Article Nº 0566 Plant Vol. I · p. 320
Rubber tree
Original title: Borracha (Árvore da)
Notes the rubber-yielding plants grown in Madeira, Ficus elastica and Manihot glaziovii, and a local composite called visco with elastic latex.
Of the species that yield rubber, only Ficus elastica, of the family Urticaceae, and Manihot Glaziovii, of the family Euphorbiaceae, exist in Madeira. The first is found in several quintas of Funchal; the second exists, as far as we know, only in the grounds attached to the Disinfection Station (Posto de Desinfecção), at Campo da Barca (‘boat field’), where it thrives. In many places on the island there grows a composite, called visco, whose latex solidifies into a whitish, elastic mass, but which has no industrial applications.
Places mentioned