Frequently asked questions
- Can we remove the speed bumps before winter comes ?
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Yes, when using the appropriate accesories made for speed bump and parking installation it is easy t … More info...Yes, when using the appropriate accesories made for speed bump and parking installation it is easy the remove them and to replace them in spring.
- Where does rubber come from ?
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The Pará rubber tree initially grew only in the Amazon Rainforest. Increasing demand and the disco … More info...
The Pará rubber tree initially grew only in the Amazon Rainforest. Increasing demand and the discovery of the vulcanization procedure in 1839 led to the rubber boom in that region, enriching the cities of Belém and Manaus. The name of the tree derives from Pará, the second largest Brazilian state, whose capital is Belém.
These trees were used to obtain rubber by the Olmec people of Mesoamerica as early as 3600 years ago. The rubber was used, among other things, to make the balls used in the Mesoamerican ballgame. There had been an attempt made, in 1873, to grow rubber outside Brazil. After some effort, twelve seedlings were germinated at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. These were sent to India for cultivation, but died. A second attempt was then made, some 70,000 seeds being smuggled to Kew in 1875, by Henry Wickham, at the service of the British Empire.[2][3][4][5] About 4% of these germinated, and in 1876 about 2000 seedlings were sent, in Wardian cases, to Ceylon, and 22 sent to the Botanic Gardens in Singapore. Once established outside its native country, rubber was extensively propagated in the British colonies. Rubber trees were brought to the botanical gardens at Buitenzorg, Java in 1883.[6] By 1898, a rubber plantation had been established in Malaya, and today most rubber tree plantations are in South and Southeast Asia and some also in tropical West Africa.
Efforts to cultivate the tree in South America (Amazon) were unsatisfactory, because of blight.[1]
