{"id":3936,"date":"2016-12-16T10:02:22","date_gmt":"2016-12-16T10:02:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.reading.ac.uk\/crg\/?p=3936"},"modified":"2016-12-16T10:02:22","modified_gmt":"2016-12-16T10:02:22","slug":"raphia-a-string-for-all-seasons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/herbarium\/2016\/12\/16\/raphia-a-string-for-all-seasons\/","title":{"rendered":"Advent Botany 2016 – Day 16: Raphia: a string for all seasons"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Yvette Harvey <\/a><\/h1>\n

RHS Garden Wisley, Woking, Surrey, GU23 6QB<\/p>\n

\"Raffia<\/a>
Raffia hat<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Forget the gorgeous Madagascan bags, the baskets, the hats, the dates, the coconuts, the wine, the patterned mats and shoes, the most important product made from a palm has to be the string that holds the wrapping paper in place for your Christmas parcel.\u00a0 Remove from your mind visions of tropical beaches – our string is from a swamp loving plant, the Raphia.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Image<\/a>
Image from janemeansblog.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fine examples of raffia string adorning parcels can be found here:\u00a0 http:\/\/janemeansblog.com\/raffia-ideas-in-gift-wrapping-craft-projects\/<\/a><\/p>\n

The string is a fibre produced from the membrane on the underside of each individual frond leaf.\u00a0 There are c. 20 species of Raphia<\/em>, mostly concentrated in West and Central Africa.\u00a0 Raphia <\/em>are easily distinguished from other palms by their rather messy appearance as the leaves remain on the plant after death.\u00a0 They also have distinctive fruits that are covered in symmetrical rows of large, shiny, overlapping scales.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A cleaned up |Raphia taedigera<\/i> Image from: plantillustrations.org<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The carpological collection at the RHS herbarium (WSY<\/a>) contains a fruit of Raphia taedigera<\/em>, the Raphia <\/em>that is said to be the source of Raffia fibre.\u00a0 This is the new world representative and the most widely dispersed of all the Raphia <\/em>palms.<\/p>\n

Our collection was donated as a result of an enquiry by one of our members who discovered it being used as a packing material in a parcel of goods sent from Korea.\u00a0 The fruit is sitting on a traditional bag used by men, made, in part, from Raphia <\/em>gathered in the Bamenda Highlands of Cameroon.<\/p>\n

\"Fruit<\/a>
Fruit of Raphia taedigera<\/i>
Image by Y.Harvey \u00a9RHS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Sundries<\/a>
Sundries catalogue for H. Scott & Sons (London, England) \u00a9 RHS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the less well known collections held by the RHS Lindley Library are the Nursery Catalogues.\u00a0 Along with a 1925 Nursery catalogue, we have an earlier sundries catalogue for H. Scott & Sons (London, England), and it can be seen that Raffia string is not a modern introduction to the UK.\u00a0 Alas, our Hipsters didn\u2019t start the trend for Raffia string, it was clearly in use c. 100 years ago.<\/p>\n

Not only of use as string in Bamenda bags, in Cameroon Raphia <\/em>fronds are used for a number of different purposes.\u00a0 In the Mt Kupe area of Cameroon three taxa are known to occur:<\/p>\n