To Joseph Hooker   27 July 1879

27/7/79

 

This small sample of Silk & Cocoons,1 dear Sir Joseph, may prove of interest to your Museum, in as much as this sample demonstrates, that Silk of excellent quality can be obtained from Maclura aurantiaca. This is important, as farms can be surrounded by this splendid hedge-bush and thus food for the Bombyx Mori be gained without sacrificing ground for Mulberry trees.

With best regards

Ferd. von Mueller

 

The experiment was here made on my instigation,2 as I had contradictory accounts about the adapatability of the Osage-Orange leaves for silk-purposes from America.

 

Maclura aurantiaca

1
MS annotation: Museum / Sept 27/79 / Cocoons Small.
2
See A. Timbrell to M, 24 July 1879.

Please cite as “FVM-79-07-27a,” in Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, edited by R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora†, J.H. Voigt† and Monika Wells accessed on 28 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/vonmueller/letters/79-07-27a