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All 29 fibre plants in the catalogue, alphabetical by common name. Each links to a full page with its ratings across the USDA, RHS, Canadian and Australian systems.
- Abaca (Manila hemp) Musa textilis – Banana relative of the Philippines, reaching 6 m, grown for the long, strong, saltwater-resistant fibre stripped from the leaf sheaths. The classic marine cordage and now a high-value pulp for currency paper and tea bags. USDA zones 10–12
- Adam’s needle Yucca filamentosa – Cold-hardy southeastern North American native yucca with sword-shaped leaves edged in curling white threads, and tall summer panicles of cream bell flowers. Leaf fibre was a key cordage source for southeastern Indigenous peoples. USDA zones 4–10
- Black bamboo Phyllostachys nigra – Running bamboo reaching 6–10 m with canes that mature from green to glossy black, used for ornamental woodwork, furniture, fishing rods, and shakuhachi flutes. USDA zones 7–10
- Coconut palm Cocos nucifera – Iconic tropical coastal palm reaching 30 m, providing — from a single tree — drinking water, food, edible oil, roofing thatch, leaf weaving, structural timber, and the coir fibre stripped from the husk of the fruit. USDA zones 10–12
- Common reed Phragmites australis – Tall worldwide wetland grass reaching 4 m, with the classic plumed flower heads of reed beds. The traditional roof-thatching reed of northern Europe and a globally important wetland-purification plant. USDA zones 3–10
- Cork oak Quercus suber – Mediterranean evergreen oak of southern Iberia and North Africa, with deeply furrowed thick corky bark that can be stripped sustainably from the living tree on a 9–12 year cycle. The world source of natural wine-bottle corks. USDA zones 8–10
- Esparto grass Stipa tenacissima – Tough perennial bunch-grass of Mediterranean North Africa and Iberia, with wiry blue-green leaves. The leaves are the principal source of high-quality book and Bible paper, and traditional matting fibre. USDA zones 8–11
- Flax (Linen flax) Linum usitatissimum – Slender annual with sky-blue flowers grown for linen fibre extracted from the stem and for linseed (flax) oil pressed from the seed. The single oldest cultivated fibre crop, in use for at least 30,000 years. USDA zones 4–9
- Henequen Agave fourcroydes – Stiff blue-green rosette agave closely related to sisal, grown almost exclusively in the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico for fibre. The fibre is slightly shorter, softer and yellower than sisal. USDA zones 9–11
- Industrial hemp Cannabis sativa – Tall fast-growing annual with palmate leaves and slender stems grown for bast fibre, hempseed oil, hempseed food, and CBD. Industrial cultivars are bred to contain less than 0.3% THC and are regulated separately from drug cultivars. USDA zones 4–11
- Jute Corchorus olitorius – Tropical annual reaching 3 m, grown for bast fibre extracted from the stems. The second most important plant fibre after cotton, used for sacking, hessian, twine, and increasingly geotextiles. USDA zones 9–11
- Kapok Ceiba pentandra – Massive buttressed tropical tree producing pods filled with fluffy water-resistant fibre around the seeds. The fibre — kapok — was the standard life-jacket and mattress filling before synthetics. USDA zones 10–12
- Kenaf Hibiscus cannabinus – Tall warm-season hibiscus relative reaching 3 m or more, grown as an annual for bast fibre and woody core fibre. Increasingly grown as a fast-renewable substitute for wood pulp in paper. USDA zones 8–11
- Moso bamboo Phyllostachys edulis – Giant running bamboo to 20 m, the principal commercial bamboo of China for timber, building material, scaffold poles, fibre, and edible spring shoots. USDA zones 6–11
- Mountain flax (Wharariki) Phormium cookianum – Smaller more arching New Zealand flax, with weaker but more flexible leaf fibre than the larger Phormium tenax already in the database. Naturally found on cliffs and coastal slopes throughout New Zealand. USDA zones 8–10
- Native hemp (Gynatrix) Gynatrix pulchella – Soft-leaved Australian native shrub of cool-temperate riparian forests. Inner bark traditionally used for fibre cordage; medicinal use also recorded. USDA zones 8–10
- Pandanus (Screw pine) Pandanus tectorius – Distinctive Pacific and Indian Ocean coastal tree with stilt-like prop roots and a crown of long strap-like spiny leaves. The leaves are the principal weaving fibre across the Pacific. USDA zones 10–12
- Paper mulberry Broussonetia papyrifera – East Asian tree with rough mulberry-like leaves and orange-red fruit, grown for the inner bark, which is processed into the finest traditional Asian and Pacific papers (washi) and into Polynesian tapa barkcloth. USDA zones 6–10
- Raffia palm Raphia farinifera – Tropical African palm producing the world’s longest leaves (up to 25 m). The fibre stripped from the leaflet midribs — raffia — is the standard horticultural tying material and a key weaving fibre across West Africa and Madagascar. USDA zones 10–12
- Ramie Boehmeria nivea – East Asian perennial nettle relative (without the sting) grown for bast fibre extracted from the stem. Produces fibre of exceptional length, strength and lustre, used historically for ceremonial cloth in China and Japan. USDA zones 7–11
- Sacred lotus Nelumbo nucifera – Aquatic perennial of Asian and Australian wetlands with spectacular blue-green peltate leaves and pink or white cup-shaped flowers held high above the water. Edible rhizomes and seeds, and fine silk-like fibre from the leaf stalks. USDA zones 4–11
- Sea hibiscus (Vau) Hibiscus tiliaceus – Coastal pantropical small tree with heart-shaped leaves and yellow hibiscus flowers that age through orange to red over a single day. The inner bark is the principal Pacific cordage and rough cloth fibre. USDA zones 10–12
- Sea island cotton Gossypium barbadense – Tropical cotton species producing the longest, finest and silkiest cotton fibres in cultivation. The source of premium extra-long staple cottons including Sea Island, Pima, and Egyptian. USDA zones 9–11
- Sisal Agave sisalana – Stiff rosette-forming succulent of the Yucatán peninsula, grown commercially across the dry tropics for the long stiff leaf fibre used for rope, twine, matting and dartboard backing. USDA zones 9–11
- Spanish broom Spartium junceum – Tall Mediterranean shrub with rush-like green stems and intensely fragrant yellow pea flowers. Traditional source of textile fibre across southern Europe. USDA zones 7–10
- Ti plant (Cordyline fruticosa) Cordyline fruticosa – Tropical Pacific shrub with broad strap-like leaves in deep green, red, pink, or variegated forms. Leaves are the traditional Polynesian hula skirt material, food wrapping, and a fibre for clothing. USDA zones 10–12
- Upland cotton Gossypium hirsutum – Tropical and subtropical shrub grown as an annual for the white seed-hair fibre that surrounds the seeds in mature capsules (bolls). Accounts for roughly 90% of world cotton production. USDA zones 8–11
- Vetiver Chrysopogon zizanioides – Tropical Indian giant clumping grass with deep penetrating fibrous root systems used internationally for soil erosion control. Roots distil to give the cool earthy-smoky vetiver essential oil. USDA zones 8–11
- Weaver’s bamboo Bambusa textilis – Chinese clumping bamboo with long, straight, thin-walled flexible canes ideally suited to splitting for weaving and basketry. Used commercially for fine basket and hat work across southern China. USDA zones 8–11