Natural Rubber

Production Technology
Natural Rubber
• Most of the rubber producing plants have latex from which rubber is
recovered by simple methods.

• Major source of NR is Hevea Brasiliensis.

 99% of world’s NR production.
 Native land: Central/South America
 Habit: Tree
 DRC content: 30-40% .
• Castilla elastica(Panama rubber)
• Latex obtained by tapping (tapping difficult)
• Bark renewal is slow.
• Latex is relatively stable.
• Latex found in the bark of roots,trunk
and branches.
• Ficus elastica (Assam rubber)
• Earliest source of NR in tropical Asia.
• 12-15 years to reach tapping age.
• Latex is stable and inferior quality.
• Tapping difficult.
• Parthenium argentatum (Mexican rubber)
• Desert shrub.
• Tapping is not possible, entire plant with
root system is harvested.
• Latex is contained in most parts, except
leaves.
• High MW rubber.
• Manihot glaziovii (Ceara rubber)
• Brazil introduced to India.
• Spontaneous coagulating nature of
latex.
• Other sources of rubber:
• Taraxacum koksaghyz (Dandelion rubber) :Latex is produced in the
roots of the plant and has very similar properties of Hevea rubber.
• Lagos silk rubber (Funtumia elastica )
• Madagascar rubber (Cryptostegia grandiflora R. Br.)

 Some species of fungi genera Lactarius, Peziza, Russala and

Hygrophorus have been reported to produce latex containing cis-
polyisoprene of low molecular weight mass.
Rubber Tree-Propagation,
Planting and Maintenance
Propagation Techniques of Rubber Tree

• 2 major propagation method of “Hevea brasiliensis”

 Generative – Seeds.
 Vegetative – Leaf, bark, buds.
• Propagation of crops was only through seeds during early years.
• Later vegetative propagation using buds became common.
• Special types of seeds known as ‘polyclonal seeds’ are used directly
for propagation.
Generative Propagation:
• Kinds of seeds-legitimate, illegitimate,ordinary,monoclonal and
polyclonal seeds.
• Monoclonal and polyclonal seeds are collected from specially raised
plantations. Others are from commercially established plantations.
• ‘Monoclonal seed’ plantations consisting of only this clone were
established. Are not recommended now due to their
inferiority compared to the modern clones.
Eg:- Tjir 1
• ‘Polyclonal seed/Polycross seeds’ are hybrid seeds. Several clones are
planted intermixed so as to maximize cross pollination. They should
posses desirable characters like high yield, disease resistance,
profuse production of seeds etc.
• Production of seeds in polyclonal garden depends on clones, climate
and diseases. On an average, a tree produces 150 seeds in well
maintained gardens.
• Collection of seeds:
Seeds popped off are collected daily as they will lose their viability
rapidly. Seed viability will be completely lost if exposed to sunlight for
more than 3 days.

• Germination of seeds:
Seeds should be sown for germination soon after collection. Seeds
germinate within 6-7 days after sowing. Fresh and heavy seeds ahow
early germination. About 75% germination is considered good.
• Vegetative Propagation:
Propagation through asexual/vegetative parts such as buds, leaves and
stem cuttings. In rubber tree, it is done mainly through
“budgrafting”/budding.
Budding: Principle involved is the replacement of the shoot
system of a plant with that of another more desirable plant.
Stock: Seedling plant
Bud patch: Dormant bud
Process: A patch of the bark from stock is replaced by bud patch. Bud
patch gets attached to the stock and becomes a part of it. Stock is then
cut off above the budded portion and grafted bud develops into
the shoot .
• New tree is a 2 part tree comprising a root system belonging to the
stock plant and a shoot system contributed by the donor of the
bud.
Types of budding (Colour and age of the buds):
• Brown/Conventional: Older buds with brown colour are used.
• Green: Tender green buds are used.
• Young:
Types of budding (Part of the stock where budding is done):
• Base
• Crown
• Over
• High
• Brown budding:
• Green budding:
• Young budding:
 A kind of green budding carried out on very young plants less than
2 months old.
 Stocks are raised in small bags of flat size 33*15cm and are
given intensive nursing.
When 7-8 weeks old, they are green budded.
• Crown budding:
 Replacing undesirable crown of ahigh
 yielding clone with a desirable crown.
 Useful where trunk possessed high yielding
capacity and crown shows many undesirable characters.
 Tree produced is a 3 part tree: root system- stock plant, trunk of
one clone and crown of another clone.
• Over budding:
 Bud wood plants when budded at higher levels for converting
an existing bud wood nursery of a clone to another clone
without replanting.
 Scion grow more vigorously producing more budwood, compared
to newly established nursery.
Quick and economic method.
• High budding:
Seedlings are budded at a level of 90 cm from ground.
 Combining vigour of seedling along with high yield and uniformity
of buddings.
• Bench grafting:
 Adopted when outdoor grafting is difficult due to adverse
climatic conditions.

• Other Methods:
 Rooting of cuttings
 Approach grafting
 Cleft grafting
 Root grafting
 Layering
 Tissue culture
Cleft grafting
 Rubber Tree – Plantation
 Natural habitat of rubber is rain forests of Amazon basin which has
equatorial monsoon type climate (mean monthly temp-25-28⁰C, well
distributed rainfall with no marked dry period).
 Climatic conditions necessary for optimum growth of rubber
trees are:
1)rainfall of 2000mm or more, evenly distributed without
any marked dry season.
2) Monthly mean temperature of 25-28 ⁰C.
3) High humidity of the order 80% with moderate wind.
4) Bright sunshine (6hrs per day throughout all months).
• Rainfall:
 An equally distributed rainfall of 125mm per month is essential
for optimum growth.
 Traditional rubber growing areas-rainfall ranges between 2000-
4000mm, spread over 140-220 days. Not more than 1-4 dry months.
 Heavy rainfall not preferred as it causes problems like nutrient
loss, leaching, soil erosion, water logging.
• Temperature:
Monthly mean of 25-28 ⁰C is optimum.
 High temp. conditions leads to severe soil moisture stress in
the absence of rainfall.
 At altitudes higher than 200m,delay in attaining tappable trunk
size is observed.
• Relative humidity:
Moisture exchange capacity of the atmosphere is indicated by RH.
 Conditions of high and low RH occur during rainy and dry
seasons respectively.
In rainy season, radiation is low and duration of leaf wetness is
high.
• Sunshine:
 Duration and intensity of sunshine have significant influence in
latex production.
 Increase in sunshine duration to the end of rainy season, increase
latex production and low rubber yield during rainy season is due to
reduced sunshine duration.
 High radiation and long duration cause scorching of bark in
young rubber plants. To protect the bark, painting bark with lime,
contact shading of leaves etc is practised.

• Choice of proper planting material is of significance in the

development of a rubber plantation. Selection of clones should be
based on the suitability to the location, terrain, size of holding
and management levels.
 Rubber Tree- Management
• Calendar of Operations:
Should maintain a register which cover all operations with probable
dates for each activity.

• Pre-planting Operations:
 Clearing, lining, pitting, pit manuring, refilling are major pre-
planting operations.
 As the ideal time for rubber tree plantation in India is June to July,
inorder to ensure timely planting pre-planting operations should be
started by February/March.
• Cover crop establishment:
It reduces future weeding cost.
 Proper legume cover will reduce future nutrient requirements and
to help in conservation of moisture and reduction of erosion in slopes.
• Planting:
 When climatic conditions are conductive field plantation should
be done.
 Density of planting and choice of planting is of importance.
• Post-planting operations:
 They includes:
1) Manuring: Systematic fertilizer application is an important
 operation in both mature and immature phases of rubber. During
immature phase, manuring helps in achieving accelerated uniform
growth. Manuring should be done when there is enough moisture
content in the soil.

2) Weeding: Single largest operation during immature phase and is

also important during mature phase. Manual slash weeding is the most
popular method used. Generally 3-4 rounds of weeding is necessary
per annum in immature phase while 2 rounds are adequate in mature
rubber.

3) Mulching: Useful practise during initial years of rubber

cultivation. It helps to conserve moisture and plant bases free from
weeds.
 4)Summer protection: Protection from exposure to direct sunlight is
essential in immature stage. Shade baskets/plaited coconut fronds
during 1st year followed by white washing of brown portion is effective.
Contact shading using china clay is practised to reduce transpiration.
5)Plant protection: Spraying of chemicals should be done at the
recommended time. Workers undertaking this work should be well
trained.
6)Pruning and branch induction: Branching at recommended
height ensure a balanced canopy thereby reducing wind damage.
7)Tapping: An ideal tapping system is one which gives highest yields
at lowest tapping cost, satisfactory growth and bark renewal. Emphasis
on correct slope, depth and time of tapping and bark consumption is
needed. Periodic inspection is necessary.
 8)Rain guarding: Should be installed before the onset of monsoon
and is done in order to increase number of tapping days.
9)Processing: Crop consists of latex and field coagulum. Latex can
be processed into RSS, preserved field latex(PFL), latex concentrates,
TSR and pale latex crepe (PLC). Field coagulum can be processed into
TSR and crepe rubber.