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Natural Product Radiance Vol 2(4) July-August 2003194

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FIBRE YIELDING PLANTS OF INDIAGenetic resources, perspective for collection and utilisation

Anjula Pandey and Rita GuptaNational Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources,

New Delhi-110012, India

Abstract

The paper provides a brief overview of the major fibre yielding plants andtheir uses in India. This account includes data mainly based on field experience,market surveys, ethnobotanical information and other relevant literatureavailable on this account. The enumeration of the species listed under variousplant families provides ready reference for use and commercial names ofimportant fibre types. The analysis provides the untapped wealth under thiscategory for widening the base of fibre genetic resources, future collectionsand utilisation. The promising species thus indicated may provide scope fordomestication and future cultivation.

Gradual depletion of forestresources of plant based material resultedin loss of important diversity. The plantfibres have specific qualities such asthermal insulation, resistance to water andother desirable traits. To increase constantsupply of raw materials to plant fibre basedindustries a need was felt to explore andidentify alternative materials. By identifyingnew fibre yielding species as well as noveluses of fibre through research anddevelopment, there would be decrease inpressure on handful number of speciesused for fibre, besides supporting thesmall scale industry and reinforcing fibrefor waste fibre recycling (Gillah et al,1998; Velasquez, 2001). The presentenumeration is an effort in this direction.

The plant fibres are classifiedmainly on the basis of morphologicalnature, structure, origin and uses. Basedon botanical origin, vegetable fibres

(excluding wood fibres) are grouped intosoft fibres/ bast fibres, hard fibres orstructural fibres and surface fibres. Bastfibres are exogenous in origin and aregenerally more durable, resistant toretting, bleaching and other processingtreatments. They are associated withvascular tissues, such as phloem, pericycleand cortex. Examples of bast fibres arejute, hemp, flax, roselle, ramie, etc.Structural fibres primarily associated withmonocotyledonous plants are shorter,lignified cells surrounding vascular tissue.They are endogenous in nature, coarse,weaker, hard and brittle and thus lessdurable than the bast fibres. The commonexamples include Manila hemp, Sisal andKittul fibres. The separation is done bymechanical methods using simple rollers;washing, beating and thrashing process isusually applied to make them into shreds.The surface fibres originate from the seed/fruit surface. Cottons and the silk cottonsare common examples of commercialsurface fibres. Fibre separation is done bythe process of ginning and mechanicalextraction.

The plant fibres are variable incharacteristics with respect to strength,durability, length, texture, plant part inwhich present, chemical composition,pigmentation, resistance to water, etc.Fibre durability depends largely on thechemical nature of the deposits andlocation in plant tissue. The cellulosic

Introduction

Among the plant speciescommonly used by man the fibre yieldingplants hold the second position after thefood plants in their economic importance.The ancient man started his nomadic lifeby using plant materials directly forcovering and protecting his body; thatchedleaf for shelters and huts; mats forhousehold and other day to day activities.Gradually fast mobility and advancementin the lifestyle led him to search for lighter,more durable and sophisticated lookingmaterial for routine use. There began anera of developing different types of textiles,papers, basketories, woven clothes, mats,hats, ropes and cordage material forvarious uses. Some of the oldestarchaeological records of direct orindirect use of fibre from plants are givenin Table 1.

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fibres such as ramie and cotton fibres aremore durable than the ligno-cellulosicfibres, jute and mesta. The strength of fibreis mainly due to purity of cellulose,thickness of the cell wall and theclustering.

The present work wasundertaken to enumerate Indian speciesreported to have fibre value, identifyinggaps for collection and conservationprogrammes and their utilisation atnational and international levels. Theinvestigation was done during study on'Genetic Resources of EconomicallyImportant Plant Families` taken up in theNational Herbarium of Cultivated Plants,National Bureau of Plant GeneticResources (NBPGR) during the period1986-2000.

The data input includes majorand minor, cultivated and wild, indigenousand exotic plant wealth exploited for fibrein different parts of India. The informationgathered through field experience,material collected through variousexplorations, ethnobotanical studies,literature surveys and taxonomicidentification of materials receivedthrough different plant genetic resourcesactivities, formed the basis forauthentication.

Fibre yielding species - Ananalysis of useful geneticresources

Species have not been exploitedequally from different phytogeographicalregions of the world for their use as fibres.Vavilov (1951) identified several cultivatedspecies from different world centers ofdiversity namely Abutilon theophrastiiMedic., Boehmeria nivea Gaud.,Cannabis sativus Linn.(Chinese

Centre); Musa textilis Nees (South eastAsian Centre); Corchorus capsularisLinn., Crotalaria juncea Linn. andHibiscus cannabinus Linn.(Hindustani Centre); Agave sisalanaPerr. (Meso-American Centre) andGossypium hirsutum Linn. (SouthAmerican Centre). Presently in India eight

species contribute as major cultivated fibrecrops. However several of the species aregathered from wild and exploited forcommercial use.

A total of 82 plant families,representing 273 genera and 453 plantspecies from India have been used fordiverse fibre uses. A comprehensive list

Boehmeria nivea

Agave sisalana

Musa textilis

Cannabis sativus

Gossypium hirsutum

Calotropis procera

Ananas comosus


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of major families and genera (number ofspecies in parenthesis) contributing asfibre genetic resources viz. Malvaceae(63), Fabaceae (31), Arecaceae (25),Urticaceae (24), Tiliaceae (21),Sterculiaceae (21) and Asclepiadaceae(15) are given in Table 2. The mostcommonly exploited taxa are marked withasterisk (*). List of commercial speciesalong with trade names/ commonly usednames are listed in Table 3.

Majority of the species areexploited from wild or semi-cultivatedstate (Negi, 1992). The plant fibres areextracted from different parts such asstem, leaf, petioles, roots, fruits and seeds.In comparison to other plant parts, thebast fibres have been of maximum use forextraction of fibre. A few speciescontribute as source of fibre from rootsand stems both (eg. Cissusquadrangularis Linn.)and from roots(Muhlenbergia). Natural fibre clothknown as trapa cloth is made from barkof Paper-Mulberry (Broussonetiapapyrifera Vent.).

The fibres are mainly used fortextile and paper manufacture, filling,making ropes, fishing nets and cordage,thatch, hats and other weaving materialsand brush making. For items like gunnybags, ropes, cordage, fishing nets, bastfibres of commercially exploited speciessuch as Corchorus spp., Hibiscus,Linum and Urena have often beenused.

The items made from bast fibresare more durable than those from thestructural fibres. Fishing nets/fishinglines are prepared from strong andwater resistant bast fibres of Pongamiapinnata Pierre, Pandanus thwaitsii

Mart., Melochia corchorifolia Linn.,Cryptolepis grandiflora, Crotalariajuncea Linn., Entada phaseoloidesMerrill, Artocarpus altilis (Park.)Fosberg, Trema cannabina Lour.,Oreocnide frutescens Miq.,Calotropis gigantea (Linn.) R.Br.,C. procera (Ait.)R. Br., Boehmeriaspp. and Debregeasia wallichianaWedd.

The manufacture of paper frompulp has been known in China from veryearly times. In India generally diverse typeof material is used for manufacture ofpaper such as different species ofbamboos, refuge from textile industry,grasses and sedges (mainly Cyperus).The rice straw, young bamboos, bark ofpaper mulberry are regular source of softand flexible fibres generally used forpaper. Unique examples are the homemade paper of Assam from bark ofAquilaria agallocha Roxb. andLasiosiphon eriocephalus Decneand rice paper from Wikstroemiacanescens Meissn. (in China andAssam). Among the much used species areDaphne cannabina Wall., Urticaspp., Broussonetia papyrifera Vent.,Hibiscus cannabinus Linn., H.sabdariffa Linn., Streblus asperLour., Parkinsonia aculeate Linn.,Linum usitatissimum Linn., Betulaalnoides Buch.-Ham. (Indian Birch),Cannabis sativa Linn. (Eucalyptusspp., Picea smithiana Boiss.,tropical pines etc., Borassus flabelliferLinn. (Palmyra palm) and Coryphaumbraculifera Linn. However, highquality fine paper is made from fibresof different palm species, bamboos andrefuge from textile industry.

For filling of articles like pillows,mattresses, toys, soft fibre fromGossypium, Ceiba and Bombax andrejects from other sources are often used.The fibres from Phoenix sylvestrisRoxb. and Ceiba pentandra (Linn.)Gaertn. are thermal insulator. The curledfibre from Chamaerops humilis isused for stuffing and carpets manufacture.

Hard fibres or structural fibresare mainly used for making articles likebasketories, mats, hats and brushes. Forthis purpose parts like leaves, green spatheand dried stalks are used. The mostcommonly used types being fromCaryota utilis, C. urens Linn.,Phoenix, Phytolephas, Raphiafarinifera Hylander and many othertypes locally preferred. In this categorymajority of fibres are contributed fromdifferent genera under families Araceae,Arecaceae, Liliaceae and Poaceae(Table 2).

Important fibre yieldingspecies

The fibres obtained from thegrass family were probably among the firstones to be used for various purposes. Theindigenous grass, Erianthus munjaJesw. is made into ropes that are resistantto water and used for tying cattle.Spartium junceum Linn. is used forpreparing different articles requiring highstrength and durability. Cyperuscorymbosus Rottb. called papyruspangorei, the Madoorkati of Bengal is usedfor making shining mats.

The cotton grass, Eriophorumcannabinum commonly called the FalseBhabar grass and Eulaliopsis binata


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Sterculia, Abroma and Guazuma. InAssam fibre from Sterculia villosaRoxb. (Udal) a native of the hilly regionsof West Bengal is used for making breastbands used for tying wild elephants. Theropes made from Microlaenaspectabilis (a tree at foothills of theHimalayas) is used for same purposeelsewhere.

(Retz.)C. E. Hubbard, the Bhabar grassare known for their strength and use inropes, employed by the mountaineers,jhoolas and over bridges on rivers. Inthe tropical parts of India, palms are usedfor various purposes. Narrow leaved typesare plaited into mats and basketories andsmooth leaves for writing. Leaves of manypalms are employed for thatching, hatsand for making mats and umbrellas.Licuala peltata Roxb., the Chattah-patof Assam is in universal demand in thisarea as Phoenix sylvestris Roxb. formats and baskets in Bengal region.

Borassus flabellifer,Caryota urens, Corypha talieraRoxb. (Bengal-tara) andC. umbraculifera Linn. (Buri palm)and C. utan Lam. (the talipat ofPeninsular region) are much employedfor making hats and leaf umbrellas. Theblack fibre of Caryota urens (Kittulfibre) from leaf bases measures 70-80 cm(Macmillan, 1991) and is used for makingstrong ropes employed for tying wildelephants. Ejoo or Gomuti fibre fromArenga spinnata is black, hard, hairlike, strong, more durable, but less pliantand elastic than the coir. They resist decayand are more fit for cables and standingringing.

Coir (Cocos nucifera Linn.),owing to unique thermal qualities is muchpreffered to other fibres for use as cordagefibre in place of hair for stuffingmattresses. Other palms as Zalaccamacrostachya is used for makingbaskets and for tying Nipa leaves. Theleaves of Nicobar bread fruit (Pandanusodoratissimus Linn. f.) dried over fireare used to make mats, baskets and otherarticles. Among other species, silk cottonsare mainly contributed from Bombax,

roxburghiana Schult. f. fibres (60 cmlong under cultivation) identical to Chinagrass are ideal for making bowstring andfine thread for ornamental purposes.

In family Malvaceae, among thecultivated species cottons are the sourceof high quality cellulosic fibre form seedsurface. Other genera namelyHibiscus, Kydia, Sida, Thespesiaand Urena are also source of bastfibres. Wissadula periplocifoliaPresl ex Thw. yields soft, silky andspinable fibre of superior qualitycompared to jute. Hibiscuscannabinus Linn., the mesta, or patuaof West Bengal cultivated all over India isused for fibre. In Bihar ropes made fromits fibre, though harsher, are moredurable than those made from the jute.

In family Tiliaceae major fibreyielding genera are Grewia,Corchorus and Triumfetta. Grewiaoptiva Drum. commonly called Russianbast or bhimal is employed for ropes inmountainous region (Sneh Lata, 1997).Besides the cultivated species ofCorchorus, wild species occurring asweeds in different parts of India are muchused for extraction of fibre. Cannabissativa of Cannabinaceae is cultivated inHimalayas for fibre and in plains for otheruses (Shah, 1997).

Among the family FabaceaeCrotalaria juncea is known for the useas strong fibre that is more resistant to jute.The thread was used for sacred threadworn by the Kshatrias or Rajputs as ofcottons by the Brahmins (Royle, 1984).Besides, bark of other species such asC. retusa is employed in Madras,C. burhia in Rajasthan and otherselsewhere for rope and making cordage.Sesbania aculeata Pers., a cultivated

Ananas comosus (Linn.)Merrill the pineapple is recommendedfor manufacture of pina cloth which is adelicate fabric of Philippines. The Moorvaof South America and the inner fibres ofthe plantain, resemble each other infineness and fitness of fibre as textilefabrics, which are esteemed. The refugefrom this may be excellent material forpaper making. The pita fibre, Yucca, NewZealand Flax, Manila hemp and fibre fromplantains, are coarse in texture and fit forcordage and ordinary purpose.

In North West India, the leavesof Typha elephantiana Roxb. andT. angustifolia Watt are used formaking mats. Fibre extracted from Agavecantala Roxb. is a cheap substitutefor string and cord. Sansevieria

Ananas comosus


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species yielding fibre (3m long) which iscoarser and more harsher than that ofhemp and more durable in water. Despitehaving excellent fibre qualities this cropremains much more neglected for its fibrevalue. The fibre obtained from otherleguminous species as Bauhinia vahliiWight & Arn., Butea monosperma(Lam.) Kuntze and Parkinsoniaaculeata Linn. remain exploited at locallevels.

Members of family Urticaceae areknown to yield high quality bast fibre.Boehmeria nivea Gaud. (ramie, theChina grass fibre) has of late attracted theconsideration for use as fibre in ourcountry on account of its white silky fibreused singly or in combination for differentuses. Other species of importance areB. macrophylla D. Don, B.malabarica Wedd., B. platyphyllaD. Don, Oreocnide frutescens Miq.,Pipturus incanus Wedd., Pouzolziaviminea Wedd. and Trema orientalisBlume. These species yield strong fibrefor making fishing lines. Among thespecies that can substitute for ramie areO. integrifolia and Sarcocalamyspulcherrima. Girardinia spp. andLaportea crenulata Gaud. yield tribalcloth. B. rugulosa, a good species forbare hill slopes to prevent soil erosion isequally important fibre source inHimalayas.

Fibres obtained fromBoehmeria sp. (mesakhee fibre) andUrtica crenulata (chor putta orsurat) commonly growing in the hills andvalleys of Bangladesh are commonly usedby the tribals for making cloths. Anotherspecies Urtica heterophylla (thehoroo surat of Assam) a widelyoccurring species yields white glossy, silky

fibre of strong nature. Bark of Urtica andBoehmeria with strong fibres arepotentially important species in paperindustry. U. tuberosa used by the nativeIndians for edible root-stocks may besearched for its potential as fibre types.U. dioica, the string nettle of Himalayasis now identified as fibre yielding speciesof commercial importance and exportpotential for cottage and textile industry.

Amongst the oldest exogenousplant fibres, flax (Linumusitatissimum Linn.), member ofLinaceae, was cultivated in India since timeimmemorial. But its use as fibre plantin India is recent. This may be becausein India cotton was much preferredfor use than any other species.

Of the Asclepiadaceae members,akund floss, obtained from Calotropisprocera (Ait.)R. Br. and C. gigantea(Linn.) R. Br. ex Ait. mainly from theseed fibre of former, is available from thewild population in different part of India.Australia and the New Zealand were oncethe chief markets for Indian akund floss(Maheshwari and Tandon, 1959). InRajasthan and adjacent region, ropes andother items prepared from the bark of C.procera are reported to be more durablethan the sunhemp and thus good substitutefor the latter (Pers. com. 2001).

Members of the family Moraceaeare known to yield low grade bast fibresused for rope and cordage making. Amongthe commonest species used for thispurpose, Artocarpus altilis yields waterresistant fibres. Other species are Ficusreligiosa Linn. formerly used for papermaking and Broussonetia papyriferaa source of lustrous fibre.

Exploitation of fibre yieldingspecies for various uses is linked to their

geographical distribution, area ofoccurrence, availability and abundance ofthe species, local preferences, agro-climatic conditions, socio-economicsetup, facilities available for processing,transport and marketing of products. Theareas near water sources were identifiedas the seat for selection of bast fibreyielding species. Species known to beresistant to water were mainly used formaking fishing nets, water proof materialandropes near coastal areas. Thestructural fibres are exploited in areaswhere palms and other Arecaceaemembers are commonly available. Forsimilar types of fibre articles different,species are exploited in different areaswhere found in plenty. For exampleGrewia optiva for ropes in hills andCorchorus, Hibiscus and Urticadioca in the north region for samepurposes.

There are several substitutes forcommertial fibres that can be identifiedand evaluated for specific uses. Fibresfrom Canna orientalis Ker-Gawl,Triumfetta pentandra A. Rich.,Wissadula periplocifolia as substitutefor jute; Clinogyne dichotomaSalisb. for Panama fibre for jute; Urticapilulifera Linn. for flax and ramie aresome examples. The common plantainfibre though does not possess the strengthof the Manila hemp, yet same may besuitable for other uses as cordage, canvas,fine fabrics and articles of lusters anddecorative use.

Priorities and prospects forcollection

The genetic resources ofimportant fibre yielding species and theirsubstitutes have been highlighted for the


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Orissa, Haryana, Bihar, Assam, UP, TN, AP,Gujarat, J&K and Jharkhand.

Augmentation of germplasm hasbeen done for fibre and allied crops fromnational and international sources throughthe active involvement of institutions suchas Central Research Institute for Jute andAllied Fibres (CRIJAF), Barrakpore (Sinhaet al, 1987). Under this variability inCorchorus capsularis, Crotalariajuncea, Gossypium arboreumLinn. and Hibiscus cannabinus hasbeen assembled. The supportiveresearch programmes running at CRIJAF,Barrakpore pointed out the researchableissues like fibre yield and qualitycharacters, retting of stem, fibre extractionand sundrying of processed and wet fibreafter extraction, estimation of dry fibreyield in the different germplasm ofHibiscus cannabinus, H.sabdariffa, sunhemp, jute, mesta andflex.

In major fibre crops of Indiaefforts need to be made for pinpointingthe priority collections (Arora, 1991). Theidentified gap areas for collection includespecific variability for cotton in coldtolerant types from J&K; Nagaland,Manipur, Maharashtra and Telanganaregion of Andhra Pradesh for local varients(Malik et al, 2001). The potential typesand substitute species for other fibre cropsneed to be identified and evaluated fortheir traits and requisite collections bemade. The most urgent research anddevelopment issues need is to be exploredand sorted out for more efficient andcheaper ways to explore them.

ConclusionsWith the advancement of

synthetic fibres there has been an effect

Indian region. Since 1976, the NationalBureau of Plant Genetic Resources hasundertaken several explorations forcollection of fibre yielding species fromdifferent parts of the country. In total morethan, 14 explorations have been carriedout and over 790 germplasm accessionsof fibre types have been collected fromdiverse parts of India. This includescollections of all four species in cotton,from NEH region, Saurashtra and Kachchhof Gujarat, north Karnataka and southcoastal region in Andhra Pradesh(extending to Tamil Nadu), and parts ofJammu, Malva and Nimar region ofMadhya Pradesh.

Among the major fibre yieldingspecies, in Corchorus, five hundred nineaccessions of the cultivated and wild typeshave been assembled from Garo hills inMeghalaya, Mikir hills and Goalpara inAssam, tribal pockets in Orissa, Bihar,Saurashtra and Kachchh in Gujarat andparts of Rajasthan. A total of 519accessions of kenaf (Hibiscuscannabinus) and roselle (Hibiscussabdariffa) and sunhemp (Crotalariajuncea) were collected from Telangana,Rayalseema, and coastal Andhra Pradesh,and from Western Ghats in Maharashtra(Verma and Kumar, 1992). Muchvariability in jute from parts of WestBengal, Bihar, Orissa and NEH regionneeds to be explored.

Under a mission modeprogramme of the National AgriculturalTechnology Project (NATP) on SustainableManagement of Plant Biodiversity at theNBPGR, during 1999-2001, collections ofdifferent accessions of cotton, jute,sunhemp, kenaf, roselle, and others wereassembled from parts of Kerala, Mizoram,MP, Rajasthan, Meghalaya, Pondicherry,

on plant fibre industry all over the world,particularly in terms of production, exportand end uses. The forestry based plantproducts can contribute to the income ofthe rural population. The raw materialcollected from the wild and processed forgetting fibre for small scale/ cottageindustry can generate rural employmentand income especially for poor andlandless farmers in the rural and tribalareas of the country. Moreover,dependency on handful number of speciesfor fibre yield for day to day requirementscan be reduced by identifying and adoptinglarge number of allied species that cansupplement to the fibre requirement withsame or better potential.

The research and developmentactivities, despite abundance of fibreyielding species in native country, has notgeared up to the level to attracted theattention it deserves. Potential speciesmostly grow wild or form the refuge undercultivation; generally on seacoasts andforest undergrowth. They are traversed bynavigable rivers and cost little for carriage.If low-cost techniques are available fortheir extraction and processing, thebenefits may be multi-fold to raise theeconomy of rural population. Reducedcost of manufacture of fibre basedproduce may also supplement to nationaleconomy by many folds. Thus a largenumber of plant species can largelycontribute to economic upliftment of localpeople through development of R&Dprogrammes suitable for small scaleindustrialization.

Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful tothe Director, National Bureau of Plant


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14. Sinha, MK, Mahapatra, AK, Guharoy,MK, Shome, A and Chakrabarti, NK,Genetic Resources of Jute and AlliedFibres. In: Plant Genetic Resources:An Indian Persepective. Paroda,RS, and Arora, RK (eds.), pp 232-242. National Bureau of PlantGenetic Resources, New Delhi, 1987,545 p.

15. Sneh Lata, Indigenous knowledgeabout Grewia optiva in Indo-NepalHimalayas, Ethnobotany, 1997, 9(1 & 2), 112-116.

16. Vavilov, The origin, variation,immunity and breeding of cultivatedcrops, Chron Bot, 1951, 13, 364.

17. Velasquez, JR, Wounaan and EmberaUses and Management of the FibrePalm Astrocaryum standleyanum(Arecaceae) for basketories ineastern Panama, Econ Bot, 2001,55(1), 72-82.

18. Verma, VD and Kumar, D, Collectingjute and kenaf from Western Ghats ofMaharashtra, IBPGR Newsletterfor Asia and the Pacific andOceania, 1992, 10, 14-15.

19. Vishnu Mitre, PaleobotanicalEvidences in India, In: EvolutionaryStudies in World Crops: Diversity andChanges in the Indian Subcontinent,Hutchinson J(ed.), London,Cambridge, 1974, 179 p.

20. Wiersema, JH and Blanca Leon, WorldEconomic Plants of India – A standardreference. CRC Press, Boca Raton,London, New York Washington, DC,1999, 749 p.

Genetic Resources, New Delhi forconstant encouragement in shaping thisinformation. Thanks are also due to theHead, Division of GermplasmExploration and Collection for providingmaterial, information and help. Seniorauthor's sincere thanks are due to allour exploration colleagues for theirconstant support and help in fieldstudy and raising the material in potcultures.

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Rajkamal Electric Press, Delhi, 1998,604 p.

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Table 1. Archaeological evidences for use of plant fibres

Items/articles Source/places Period

Cotton & silk Nevasa 1500 BC

Cotton fibre (fibres on copper Mohenjo-daro & Harappa, India 2300-1750 BCtools & impressions on silver vessels)

Crafted net (from Apocynum) Danger caves, Utah, USA 5000 BC

Flax fibre (from linseed) Swiss lake dwellings; paintings in 10000 BC; 4000 yrs;Egyptian tomb; mummy draped in 1400-1200 BCcloth; spun fibre at Chandoli, India

Palm leaf fibre Tehucan valley excavations, Mexico 12000 yrs

Ropes Egyptian tombs;tomb paintings 4000 yrs;500 BC

Textile impressions Iron Age Shreds, Mysore, India 1000 BC

Urticaceous fibres Atranji Khera, India 1200-600 BC

Source: Vishnu Mitre, 1974; Royle, 1984

Table 2. Major plant families and genera used for fibre in India

Family Genera (species no.)

Acanthaceae Carvia (1)Agavaceae *Agave (5),*Furcraea (6), Phormium* (1), Sansevieria (5),Yucca (3)Alocaceae Aloe (1)Amaranthaceae Celosia (1)Anacardiaceae Lannea (1), Spondias (1), Swintonia (1)Annonaceae Desmos (1), Goniothalamus (1), Miliusa (1), Polyalthia (2)Apocynaceae Alstonia (1), Anodendron (1), Beaumontia (1), Chonemorpha (1),

Ichnocarpus(1), Melodinus (1)Araceae Cailliea (1), Lasia (1), Scindapsus (1)Araliaceae *Tetrapanax (1)Araucariaceae *Araucaria (1)Arecaceae Arenga (2), Borassus (1), Caryota(2), Chamaerops (2), Coccothrinax (1),

*Cocos (1), Corypha (1), Licuala (1), Livistona (2), Nannorrhops (1),Phoenix (4), Phytelephas (1), Raphia (3), Sabal (1), Syagrus (1),Trachycarpus (1), Washingtonia (1)

Asclepiadaceae Asclepias (1), *Calotropis (2), Cryptolepis (2), Dregea (1), Holostemma (1),Hoya (1), Leptadenia (1), Marsdenia (2), Orthanthera (1), Telosma (1), Tylophora (1)

Asteraceae Gerbera (1), Helianthus (1)Betulaceae Betula (1)Bignoniaceae Dolichandrone (2), Spathodea (1)Bombacaceae Adansonia (1), Bombax (1), *Ceiba (1), Ochroma (1)Boraginaceae Cordia (1)Bromeliaceae Bromelia (1)


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Burseraceae *Boswellia (1)Cactaceae Opuntia (1)Caesalpiniaceae Bauhinia (9), Hardwickia (1), Parkinsonia (1), Schizolobium (1), Tamarindus (1)Cannabinaceae *Cannabis (1), Humulus (1)Cannaceae Canna (1)Caprifoliaceae Lonicera (1)Celastraceae Catha (1)Combretaceae *Terminalia (2)Cucurbitaceae Sechium (1)Cupressaceae Thuja (1)Cyclanthaceae Carludovica (1)Cyperaceae *Cyperus (3), Cladium (1), Eriophorum (1), Fimbristylis (2),

Scirpus (1), Scirpodendron (1), Scleria (1), *Furcraea (6)Dilleniaceae Dillenia (1), *Tetracera (1)Dipterocarpaceae Shorea (1)Euphorbiaceae Aleurites (1), Drypetes (1), *Endospermum (1), Jatropha (1), Macaranga (1)Fabaceae Aeschynomene (1), Butea (2),* Crotalaria (6), Derris (1), Desmodium (1),

Erythrina (2), Glycine (1), *Indigofera (3), Lespedeza(1), Millettia (1),Ougeinia (1), Pachyrrhizus (1), Pueraria (2), Robinia (1), Sesbania (4),Spartium (1), Wisteria (1)

Fagaceae Castanea (1), Fagus (1)Gleicheniaceae Dicranopteris (1)Gnetaceae Gnetum (2)Goodeniaceae Scaveola (1)Hydrocharitaceae Enhalus (1)Iridaceae Iris (1)Juncaceae Juncus (2)Lecythidaceae Careya (1)Liliaceae Curculigo (2)Linaceae *Linum (1)Lythraceae Lagerstroemia (2)Malvaceae Abelmoschus (5), Abutilon (8), Althaea (1), Azanza (1), *Gossypium (4),

*Hibiscus (13), Kydia (1), Malachra (1), Malvastrum (1), Pavonia (2),Sida (5), Thespesia (1), *Urena (3), Wissadula (1)

Marantaceae Clinogyne (1)Melastomataceae Melastoma (1)Meliaceae Soymida (1)Menispermaceae Cissampelos (1), Hypserpa (1)Mimosaceae *Acacia (5), Entada (1), Leucaena (1), Parapiptadenia (1), Xylia (1)Moraceae Allaeanthus (1), Antiaris (1), Artocarpus (1), Broussonetia (1), *Ficus (8),

Morus (1), Streblus (1)Musaceae Ensete (1), Musa (2)Myrtaceae Eucalyptus (1)Nelumbonaceae Nelumbo (1)


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Nyssaceae Nyssa (1)Orchidaceae Dendrobium (1)Pandanaceae Pandanus (3)Periplocaceae Periploca (1)Pinaceae *Abies(1), Cunninghamia (1), Cupressus (1), Juniperus (2), Picea (1),

Pinus (1)Poaceae Andropogon (1), Arundinaria (3), Bambusa (9), Cymbopogon (1),

Dendrocalamus (3), Desmostachya (1), Erianthus (1), Eulaliopsis (1),Heteropogon (1), Hierochloe (1), Imperata (1), Lasiurus (1), Muhlenbergia (1),Neohouzeaua (2), Ochlandra (2), Oxytenanthera (1), Pennisetum (1),Phragmites (1), Phalaris (1), Phyllostachys (2), Saccharum (2), Schoenefeldia (1),Sclerostachya (1), Secale (1), Sehima (1), Sorghum (1), Stipa (1),Thamnocalamus (2), Themeda (3),Thyrsotachys (1), Vetiveria (1), Vossia (1), Zea (1)

Polypodiaceae Stenochlaena (1)Pontederiaceae Eichhornia (1)Ranunculaceae Clematis (1), Naravelia (1)Rhamnaceae Ventilago (1)Rhizophoraceae Bruguierea (1), *Rhizophora (1)Rosaceae *Cotoneaster (1), *Rubus (1)Rubiaceae Anthocephalus (1), Canthium (1), Mitragyna (1), Nauclea (1)Salicaceae *Salix (6)Saxifragaceae Philadelphus (1)Sonneratiaceae Sonneratia (1)Sphagnaceae Sphagnum (3)Sterculiaceae Abroma(1), Dombeya (1), Eriolaena (1), Erythropsis (2), Guazuma (1), Helicteres (1),

Kleinhovia (1), Melochia (2), Pentapetes (1), Pterospermum (2), Pterocymbium (1),Pterygota (1), Scaphium (1), Sterculia (6)

Taxodiaceae Sequoia (1), Taxodium (1)Theaceae *Schima (1)Thymelaeaceae Aquilaria (2), *Daphne (4), Edgeworthia (1), Gyrinops (1), Lasiosiphon (1),

Wikstroemia (1)Tiliaceae Berrya (1), *Corchorus (3), Erinocarpus (1), *Grewia (9), Microcos (1), Muntingia (1),

Sparrmannia (1), Tilia (1), Trichospermum (1), Triumfetta (3)Typhaceae Typha (3)Ulmaceae Holoptelea (1), Trema (3), Ulmus (1)Urticaceae *Boehmeria (5), Debregeasia (4), Forskohlea (1), Girardinia (3), Gonostegia (1),

Laportea (1), Maoutia (1), Oreocnide (2), Pilea (2), Pipturus (1), Pouzolzia (1),Sarcochlamys (1), *Urtica (3)

Verbenaceae *Gmelina (1)Vitaceae *Cissus (3)

* : most commonly exploited speciesData compiled from: Ambasta et al, 1986; Islam, 1984; ITM, 1985; Wiersema and Leon, 1999.


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Table 3. Some fibre yielding crops and their commercial fibres

Plant species Commercial fibres

Abroma augusta L. Perennial Indian hemp, Devil's cottonAbutilon theophrastii Medic. Abutilon hemp, American juteAgave cantala Roxb. Maguey, Cantala, Bombay hemp, Bombay aloeAgave sisalana Perr. SisalAnanas comosus (L.) Merrill Pina fibreArenga pinnata (Wurmb.) Merrill Gomuti palm fibreBetula alnoides Buch.-Ham. Indian birch, BhojpatraBetula utilis D.Don Himalayan silver birch, BhujpattraBoehmeria nivea (L.) Gaudich Ramie fibre, China grass, Rhea, Chinese silk plantBromelia magdalenae C.H.Wright Pita fibreBromelia pinguin L. Pingvin, Wild pineapple fibreBroussonetia papyrifera (L.) Vent Paper mulberry, Trapa cloth fibreCalotropis gigantea (L.) R. Br. ex Ait. Akund fibreCalotropis procera (Ait.) R. Br. Akund fibreCannabis sativa L. Hemp fibreCaryota urens L. Kittul fibre, SalopaCeiba pentendra (L.) Gaertn. Kapok fibreCocos nucifera L. Coconut fibre, CoirCorchorus capsularis L. Jute butts, NarchaCorchorus olitorius L. Tossa jute, Daisee, Jew's mallowCorypha utan Lam. Buri raffia fibre, Buntal fibreCrotalaria juncea L. Sunn, SannhempDaphne papyracea Wall. Ex Steud. Nepal paperFurcraea gigantea Vent. Mauritius hempFurcraea hexapetala Urban Cuba hempFurcraea humboldtiana Trel. Cocuiza fibreFurcraea macrophylla Baker Fique fibreGossypium arboreum L. Cotton, Oriental cotton, Old world cottonGossypium barbadense L. Sea Island cotton, Egyptian cotton, Brazilian cotton,

Peruvian cotton, Kidney cottonGossypium herbaceum L. Levant cottonGossypium hirsutum L. American cotton, Bourbon cotton, Upland cottonHibiscus cannabinus L. Mesta, Kenaf, RoselleLinum usitatissimum L. FlaxMaoutia puya Wedd. Puya, Nepal hempMusa textilis Nees Manila hempOreocnide integrifolia Miq. Risa fibre, Ban rheaPhormium tenax Forst. New Zealand flax, New Zealand hempRaphia farinifera Hylander Raffia fibre, West African piassava, Lagos BassRaphia hookeri Mann & Wendl. PiassavaSabal palmetto Lodd. ex Roem. & Schult. Palmetto fibreSansevieria roxburghiana L. Indian bowstring hemp, Murva fibreUrena lobata L. Aramina fibre, Congo jute

fibre yielding plants of india - niscairnopr.niscair.res.in/bitstream/123456789/12277/1/npr 2(4)...

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