Article Nº 2909 Plant Vol. III · p. 150
Agave (Agave americana)
Original title: Piteira (Agave Americana)
Short entry on the piteira (Agave americana), cultivated and naturalised in Madeira, whose leaves yield a tough fibre for rope-making.
A member of the Amaryllidaceae, cultivated and naturalised in Madeira. Its long, fleshy leaves, sometimes yellow at the edges, are steeped in water for a few days and then beaten, yielding a fairly tough fibre that is used in rope-making.
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