Sisal

Sisal agave ( Agave sisalana )

The sisal agave ( Agave sisalana ) is a species of the subfamily of Agave ( Agavoideae ). It is an important fiber plant. The epithet of the species refers to the Mexican port city of sisal.

Description

The sisal Agave is a hapaxanthe rosette plant. The plants can be stängellos or gestängelt, in the latter case the strain between 40 and 100 centimeters can be high, the rosettes have a diameter between 1.5 and 2 meters. The sword-shaped leaves are 60 to 150 centimeters long and 2.5 to 5 (rarely to 9) inches wide. Young they are serrated light green and fine, older leaves are glossy green and imperforated. The final sting is 2 to 2.5 inches long, dark brown and cone - to pfriemförmig.

The inflorescence axis can be 5 to 6 feet long, the elliptical inflorescence is a panicle, bracts are present. In consisting of 10 to 25 flowers inflorescence bears the plant leaf buds. The flowers are 4 to 6.5 inches long and green yellow. The bloom are linear - lanceolate, 17-18 mm long and 5-6 mm wide and of the same shape and size. The stamens are 50 to 60 millimeters long and set in the upper half of the corolla tube, which dust bags are 23 to 25 millimeters long, the ovary are 15 to 25 mm long and 8-9 mm wide.

Dissemination

The exact origin of this type is not known. They spent in numerous tropical subtropical countries as by culture. Maybe it comes from the Mexican province of Chiapas.

System

Since the majority of all plants is not fertile and wild occurrences are unknown, it is believed that the sisal agave is hybridogenen origin. Perhaps it stems from Agave angustifolia kewensis an intersection and agave.

Use

The fibers are processed in addition to ropes, ropes, yarn and carpeting in many other products, for example as a filler for mattresses or as a polishing agent.

The sisal agave was domesticated by the natives by the Spaniards before the conquest of Central America and used for the production of pulque. Through the spread of the Native Plant spread in North America. Spaniards and Portuguese led the plants in other countries and continents, where they found use in the 18th and 19th century as an ornamental plant.

1893 by Richard Hindorf bulbils from Florida in Tanzania, a 1903 brought Horácio Urpia Júnior the plant to Brazil. 1951 Brazil was then the second- largest producer behind Tanzania, from 1964 onwards, however, the market for sisal broke through the increasing competition from synthetic fibers significantly. The production declined, but recovered since the turn of the millennium. In terms of the mass of the fiber production, the sisal agave is now the fifth most important fiber plant world, 2006, world production of sisal fibers was approximately 428,000 tons.