. Spineless palms. 6. Trunks large, swollen in the middle; the royal palm, cul- tivated only. 19. Oreodoxa. 6. Trunks small or of medium size. 7. Female flowers few, at the base of the branches of the inflorescences, much larger than the much more numerous male ones. 3. Areca. 7. Flowers of both sexes alike in shape and size, or flowers perfect. 8. Flowers in groups of threes on the spike-like branches of the compound inflorescence. 2. Adonidia. KEY TO GENERA OF PHILIPPINE PALMS 13 8. Flowers in two or three rows on the primary branches of the once-branched inflorescence; sylvan species. 21. Pinanga. 8. Flowers spirally arranged on the branches; fruits large. 1. Actinorhytis. 4. Inflorescences axillary. 5. Leaf-sheaths with coarse, black fibers, the leaflets usually lobed and usually auricled at the base, whitish beneath. 4. Arenga. 5. Not as above. 6. Petioles spiny. 7. Fruits in dense head; the oil palm, cultivated only. 10. Elaeis. 7. Inflorescences lax. 20. Phoenix. 6. Petioles unarmed. 7. Fruits large, 15 to 30 centimeters in diameter; the coco- nut palm, cultivated. 7. Cocos. 7. Fruits smaller, never exceeding 10 centimeters in diameter. 8. Fruits 5 to 8 centimeters in diameter. 18. Orania. 8. Fruits less than 1 centimeter in diameter. 9. Fruits globose. 11. Heterospathe. 9. Fruits more or less ovoid. 23. Ptychoraphis. LIST OF SPECIES All of the palms known to be natives of, or naturalized in, the Philippine Islands are given in the following list. Actinorhytis calapparia Wendl. et Drude. Adonidia merrillii Becc. Areca caliso Becc. Areca camarinensis Becc. Areca catechu L. Betel palm. Areca catechu var. batanensis Becc. Areca catechu var. longicarpa Becc. Areca catechu var. silvatica Becc. Areca costulata Becc. Areca hut chins oniana Becc. Areca ipot Becc. Areca ipot var. polillensis Becc. Areca macrocarpa Becc. Areca parens Becc. Areca vidaliana Becc. Areca whitfordii Becc. Areca whitfordii var. luzonensis Becc. Arenga ambong Becc. Arenga pinnata (Wurmb) Merr. Kaong or sugar palm. Arenga tremula (mindorensis) (Blanco) Becc. Calamus arugda Becc. Calamus bicolor Becc. Calamus blancoi Kunth. Calamus cumingianus Becc. Calamus diepenhorstii var. exulans Becc. Calamus dimorphacanthus Becc. Calamus dimorphacanthus var. mon- talbanicus Becc. Calamus dimorphacanthus var. zam- balensis Becc. Calamus discolor Mart. Calamus discolor var. negrosensis Becc. Calamus elmerianus Becc. Calamus filispadix Becc. Calamus foxworthyi Becc. Calamus grandifolius Becc. Calamu ■<}< CO o O CM CM o o o o o o o CM CO o 5 CO 00 in oo t-h co ia co cm co Tf O CM U2 co cm co th cm io in tB (fi T(i lO 00 O) Tf CM -«f ^ CO o lO CM CM fc «H 03 o 00 o ^ r~ ,_, ,_, CO ! oi as OJ o CM t- a> Tf 00 «# o o o cu si <5 u Erf o 3 CO o a) o L— CM CM lO '■"■ 1 t- CO Ci CD o CO CO o © CO CM 00 ** CO * ^ ^ ^ 1 ^ -■ ^ ** CM CO Tf ^ t- CM ££ a bo total erage nual tput. E- CO CM CM CO CM CO CM CO CM CO CO o CO CO iM 7-1 7-1 U5 CM CM CO 1-i CJ u •h > 5 5 o rt * o &H M [- O) W lO ©T-HCM0500CMIOOC500'-HCO "*^00!CMMMHOOHOO)H i-HO"*U5CMCX> 00OC-05 CO CO O CO CM TP cm CM CO ->* 00 t- CM r-i CO 00C0»-t05OT-ICOO00 < < < ■° '-5 00 CO U5 t~OrHU3COlOi-ICslOOOO'<3 CM CO C- COIOOOC-"«* CO OJ 00 OS lO oo CO CO CO o OS o CO CO* rt fc W > £ "3 ID 5) '5 D 3 o 'E ^ bO c3 o 8 . ■ >* «■« w w w "-> ra a -I vt w m 44 PHILIPPINE PALMS The next to the last column in the table shows what provinces have an unutilized supply; although, of course, the fact that rattan is found but not exported in a large proportion of the municipalities, does not necessarily mean that it is there to be had in great quantities. Such, however, may be assumed to be the case with regard to the Moro Province and Nueva Vizcaya and, to a less extent, with Mindoro, Palawan, Samar, Misamis, Bataan, Cagayan, Tayabas, and Leyte. In general, it is prob- able that these latter provinces offer the best fields for commer- cial exploitation. As rattan is primarily a plant of virgin forests, the destruc- tion of the forests practically means the end of the supply. Moreover, heavy cutting of the rattan will at least temporarily exhaust the supply in a locality, as has happened in the im- mediate neighborhood of most of the larger towns. It has not yet been determined whether it is possible to collect rattan in the forest on a commercial scale and within reasonable cost, without cutting it faster than it reproduces itself. Unfortu- nately there is very little information concerning the rates of growth of rattans under forest conditions. The supply has been reduced in many countries where it naturally occurs, to such an extent as to raise prices considerably. As yet the ef- fects of indiscriminate cutting in the Philippines have been no worse than to increase the cost and difficulty of putting rattan on the market in the more thickly populated areas. It has not yet become necessary, as in the Malay Peninsula, to consider the question of cultivation on a large scale. The satisfactory sit- uation in the Philippines may, however, be due to the fact that hitherto there has been almost no exploitation for foreign markets. UTILIZATION AND EXPORT Only a very small portion of the comparatively large total production, indicated by the statements and figures in the fore- going paragraphs, is at present exported. The total ship- ment of crude rattan from the Islands for the year ending June 30, 1914, was valued at 8,480 pesos and the manufactured rattan products, chiefly baskets, at about 1,600 pesos. More than half of the former amount was collected on the island of Palawan, shipped to British North Borneo, there mixed with the local product, and then sent to Singapore and Hongkong ready for shipment to Europe. A certain portion of the supply which goes to Hongkong, after being prepared or cleaned, is re-im- ported into the Philippines for use in furniture manufacture. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 45 Mm*^* '" i^appiBW | f** ,M *i^"'** * ' ,>> ■••nfe^ .■.■■.■■fm»w v DC O I O DC CD or o m 2 DC O 3 < _l < O < < > X LJ < 46 PHILIPPINE PALMS The original exports are made at prices ranging from 4 centavos to 20 centavos per kilo; while the partially manufactured prod- ucts are repurchased at from 1 peso to 1.30 pesos per kilo. The total value of all imports during the year ending June 30, 1914, was 30,730 pesos, or nearly four times the value of the exports. During the fiscal year 1913 more than one million dollars worth of rattan was imported into the United States, while only four hundred dollars worth came directly from the Philippines. The export business in Palawan is partly con- ducted by the Palawan Exchange, a government institution for providing the uncivilized tribes in that island with the means of disposing of their products on fair terms; and partly by a few merchants of Puerto Princesa, the capital of the province. The exports from the other parts of the Islands are insignificant. Much of the remaining production in the Philippines is used in or near the localities where it is collected for the many domes- tic and industrial purposes it serves, and especially in place of twine or wire for baling hemp, copra, and tobacco. Nearly all of the comparatively small portion of the total supply which reaches Manila and the other large centers is brought together in small quantities by Chinese shopkeepers. QUALITY AND GRADE It is widely stated that there are to be had in the Philippines large quantities of rattan equal in quality to that produced else- where. The authorities of the Industrial Division of Bilibid Prison say that the best native product is equal to the best to be had from Hongkong, and merchants state that American firms have repeatedly approved samples. Nothing is known to contradict these statements, except the assertion of the han- dlers in Singapore that the very finest of all rattans are not to be had outside of two districts in Dutch Borneo. Great difficulty is encountered in any attempt to classify the various grades or to determine the relative plentifulness in the different localities in which they are found. This is probably due to a considerable extent to the fact that the various grades have not been connected with authentically named botanical specimens. This is not an easy task, as flowering specimens are rare and commercial canes are, of course, gathered without flowers, while botanical specimens are usually collected without canes. An exact classification of the canes seems, therefore, to be out of the question until an extensive study of them has been made. The adoption of a native system of nomenclature or grading DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 47 is impractical. Native collectors and dealers recognize certain grades of rattan in any given locality and are familiar with something of their abundance, size, and tensile strength. For different operations of tying and fastening, different sizes are obviously needed. Some kinds become brittle when dried and are therefore useless for tying purposes in constructing houses and for baling hemp, but may serve perfectly well for binding fish traps and rafts. On the basis of such points of difference the people of any given locality distinguish a number of dif- ferent varieties, usually half a dozen to a dozen, to which they give distinct names. Just how far these distinctions coincide with botanical ones is uncertain, but these names vary too greatly in different localities for them to serve a useful purpose except very locally. The situation above described raises the question as to what practical method of classification recourse may be had. Broadly speaking, it cannot be said that there is any which could be put into immediate operation in a way that would be of special assistance either to an exporter or a purchaser. Until a classi- fication based on a thorough investigation has been devised, the only safe plan is to purchase by samples from each important region. Apparently the only variety of Philippine rattan distinguished with any degree of definiteness is that which forms the bulk of the exports from Palawan and which goes under the name of sika or sicca. It is perhaps the same or nearly the same as the high-grade Borneo rattan exported as segah and with which the Philippine product is probably mixed. Sika is generally agreed to be the best of the Philippine rattans. It is smooth and very tough, with a fairly light-yellow color, has small nodes, and a very uniform diameter averaging about a centimeter. The authorities of Bilibid Prison have stated that if a steady supply of this rattan could be secured at reasonable prices they would use it regularly as fully equal to the cane imported from Hongkong. Very little is known of the available supply or the extent of territory from which sika can be secured. Palawan is one of the most sparsely inhabited and least systematically exploited islands in the Archipelago. The present supply of sika is collected almost entirely by the unsupervised labor of the Tagbanuas and other pagan tribes. It is generally believed among those who handle the product in Manila that rattan of approximately this quality, whether under the same or other names, is only to be had from Palawan. There is, however, no 48 PHILIPPINE PALMS positive evidence of this, although it is known that the flora of Palawan is more closely related to that of Borneo than is that of the more northern islands of the Archipelago. The fact that at present no rattan of equal grade comes in commercial quantities to the Manila market from other parts of the islands, and that most of that sold in Manila is large and inferior, can scarcely, in view of our present ignorance of the subject and the unorganized nature of the trade, be regarded as proving much of anything. While sika is the only single variety of Philippine rattan that has been definitely distinguished for commercial purposes, there is another kind, or rather group or class — for it probably in- cludes a number of species — which to all appearances meets the essential specifications for export rattans. This is what might be called the high-grade mountain rattan and is found on the spurs and lower ridges of the forested highland portion of nearly all sections of the Philippines. It probably includes most of the smaller and less coarse varieties distinguished by special names in the localities where they are found. Much of it is cut for ordinary local uses, although in the more thickly inhabited parts of the Islands the best quality has to be sought in the less accessible regions. It forms the bulk of the material used in industrial schools and small factories in Bulacan Prov- ince for making rattan furniture. It is relatively plentiful and considerably cheaper than sika. It is generally said to be much inferior in quality to sika, but the existing data on this subject are by no means complete, and there is reason to believe that the better grades are almost, if not quite, as good for ordinary manufacturing purposes. The large amount of rattan available in the Philippines does not imply that a large quantity of high-grade Philippine rattan can at once be obtained, as no organized industry of any great extent exists. Most of the rattan cut is sold and used locally. The lack of a system of classification and of an extensively organized industry naturally results in great uncertainty as to prices. The collection of rattan is usually carried on entirely as a side line during the dry season, either when other local employment is lacking and a little ready money wanted, or when crops fail and a living must be had by other means. Under such condi- tions few men work steadily in gathering rattan and the supply is necessarily precarious. The holders of rattan licenses issued by the Bureau of Forestry are mainly the middlemen, a great majority of whom are Chinese shopkeepers. With them, rattan, DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 49 even when it is not a means of barter, is one of many articles of trade and they have neither the desire, knowledge, nor fa- cilities for handling it on a large scale. From what has been said in preceding pages, it will be seen that the Philippines offer a promising field for the export of rattan, but that before success is attained in this direction the whole industry must be much more highly organized than it is at the present time. Considerable discussion of the difficulties and their possible remedies is given by Arnold.* Conspectus of the species. a\ Leaves noncirriferous (the rachis not prolonged into a filiform, clawed or aculeate appendix). b\ Female flowers and fruits sessile or nearly so; that is, not furnished with a distinct pedicel derived from the lengthened involucrophore. c 1 . Leaflets almost equally green on both surfaces. 6} . Leaflets narrow, linear or linear-lanceolate, 1- to 3-costulate. e x . Spadices shortly flagelliferous, about as long as the leaves; fruits small, ovoid; seeds with equable albumen. f. Leaf -sheaths armed with slender straight spines; primary spathes also spinulous; leaflets very numerous; spathels of the female spikelets very short, bracteiform. A very variable plant, of which it is difficult to establish well- defined varieties, as one merges into the other by inter- mediate forms 1. C. mollis. g 1 . Sheathed stem usually 15 to 20 mm in diameter; leaf- sheaths more or less densely spinous; leaves 50 to 80 cm long C. mollis (forma typica) . g 2 . Robust; sheathed stem 2.5 to 3 cm in diameter; leaves up to 1.2 m long C. mollis var. major. g 3 . Slender; sheathed stem 12 to 15 mm in diameter; leaf- sheaths almost spineless C. mollis var. palawanensis. p. Leaf -sheaths and spathes unarmed; leaflets numerous; spathels of the female spikelets very short, bracteiform. 2. C. meyenianus. f. Very slender; leaflets very few and very inequidistant; spathels of the female spikelets shortly infundibuliform. 3. C. Blancoi. e\ Spadices (male and female) extremely long, and flagelliform, considerably longer than the leaves. f 1 . Leaflets sparingly spinulous on three nerves above, the midrib alone minutely hairy-spinulous underneath; female spadix with thickish spikelets drawn together around the main axis; fruit nearly spherical (13 to 14 by 10 mm), with a broad, blunt, black beak; seed pitted-ruminate. 4. C. melanorhynchus. * Arnold, J. R., Rattan supply of the Philippines. Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Department of Commerce. Special Agents Series No. 95 (1915), pages 3 to 23. 166908 4 50 PHILIPPINE PALMS f 2 . Leaflets having three slightly bristly nerves on the upper surface and covered throughout on the lower surface with numerous fulvous bristles; female spadix with slender, very spreading spikelets; fruit small, globose-ovoid (11 to 12.5 by 7 mm), with a narrow beak; seed pitted-ruminate. 5. C. filispadix. f. Leaflets with two bristly lateral nerves and the midrib smooth on the upper surface, the midrib bristly and the lateral nerves smooth underneath; spadices very loosely branched; male spikelets short, comblike; fruit spherical, 15 to 16 mm in diameter; seed very deeply ruminate through- out 6. C. Diepenhorstii var. exulans. d 2 . Leaflets lanceolate, 5-costulate; very robust; leaflets large, equi- distant; fruit large, ellipsoid, 3.5 cm long, 2.3 mm thick; seed quadrangular 7. C. ornatus var. philippinensis. c 2 . Leaflets conspicuously discolorous, green above, white underneath; leaf-sheaths flagellif erous ; spadix flagelliferous at its apex; primary spathes much lacerated in their upper part. eF. Leaflets bristly on three nerves above and on the midrib alone beneath 8. C. discolor. ef . Leaflets without bristles or nearly so on the upper surface, densely sprinkled with numerous subspiny bristles beneath. C. discolor var. negrosensis. 6 2 . Female flowers supported by a distinct pedicel derived from the elonga- tion of the involucrophore ; leaves of the upper part of the plant having the apices with gradually diminishing, pluricostulate leaflets, and the rachis clawed and subcirriferous. c 1 . Leaflets distinctly grouped, broadly oblanceolate and suddenly apic- ulate, slightly paler below than above; spikelets branched; fruit pisiform 9. C. Cumingianus. c 2 . Leaflets not grouped, lanceolate, gradually acuminate, more or less covered underneath with a very thin, adherent, ochraceous coating; spikelets simple, elongate; fruit pisiform 10. C. simphysipus. a 2 . Leaves having the rachis prolonged into a clawed cirrus. b 1 . Male and female spadices having the spikelets provided with a very distinct pedicellar part which is inserted at the bottom of the spathes. c 1 . Very robust; leaf-sheaths covered with slender spiculae, the latter individually distinct or more or less confluent by their broadened bases; leaflets more or less furnished with long bristles, especially on the midrib underneath; secondary spathes coriaceous, entire; fruit spherical, 10 to 12 mm in diameter; secondary spathes smooth 11. C. Merrillii (forma typica). - a: < o u_ o > x 60 PHILIPPINE PALMS The buds (ubud) of all the species are edible. The outer part of the trunk of most of them is split and made into very durable slat flooring. Genus COCOS Linnaeus With the exception of the recently introduced Cocos plumosa Hook, that is now cultivated to some extent for ornamental purposes in Manila, this genus is represented in the Philippines by a single species, the common coconut palm. COCOS NUCIFERA L. (Plates I, XVIII-XXIII). Coconut palm. Local names: Coco or cocotero (Spanish); giragara (Zamboanga) ; lobi or lubi (Pampanga, Bisaya) ; niog or niug (Ibanak, Iloko, Pampanga, Ta- galog, Bikol, Bisaya) ; ngotngot (Zambales) ; ongot (Cagayan) ; punlaing (Basilan). This palm is the most abundant, most universally distributed, and from an economic standpoint by far the most valuable in the -Philippines, and for that matter the most important of the commercial palms of the entire world. It is cultivated in most parts of the Philippines; and, where favorable conditions are found, thrives equally well on the seashore and inland up to altitudes of about 700 meters, and in some regions up to 1,500 meters. The palm can not successfully withstand a long dry season, such as is found in the region about Manila Bay, Luzon, but thrives best in those regions where the rainfall is more or less distributed throughout the entire year, especially on slopes where moving ground water is constantly available. In the Archipelago larger areas are devoted to its cultivation than *in any other similar part of the world. Cocos Nucifera is not a native of the Archipelago, but was apparently introduced during the prehistoric period. It is never found wild in the Philippines. The coconut palm has a multitude of uses, in number and importance probably not exceeded by any other palm. It yields timber; food; fermented and unfermented drinks; alcohol; vinegar ; thatching material ; splints ; strips and fiber for making baskets, mats, rope, hats, brushes, brooms, etc.; fuel; caulking material ; utensils for household use, such as cups, bowls, spoons, etc.; oil for food, cooking, illumination, for making soap, sub- stitutes for butter and lard, ointments; and oil cake for feeding domestic animals and for fertilizer. The bud makes an excellent salad. The palm is very ornamental and is fre- quently planted for decorative effect. The fresh leaves are extensively used for temporary decorations, and large numbers DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 61 PLATE XVIII. COCONUT PALM IN FRUIT, MINDANAO. 62 PHILIPPINE PALMS z Q. Q. I Q. LU I O < I- Z O o o o >< X UJ \- < -I Q. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 63 < m z tr u i i- < CD CC O UJ QC O Q. O O m < CD UJ > o 0C CD I- D Z O o o o >< X 3 Q. 64 PHILIPPINE PALMS of prepared young leaves are used for religious purposes on Palm Sunday. The leaflets are used for wrapping a rice con- fection known as suman, as described under Corypha elata. While the most valuable crop in the Philippines is rice, the coconut and abaka (Manila hemp) compete for second place. The most important product of the coconut palm is coco- nut oil, which is obtained by pressing the kernels. Formerly the dried kernels, known as copra, were exported from the Philippines, but recently a number of factories have been es- tablished, and it seems that in the future the oil rather than the copra will be exported. The pressed cake is valuable as a food for stock or as a fertilizer. With the present high price of fuel in the Philippines it has been used to a considerable extent as fuel. The oil is used extensively for the manufacture of food products and soap. The shells of the coconut make a very high grade of charcoal widely used for gas-masks. In 1918 the United States military authorities had an extensive organization for securing large quantities of this charcoal in the Philippines. Locally these shells have been much used as fuel for drying copra. In the internal commerce of the Philippines the most im- portant product of the coconut palm, after the fruit and the derived products, food, copra, and oil, is the fermented sap or tuba and the alcohol distilled from it. A large number of palms are devoted entirely to the tuba industry. The general method of tapping the coconut palm in the Philippines for the production of tuba is as follows: The unopened inflorescences are selected and are bent downward slowly and gradually, this operation being repeated several times a day for one or two weeks. The tip of the inflorescence, including the tip of the spathe and the branches of the inflorescence, is then cut off with a sharp knife. In general practice the spathe is not re- moved, and the whole inflorescence may or may not be bound with string; the wounded end of the inflorescence may or may not be bruised to stimulate the flow of sap, but usually the cutting alone is relied upon to produce the flow. When the flow of sap commences, a bamboo receiver (bamboo joint) is placed in posi- tion to catch and retain the sap, as with the nipa, buri, and sugar palms. A thin slice is removed from the wounded end of the inflorescence twice each day to ensure a continued flow. The average daily yield of sap from properly managed trees was found by Gibbs * to be about 1.4 liters, and it is estimated * Philippine Journal of Science, Section A, Vol. 6 (1911), page 157. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 65 PLATE XXI. COCONUT TREE TAPPED FOR SAP. 66 PHILIPPINE PALMS that the general annual average per tree under good condi- tions is about 400 liters. Gibbs says that fresh sap probably contains about 16.5 per cent sucrose. As with other palm saps, fermentation commences almost as soon as the sap drips from the wounded inflorescence. The partly fermented sap, or tuba as it is locally known, is extensively utilized by the Filipinos as a beverage. In many parts of the Philippines, an exten- sive industry has grown up in the fermentation of tuba and the distillation of its alcohol content, this product being known in the Philippines as dlak, arah, or bino (the last a corruption of Spanish "vino"). Some idea of the extent of the industry may be gained from the fact that in the year 1910 a total of nearly 700,000 pesos in internal revenue was collected on alcohol from this source, and the production of coconut-tuba alcohol presents a steady annual increase. If acidic fermentation be allowed to follow alcoholic fermen- tation in coconut tuba, the result will be vinegar, which is said to be of good quality. Care must be taken, however, to prevent putrefaction of the sap, to guard against which some bark rich in tannin is usually added to tuba destined for the manufacture of vinegar. Coconut-tuba vinegar is manufac- tured in the Philippines only to a limited extent for local use. As with the sweet, unfermented saps of the buri, nipa, and sugar palms, fresh coconut-palm sap can be evaporated to a syrup or sugar. Sugar, however, is but rarely, if at all, manu- factured in the Philippines from the coconut-palm sap. In gathering the sap for this purpose, fermentation must be pre- vented or inhibited, as in other palm saps. Locally, large quantities of the nuts are utilized for food and for extracting oil for domestic purposes. The unripe as well as the mature fruits are utilized in various ways for food. Some trees produce abnormal fruits, known as makapuno (from Tagalog puno = fu\\) . In these the whole interior of the nut is occupied by a soft, rather firm tissue quite different in texture from the hard flesh of normal nuts. These abnor- mal fruits are produced on the same tree with normal ones, and will not germinate. Only a small percentage of coconut trees in a given area will produce the makapuno nuts, which are valued as a delicacy and which command a much higher price than the normal fruits, often selling at a price ten times as great as the latter. A commercial product of the coconut that is but slightly utilized in the Philippines is the fiber prepared from the husk DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 67 Fig. 1. Coconut palm with inflorescences cut and bound to be inserted in bamboo joint for collecting tuba. Fig. 2. Coconut palm with bamboo tube for collecting tuba attached to inflorescence stalk. PLATE XXII. 68 PHILIPPINE PALMS or pericarp. This is commercially known as coir. It is va- riously employed for making bags, mattings, door mats, and for stuffing cushions, especially carriage cushions. In many parts of the Indo-Malayan region and Polynesia, coir is an im- portant source of cordage for local use. One of its chief local uses is for caulking boats. Coir is also locally used for making a thatch-like raincoat much used by both Filipino and Chinese teamsters. There is no record that it enters into the external commerce of the Archipelago. The leaves are utilized in various ways in the Philippines. The leaflets are sometimes used to thatch houses, for making hats, coarse baskets, mats, etc., but are much less durable for these purposes than the leaflets of some other palms. The mid- ribs of the leaflets are commonly used for making coarse brooms and certain types of baskets and trays. Splints prepared from the outer part of the leafstalk are used in making baskets. Genus COELOCOCCUS Wendland COELOCOCCUS AMICARUM Wendl. POLYNESIAN IVORY-NUT PALM. The ivory-nut palm is a native of the Caroline Islands, and was introduced into Guam and the Philippines by the Spaniards. The flowering shoots grow from the axils of the leaves. The globose fruits, up to 10 centimeters in diameter, are covered with closely overlapping, hard, shiny, brownish scales. The large seeds are very hard, ivory-like in texture and appearance, and are commercially utilized for making buttons. This spe- cies apparently occurs as a widely scattered, cultivated palm in Panay and Zamboanga, in the latter province known as tim- bungan. Genus CORYPHA Linnaeus CORYPHA ELATA Roxb. (Plates XXIV-XXVIII) . BuRf. Local names: Bagdtai, tdktak (Ibanag, Nueva Vizcaya) ; buli, buri (Ta- galog, Bisaya, Bikol) ; ebus or ibus (Pampanga, Tarlac) ; piet (Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan) ; serar (Bagobo) ; silad (Bisaya) ; silag (Iloko, Pangasinan, Tarlac). This is the largest and most stately palm to be found in the Philippines. Its straight trunk attains a diameter of 1 meter and a height of 20 meters. The species has very large, fan- shaped leaves which are rounded in outline and up to 3 meters in length. The outer part is split into about one hundred nar- row segments. The very stout petioles are from 2 to 3 meters long and their margins are armed with very hard, rather large, black teeth. The plant grows 25 to 30 or more years, during which time large quantities of starch collect in the trunk. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 69 O o o o L. O CO I- Ll < tr x X < 70 PHILIPPINE PALMS It then flowers once and dies, the enormous quantities of stored starch being used up during the short flowering and fruiting period. At maturity the leaves wither and there appears an enormous, pyramidal, terminal, flowering shoot, which may be 7 meters in height. From an industrial standpoint the buri palm is one of great local importance. A fermented drink or palm wine (tuba), alcohol, vinegar, syrup, and sugar are produced from the sap. The trunk yields large quantities of food material in the form of starch. The buds (ubud) are used for salads or as a vegetable. The kernels of the young fruits are edible and are made into sweetmeats; while Blanco states that the outer covering of the mature fruit is eaten by birds and sometimes by children. The mature seeds are used for beads (rosaries) and buttons. The wood is practically valueless. The leaf is of special importance. The petiole yields the so-called buntal fiber of which the famous Lucban hats are made ; or which, when crudely extracted, is some- times twisted into rope. The mature leaf is used for covering tobacco bales, rarely as a thatch for houses, while the ribs are used for making brooms. From the unopened leaf is obtained a very fine fiber, corresponding to raffia fiber, which is utilized in making cloth, fancy articles, and as string. Fibers secured from the ribs of the unopened leaves are extensively used in the manufacture of the so-called Calasiao or Pototan hats. Strips of the unopened leaf are made into hats, mats, bags, sails, bas- kets, and other articles. Table III. — Stand of buri palms (Corypha elata) on five blocks, aggregating Jf585 hectares in the Rio Chico region of Luzon. Data from report by Ranger Rola. [Plants per block.] Number of block. 1 2 3 Area of block. Area surveyed. Size of plant. (Figures represent number of trees per block). . ._ .... n Without trunk. Height in meters. With trunk. 17,950 386 4,436 Total plants on one block. Less than 1. 1 to 2. Morethan2. 721,590 i 3,532,560 38,600 1 203,422 609,950 1,137,834 183,800 904,296 151.152 590,320 Hectare. 1,795 386 1,109 919 376 Hectare. 0.5 1.2 0.5 0.3 0.4 538, 500 32, 810 166, 350 218, 722 151, 152 4, 810, 600 275, 218 1, 918, 570 1, 306, 818 894. 504 4 5 Total... 1,880 4,585 2.9 1, 107, 534 1,705,092 6,368,432 24, 652 9,205.710 DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 71 PLATE XXIV. CORYPHA ELATA (BURI) AND TWO SPECIMENS OF CARYOTA (PUGAHAN). 72 PHILIPPINE PALMS Table III. — Stand of buri palms (Corypha elata) etc. — Continued. [Plants per hectare.] Number of block. Area of block. Area Size of plant. (Figures representnumber of trees per hectare) . Total plants on one hectare. 2.680 713 1,730 1,422 2,379 Without trunk. With trunk. 10 1 4 5 surveyed. Hectare. 0.5 1.2 0.5 Height in meters. Less than 1. 1 to 2. i Morethan2. 1 Hectare. 1,795 386 1.109 919 376 300 85 150 402 100 550 200 402 1,968 527 1,026 984 1,570 2 3 4 0.3 ! 238 0.4 i 402 5 _ Average 235 1 aai 1,215 4 1.785 Among Philippine palms, the buri ranks next to the coconut and nipa palm in economic importance, yet in few parts of the Archipelago is it fully utilized. It does not supply material of any special export value except the buntal and Calasiao hats. This palm is widely distributed in the Philippines at low and medium altitudes, extending from northern Luzon to southern Mindanao, Palawan, and the Sulu Archipelago. In some re- gions it appears as a widely scattered palm, and is occasionally planted. In other regions it is exceedingly abundant, grega- rious, and locally the dominant species. Mr. Franks * reports approximately 2,000,000 trees on an area of 5,000 hectares in Mindoro, of which about 12 per cent were mature. The island of Burias is said to take its name from this palm. Ranger Rola has made valuation surveys in a buri forest covering approximately 5,000 hectares in the Rio Chico region, Pam- panga Province, Luzon. The surveys were made on five dif- ferent blocks. The results are given in Table III. These five blocks covered a total area of 4,585 hectares. They con- tained 9,205,710 buri palms. Most of the plants were over 2 meters in height but without clear trunks. Of such sizes, there were 6,368,432 palms on the area. Buri is especially abund- ant in the provinces of Pangasinan, Pampanga, Tayabas, Cam- arines, and Sorsogon in Luzon, and in parts of the islands of Palawan, Mindoro. Panay. Neeros. Masbate. Cebu. Bohol, and Mindanao. ♦Philippine Craftsman, Volume I (1912), page 194; Philippine Journal of Science, Sec. A, Volume VI (1911), page 168. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 73 PLATE XXV. CORYPHA ELATA (BURI) IN FLOWER. 74 PHILIPPINE PALMS The buntal fiber, derived from the petiole, is especially val- uable and is extensively used in the manufacture of fine hats both for local use and for export. The production of buntal fiber originated in the region about Sariaya, Tayabas Province, Luzon, while the hats are commonly known in the market as Lucban hats, being mostly manufactured in the neighboring town of Lucban. These are the so-called Bangkok hats of the American trade. Now, however, the production of buntal is extending to other regions, and buntal hats are being manu- factured in other towns, sometimes from materials locally produced, sometimes from fiber purchased in Sariaya or neighboring towns. Technical Bulletin No. 3 of the Philippine Bureau of Education * gives minute directions for the produc- tion of the fiber, for the problem of buntal production is not only one of method of extraction, but also of proper selection of petioles. Buntal is extracted from the petioles of young or immature palms, and apparently the fiber is best obtained from those plants having considerable sap flow. Buntal fiber commands a price of about 4.00 pesos per kilo, which in a country like the Philippines indicates that the cost of extraction is great and that the yield of fiber of the proper length and quality is small. The material prepared from the unopened leaf of the buri palm is of great local significance; buri strips, which are pre- pared from the young leaf, being perhaps most important. The coarser strips are used in weaving sacks, coarse mats, and sails, which are sometimes of considerable size; the finer, better prepared ones in manufacturing various grades of hats, mats, and baskets. Hundreds of thousands of sugar sacks made from buri strips and known as bayones, annually convey practically all the sugar exported from the Philippines. In some towns the manufacture of buri-strip hats for export is an important local industry. These hats are chiefly of low grade and cheap. Buri-strip mat making is an extensive in- dustry wherever the palm grows. The coarse mats serve for packing and baling various materials for export. The finer ones, as the finer hats, are always made from bleached strips. Frequently the strips are dyed different colors and combined to produce various geometric figures. The unopened leaves are important for another reason. They produce the so-called buri raffia, variously known in the Phil- * Philippine Craftsman, Volume III (1914), page 45. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 75 cc DO < < < X Q. >- DC O O 76 PHILIPPINE PALMS ippines as sagitran, daet, banlo, bayokbok, and hubuk fiber. This fiber is stripped from the outer part of the petiole. The material from the upper surface is stronger than that from the lower, but not so fine in texture. The stripping must be done not only from young, unopened leaves, but also within a short time after the leaves are removed from the palm. This fiber is the same as the agel fiber of the Dutch East Indies, that is quite extensively produced in southern Celebes and there com- mands a price of from 4 to 8 guilders per picul. It is much used there for making fine matting.* This material is now quite widely employed in the industrial work of the Philippine schools for all purposes for which true raffia fiber is used. Comparative tensile-strength tests, made by Saleeby f on raffia fiber from Madagascar and the Philippine product of Corypha elata, showed that the true raffia was about 30 per cent stronger than the buri product, but that the latter was superior in color, fineness and lustre. This material was formerly used in many parts of the Philippines for weaving cloth. The cloth varies greatly in fineness, is not especially durable, yet in some parts of the Islands is still used for clothing. The material readily takes colors and is excellent for making cushion covers, screens, bags, coiled baskets, etc. From the ribs of the unopened leaves important fibers are secured that are used for the manufacture of the Calasiao or Pototan hats; so called from the two towns where this type of hat originated, Calasiao in Pangasinan Province, Luzon, and Pototan in Panay. The ribs are removed from the leaf, graded as to color, split, the softer interior removed, and the halves again split once or twice. The strands thus produced are smoothed, worked down to the required thickness, and are then ready for weaving. Hats made of this material have a well- deserved reputation for appearance and durability. Fine bas- kets, trays, cigarette cases, etc., are also manufactured from this material. Sometimes the entire ribs are used for making coarse brooms. In many parts of the Philippines the leafstalks are gathered, thoroughly pounded or crushed, and the vascular strands re- moved for the purpose of manufacturing cordage. The fibers * See Heyne, De Nuttige Planten van Nederlandsch-Indie, Volume I (1913), page 41. t Philippine Agricultural Review, Volume 6 (1913), page 192; Philip- pine Craftsman, Volume 2 (1913), page 422. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 77 Fig. 1. Outer and inner halves of one Calasiao hat. Fig. 2. Completed buri-midrib (Calasiao) hat. PLATE XXVII. 78 PHILIPPINE PALMS are twisted into a rope which is extensively used in some parts of the Philippines, notably in Panay. Strips made from the leaves are used for wrapping a con- fection of glutinous rice, known as suman. The strips' are wrapped in a spiral form around the confection to form a sausage-shaped package. Whole leaves are regularly brought for this purpose to Manila, where suman making is an estab- lished industry. In the provinces it is merely a domestic affair. For a discussion of the various buri fibers and their products see the following: Miller, H. H., Philippine Hats, Philippine Bureau of Educa- tion Bulletin 33, (1910), pages 1 to 60; Robinson, C. B., Phil- ippine Hats, Philippine Journal of Science, Section C, Volume 6 (1911), pages 93 to 131; Muller, T., Industrial Fiber Plants of the Philippines, Bureau of Education Bulletin 49, (1913), pages 73 to 85 ; Gibbs, H. D., The Alcohol Industry in the Phil- ippine Islands, Part I, Philippine Journal of Science, Section A, Volume 6 (1911), pages 147 to 206; Miller, H. H. and others, Philippine Mats, Philippine Craftsman, Volume I (1912), pages 194 to 203; Parker, L., Philippine Craftsman, Volume 2 (1913), pages 376 to 395. At present, the production of sugar, alcohol, and starch from the buri palm is only of minor local importance and gives little promise of future development into industries of great mag- nitude. The subject has been extensively investigated by Gibbs * with the following general results. The sap is obtained from the buri palm in two ways. Ap- parently the more usual way is to cut an inflorescence near its base, protecting the cut surface from the sun and rain by a small covering of leaves, and collecting the sap which flows from the cut surface, in small earthen jars. The second method, used in Tayabas and some other provinces, but not known to a great many localities, is employed on trees which have not flowered and which may, indeed, be very far from maturity. The trees are stripped of leaves, the top bound with bamboo hoops 8 to 10 centimeters apart for a distance of about 1 meter, and then cut off so that the heart of the tree is exposed. The surface thus produced is cut and channeled, furnishing a clean tissue which is continually exposed to the air, but protected from the sun by a covering of leaf thatch. In three or four * Gibbs, H. D., The alcohol industry of the Philippine Islands. Part I. Philippine Journal of Science, Volume 6 (1911), pages 99 to 206. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 79 Fig. 1. Buntal (Lukban). Fig. 2. Buntal (Baliuag). Fig. 3. Calasiao. Fig. 4. Buri leaf. PLATE XXVIII. PORTIONS OF PHILIPPINE HATS MAGNIFIED FOUR DIAMETERS. 80 PHILIPPINE PALMS days, sometimes one, the sap begins to flow steadily and rapidly. In either case, the tree can of course be tapped but once, and death ensues in a short time. Gibbs observed two trees tapped by the first method. In one case the flow continued for four and one-half and in the other for three and one-half months. An old tree, tapped according to the second method, gave a flow for 132 days. This tree produced a total of 2,699.65 liters of sap or an average daily flow of 20.45 liters. The maximum flow recorded from this tree per day was 45.2 liters. Another tree, about 12 years old, produced sap for 55 days. Fresh cuts should be made at frequent intervals, as the rate of flow may be thus temporarily increased as much as 50 per cent. The rate also varies according to the thickness of the slice removed ; at least, if the exudation is from the top of the trunk. Gibbs found that a daily decreasing rate of flow could be changed to Table IV. — Sugar in total sap flow of the buri palm (Corypha elata) . Tree num- ber. 1. 2 3 Method of tapping. Inflorescence cut Infloresceuce cut Stem cut Esti- mated age of tree. Esti- mated daily flow. Approx- imate sugar content. Daily sugar yield. Duration of sap flow. Total sugar yield. Kilos. Years. Liters. Per cent. Kilos. Days. 30 20 14 2.8 100 280 30 30 8 2.4 135 324 12 40 9 3.6 50 180 an increasing one by augmenting the thickness of the cuttings. Table IV gives data on the sugar content and yield of sap from three palms. The fresh sap is too sweet to be palatable as a beverage, but makes a popular cider when fermented. As it flows from the tree and for a short time after, the sap is colorless, odorless, and neutral or slightly alkaline. After standing, a viscous, followed by a putrid, fermentation deve- lops when no precaution is taken to prevent it. The sucrose begins to invert in a few hours and the process is complete in about thirty hours. A comparatively small yield of alcohol re- sults from the spontaneous fermentation of the sap; a greater portion of the reducing sugars being changed by the viscous, putrid, and other fermentations than by the alcoholic. Sugar is made from the buri sap, which is boiled in ordinary kettles and sold as a confection. The boiling requires about six hours, after which the kettle is removed from the fire and the contents stirred until the sugar granulates. It is then ladled DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 81 out and molded. This is usually done either in coconut shells or small square boxes made from buri leaves. Gibbs reports that sugar of excellent quality, polarizing at 94° to 98°, has been produced in the laboratory of the Bureau of Science by boiling the sap, preserved with lime, in open pans. Although the sap contains a high percentage of sugar and the yield per tree is considerable, Gibbs was not of the opinion that buri sap alone could be successfully employed as a commercial source of sugar. He says, however, that when a large stand of buri occurs in the proximity of a sugar mill it seems entirely feasible to use the sap in connection with sugar-cane juice. Filipinos make starch from the trunk of the buri. The entire pithy portion of the trunk is cut into strips, dried, and then pounded to separate the starch from the fiber. The fine dust thus obtained is washed in cold water; the starch settles out in the usual way, and is dried. Bacon * obtained a yield of 6 per cent of starch, and on this basis he calculated that from an averaged-sized tree about a hundred kilos of starch could be obtained. The starch is in large grains. According to Ba- con, it does not wash white, but always has a decidedly red hue. In view of this fact and of the difficulty in extracting it, he did not think that the buri palm could be utilized commercially for starch. Genus DAEMONOROPS Blume (Plate XXIX). The species of Daemonorops, like those of Calamus, are slender, climbing palms (rattans) having the same sylvan hab- itat, growth-form, general adaptations for climbing, and uses. As a rule, however, the rattan yielded by Daemonorops is de- cidedly inferior to that of Calamus. Daemonorops has by some authors been reduced to Calamus, and there is no single char- acter that will always distinguish the two genera. However, they can usually be separated by the following characters: In Daemonorops the leaf sheaths never produce long whip-like structures ; in Calamus they often do. In the former the ocrea is very short, in the latter often greatly developed; in the for- mer the upper leaves are always supplied with a whip-like structure, in the latter the flagellum may or may not be present. In Daemonorops the spathes are never armed with claws and the panicle is short, while in Calamus the lower parts of the spathes are so armed and the spadices are usually greatly elongated. * Gibbs, H. D., The alcohol industry of the Philippine Islands. Part I. Philippine Journal of Science, Section A, Volume 6 (1911), pages 99 to 206. 166908 6 82 PHILIPPINE PALMS Conspectus of the species. a 1 . Cymbospatha. Spadix, S and $, contracted. Primary spathes cymbi- form, beaked, the outermost completely inclosing the inner ones. 1. D. Margaritae var. palawanicus. a 2 . Piptospatha. Spadix, d and $, elongated. Inner primary spathes gradually longer than the outermost. b\ Leaflets very inequidistant, ensiform, the largest 40 to 50 cm long, 2.5 to 3 cm wide; fruit ovoid-ellipsoidal, 25 mm long, 16 to 17 mm thick, very shortly pedicellate 2. D. virescens. b 2 . Leaflets equidistant. c 1 . The mouths of the leaf-sheaths unarmed. d\ Leaflets lanceolate-ensiform, the largest 30 to 45 cm long, 3 to 3.5 cm wide, the midrib only sparsely bristly below, smooth above or else minutely spinulous near the apex; fruit spherical, mammillate-beaked, 18 to 20 mm in diameter 3. D. ochrolepis. o?. Leaflets less than 3 cm wide, bristly on three to five nerves above. e\ Leaflets 30 cm long, 15 to 16 mm wide (the largest), bristly on three nerves above, and on the midrib only underneath; the axis of the spadix and spikelets coated with a rusty- brown scurf; fruit carried on a pedicel 8 to 10 mm long, globose-ovoid, obtusely mammillate-beaked. 4. D. urdanetanus. e 2 . Leaflets very narrowly lanceolate, 20 to 23 cm long, 14 to 18 mm wide (the largest), bristly on three nerves above, and with a few long bristles on the midrib only underneath. Male flowers very long and slender (12 mm long). 5. D. Loherianus. e\ Leaflets 30 cm long, 15 to 20 mm wide (the largest), bristly on five nerves above, but only on the midrib beneath, fruit 12 to 17 mm long, 9 to 11 mm through, ovoid-ellipsoid, carried on a pedicel 4 to 6 mm long 6. D. pedicellaris. d\ Leaflets less than 3 cm wide, having the midrib alone spinulous, on only one or on both surfaces. e 1 . Leaflets 30 to 32 cm long, 2 to 2.5 cm wide (the largest), having the midrib alone spinulous on both surfaces; axis of the spadix and spikelets densely coated with a copious brown felt; fruit ovoid-ellipsoid, blunt-mammillate, carried on a thick, 5 to 6 mm long pedicel 7. D. pannosus. e\ Leaflets 30 to 40 cm long, 2 to 2.5 cm wide (the largest), smooth or nearly so on the upper surface, underneath the midrib alone remotely spinulous; axial parts of the spadix and spikelets coated with adherent rusty-brown scurf; fruit globose and obtusely mammillate, 17 to 18 mm in diameter, with a few well-conformed scales, and carried on a pedicel 10 to 12 mm long 8. D. oligolepis. c 2 . The mouths of the leaf-sheaths armed with erect spines, longer than those on the body. d 1 . Fruit large, over 2 cm in diameter; leaflets narrowly ensiform, 40 to 42 cm long, 13 to 15 mm broad (the largest), spinulous on three nerves above and bristly on the midrib alone beneath; fruit spherical, 20 to 24 mm in diameter.... 9. D. Clemensianus. d\ Fruit less than 2 cm in diameter. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 83 PLATE XXIX. DAEMONOROPS MOLLIS (GAUDICHAUDII) (A RATTAN). 84 PHILIPPINE PALMS e\ Leaflets linear-ensiform, 35 to 45 cm long, 16 to 24 mm broad (the largest), with three bristly nerves on the upper suriace, underneath the midrib alone or, occasionally, also three nerves bristly; partial inflorescences and spikelets spreading; fruit globose, mammillate-beaked, often slightly depressed, 15 to 18 mm in diameter 10. X UJ h- < _l Q. 104 PHILIPPINE PALMS He found that the inversion of the sucrose began almost im- mediately after the sap dripped from the stem, and concluded that it was due to the formation of an enzyme. Tuba is carried by small boats (bancas) from the place of collection to the distilleries. According to Gibbs, the inversion is complete, the alcoholic fermentation well under way and sometimes completed before the sap arrives at the distillery. Occasionally the acetic acid fermentation has progressed to a considerable extent. The yield of alcohol obtained from the sap varied from 4.1 to 7.5 per cent, the average for 33 distilleries being 5.6 per cent. Due to faulty methods, the yield of alcohol is not what it should be. The average price paid for the sap at the distillery is, according to Gibbs, 0.006 pesos per liter. Gibbs says that the alcohol produced from the nipa sap should be about 6 per cent of the tuba, and under favorable conditions he believes above 7 per cent. With a yield of 6.5 per cent alcohol the purchase price of the raw material would be equivalent to a cost of 0.0415 pesos to 0.083 pesos per liter for 90 per cent alcohol. His estimates would indicate that nipa sap is the cheapest known source of alcohol. For manufacturing alcohol, nipa possesses several advantages over grains in that it does not need purification, pulping, etc. The storage space and fermenta- tion vats may also be smaller, since fermentation is complete in from six to ten hours and the material ready to be distilled. Gibbs estimates that the owner of a nipa area, by selling sap, clears about 129.00 pesos per hectare per annum. In some distilleries, especially in those near sugar-cane lands, molasses is added to the fermenting sap. The molasses, which usually contains about 60 per cent of fermentable carbohydrates, is sometimes used in amounts equal to that of the tuba. Accord- ing to Gibbs the advantages are threefold ; the invertase and al- coholic ferment in the tuba act with great rapidity upon the molasses, providing an easy method for the utilization of the latter ; the production of alcohol is greatly increased ; and when there is a shortage in the supply of sap, the uninterrupted run- ning of the stills is assured. The use of molasses during a portion of the season enables some distilleries to operate the entire year. TUBA The fermented juice (tuba) of the nipa palm is used exten- sively by the Filipinos as a beverage. VINEGAR Considerable quantities of vinegar are manufactured from nipa tuba by allowing acetic fermentation to follow alcoholic DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 105 •-■>' ' * "f - % -r " ./ 1 tU ; -Qp&;" #1 /i^Lf /J VM * »*>Pr^ /* < 106 PHILIPPINE PALMS fermentation. The methods at present used are very crude and the product inferior. It contains only from 2 to 3 per cent of acetic acid. CULTIVATION OF NIPA A considerable amount of capital is invested in the nipa-alcohol industry. Large distilleries exist in various nipa swamps, which latter have been improved by cultivation. Artificial channels have been dredged to make the nipa areas more accessible for gather- ing and transporting the sap, and in some places the areas have been extended by planting. Yet at the present time only a small part of the available "nipales" is commercially utilized. The best publication on the cultivation of nipa is a small pamphlet published in Manila in 1906 by Enrique Zobel, en- titled "Estudio de la planta Nipa". The following information is taken from this publication : Nipa is planted in the months from May to July, the seeds being placed in holes 1.7 to 2 meters apart. The period of development does not exceed four years, in which time the plant flowers, and can be utilized for the production of alcohol. During the first year the plant attains a height of from 1.5 to 2 meters. At the end of two years a nipa plant has seven or eight leaves and this number is maintained throughout its life. The seeds carried by water and deposited on land under shade seem to develop bet- ter and to produce healthier plants than those artificially planted in the open. Nipa is not only reproduced by seeds but also by the branching of the rhizome. In order to keep a nipal (nipa swamp) in good condition, the plants must be thinned until they are from 1.5 to 1.7 meters apart. In doing this it is necessary to cut up the roots of the plants removed, to prevent their regen- eration. If a nipa swamp is cultivated for the sap, the fresh leaves should not be cut ; while it is very advantageous to remove the drooping or drying leaves, which can be used for thatching houses, etc. When roofing material and not tuba is desired, three or four fresh leaves may be cut from each plant, but this inter- feres with the development of the plant and greatly decreases the flow of tuba. If nipa is cultivated for alcohol, care should be taken not to injure the plant at the time of flowering, as an injury at this time is likely to cause the flower to die. The first thing done before gathering the sap is the cleaning of the nipal. The ground is cleared of weeds and vines and any other obstacles that in- terfere with the workman passing between the plants to collect tuba. At this time the mature leaves are cut off, tied into bundles, and transported to the houses where women make the nipa shingles. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 107 SUGAR It is possible that the nipa palm may prove to be a profitable commercial source of sugar. This subject has been quite ex- tensively investigated by chemists of the Bureau of Science,* with the following general results: With a normal average sap flow of from 30 to 50 liters per plant per day over a period of three months, with a sap-collecting period of six months, and with an average of 750 bearing trees per hectare, it was found that one hectare would produce an average quantity of 30,000 liters of sap. The cost of collecting and delivery at a sugar mill was found to be about 3.00 pesos per 1,000 liters, and the sugar yield about 115 kilos of commercial white sugar, polarizing at 99° or above, per 1,000 liters of sap. The palm juice has the advantage over cane juice in that it is free from acids, waxes, etc., is colorless, with no debris and, when fresh, with no invert sugar. The chief difficulty in utilizing nipa as a source of sugar lies in the fact that, normally, fermentation com- mences with the flow of sap from the cut peduncle ; that enzymes are present in the sap which w r ill in time cause the complete inversion of the sucrose, and that it is difficult to prevent this inversion. With the use of a modified type of container for gathering the sap, freshly lined with lime cream and sulphite, fermentation and inversion can be prevented or inhibited for at least twelve hours, thus allowing sufficient time to collect and deliver the sap without undue loss of sucrose. Genus ONCOSPERMA Blume This genus is represented by four closely allied species, all similar in appearance. They are Oncosperma platyphyllum Becc. and O. gracilipes Becc, both endemic, and the more widely distributed Malayan species O. horridum Scheff . and O. filamen- tosum Blume. Among all the erect palms of the Philippines, Oncosperma can be at once recognized by the numerous, long, slender, horizontally spreading, stiff, sharp spines borne on the trunk throughout its length. Conspectus of the species. a 1 . Gregarious. Floriferous branches of the spadix numerous, long, slender, and inserted at different levels on the rachis. Male flowers with 6 stamens. Fruit small, spherical, 11 to 12 mm in diameter. 1. O. filamentosum. * Gibbs, H. D., The alcohol industry of the Philippine Islands. Part I. Philippine Journal of Science, Section A, Volume 6 (1911), pages 99 to 206. * Pratt, D. S., Thurlow, L. W., Williams, R. R., and Gibbs, H. D., The nipa palm as a commercial source of sugar. Philippine Journal of Science, Section A, Volume 8 (1913), pages 377 to 398. 108 PHILIPPINE PALMS a 2 . Stem very tall, solitary. Spathe very densely covered with criniform spines. Spadix with numerous, long, floriferous branches, which gradually narrow from a very thick base to a slender apex. Fruit large, spherical, 20 to 22 mm in diameter 2. O. horridum. a 3 . Rather large and growing in clumps. Spadix with rather short and thick floriferous branches; the latter clustered together and very closely scrobiculate. Fruit spherical or very slightly longer than broad, 15 to 16 mm in diameter, with the remains of the stigmas placed laterally, about halfway or a little above 3. O. platyphylhcm. a 4 . Trunk slender. Spadix with relatively few, clustered, thickish, very closely scrobiculate, floriferous branches. Spathe not densely spinose. Fruit spherical, 14 to 15 mm in diameter, with nearly apical remains of the stigmas. Fruiting perianth 12 mm in diameter.. 4. O. gracilipes. ONCOSPERMA FILAM ENTOSUM Bl. Anibong. Local names: Anibong (Tagalog, Bisaya) ; anibung (Tagbanua). Like the other species of the genus, this is a rather tall, slen- der palm. It often grows subgregariously in favorable habitats, in ravines, or in lowlands back of the mangrove and often within the influence of brackish or salt water. The outer part of the trunk is very hard and durable; and split into narrow pieces is extensively used by the Filipinos, in the regions where it grows, for house floors. It is also used for spear shafts. The bud is edible, either raw or cooked; while in the Malay Archipelago, perhaps also in the Philippines, the fruits are sometimes used as a substitute for Areca fruits in preparing buyo for chewing. Oncosperma Inorridum is known in Bagobo as tanaian and in Manobo as anibung. Genus ORANIA Zippel Four very closely allied species of this genus have been de- scribed from the Philippines. These are Orania palindan (Blanco) Merr. (0. philippinensis Scheff.), 0. paraguanensis Becc, 0. rubiginosa Becc, and 0. decipiens Becc. The genus is of slight economic value, and a short discussion of the com- monest species will suffice. Conspectus of the species. a 1 . Floriferous branches ultimately glabrous. b\ Male flowers angular, lanceolate, 6 to 8 mm long, 3 to 3.5 mm broad, or about twice as long as broad, having the stamens one-third to one-half shorter than the petals; anthers linear-oblong. Female flowers broadly ovate-trigonous, the calyx cupular, very low; petals triangular, subaequilateral. Fruit spherical or very slightly nar- rowed at the base, usually 5.5 to 6 cm in diameter, at times somewhat less; mesocarp about 5 mm thick 1. O. philippinensis. DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES 109 PLATE XLII. ORANIA PALINDAN (PALINDAN). 110 DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES c\ Fruit exactly spherical, larger than in the species (6.5 cm in diameter), yet with a thinner mesocarp (3.5 to 4 mm thick). O. philippinensis var. sibuyanensis. b 2 . Male flowers narrow, linear, 8 mm long, 2 mm broad, or about four times as long as broad, having the stamens nearly as long as the petals and the anthers very narrowly linear. Fruit spherical, smaller than in O. philippinensis, 4.5 to 4.7 cm in diameter, the meso- carp 3.5 to 4 mm thick 2. O. paraguanensis. 6 3 . Male flowers narrowly linear. Fruit slightly narrowing to the base, or slightly pyriform, considerably smaller than in the preceding species, 4 to 4.5 cm long, 35 to 37 mm thick; kernel spherical, extended at the base into a broadly obconical blunt point; mesocarp relatively thick (3 to 4 mm) and furnished with many short and stout woody fibers. Seed about 25 mm in diameter.. 3. O. decipiens. c\ Fruit smaller than in the species (37 mm long, 31 to 32 mm thick), but always more or less narrowing to the base; mesocarp also thinner (2.5 mm thick) O. decipiens var. mindanaoensis. c 2 . Fruit spherical, not narrowing to the base, 42 mm in diameter ; mesocarp 4 to 5 mm thick O. decipiens var. montana. By William H. Brown and Arthur F. Fischer. 50 centavos. i No. 17 (1918). — Philippine mangrove swamps. By William H. wn and Arthur F. Fischer. 2 pesos, tin No. 18 (1919). — Philippine palms and palm products. By William .. Brown and Elmer D. Merrill. 1.50 pesos. iletin No. 19 (1919) .—Philippine fiber plants. By William H, Brown. 1.50 pesos. * Fifty cents TJ. S. currency equal 1 peso or 100 centavos. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN ■111 3 9015 05068 6784