clear, transparent oil is expressed from the seeds of the " curry-leaf " tree (Bergen; [Murraya] KlinigiO, in Bengal and S. India.
seeds of Hevea brasiliensis [Siphonia elastica] (see Resinous Substances lndiarubber) afford an oil which is useful for making hard soaps, and printing-ink.
semi-solid oil is obtained from the seeds of Sapindus emarginatus [trifoliatus] (see Nuts—Soap-nuts, p. 1360) in India, and is used medicinally. Another oil is procured from S. Saponaria in the W. Indies and N. Central America.
sunflower (Helianthus annuus) has long been grown for its oil-seeds in Russia and India, and tho cultivation has more recently been taken up in Germany and Italy. The plant grows readily in most soils, but prefers light, rich, calcareous land, unshaded by trees. In Russia, the seed is drilled into lines 18 in. apart, and the plants are thinned out to 30 in. apart in the rows, thus giving about 11,000 plants in an acre. The quantity of seed required for an acre is 4-6 lb., and the sowing takes place in September-October, the crop being ready to harvest in February. In Eogland, it is recommended for any vacant ground, to be planted 6 in. apart and 1 in. deep, and to be earthed up when 1 ft. high, requiring no subsequent attention. The yield of seed is much increased by topping the plants, and the best manure is old mortar. Each plant produces about 1000 seeds, chiefly on the main head. Experimental culture in France gave a return of 1778 lb. of seed, yielding 15 per cent, of oil (275 lb.), and 80 per cent. of cake, from an acre ; but the product varies considerably according to soil, climate, and cultivation, and the average may be roundly stated at 50 bush. of seed from an acre, and 1 gal. of oil from 1 bush, of seed. The percentage of oil to seed ranges from 16 to 28 ; and that of husk to kernel, from 41 to 60. The Italian cultivation is confined to the neighbourhoods of Piove and Conegliano, in Venetia. In Russia, the plant is most extensively grown in Kielce and Podolia, and the district of Birutch, in Voronej ; the production of seed is now estimated at 8 million poods (of 36 lb.), from an area of 80,000 dessatines (of 13,067 sq. yd.) In Tartary and China, it is cultivated in immense quantities, but no actual statistics are available. In India (Mysore), 1 acre of land gives 1 I cwt. of seed,
which yields 45 gal. of an oil which is there compared with ground-nut-oil, and applied to the same uses. The Russian seed is expressed on the spot, and the oil is largely employed for adul terating olive-oil. The purified oil is considered equal to olive- and almond-oil for table use. The chief industrial applications of the oil are for woollen-dressing, lighting, and candle and soap making ; for the last-mentioned purpose, it is superior to most oils. It is pale-yellow in colour, thicker than hempseed-oil, of 0.926 sp. gr. at 15° (59° F.), dries slowly, becomes turbid at ordinary temperatures, and solidifies at —16° (4° F,). The cake is excellent food for cattle and poultry, and the stems yield a fibre (see Fibrous Substances—Helianthus, p. 961).
seeds of the tea-plant, Camellia Thea [Thea chinensis] (see Tea), contain a con siderkble proportion of oil, as much as 1 cwt. being obtainable by industrial means from 3 cwt. of seed. The oil resembles that of the olive, burns with a clear, bright light, and is free from unpleasant odour. The general extraction of this oil is recommended to tea-planters. But there is every reason to believe that the " tea-oil " which figures largely in Chinese and Japanese com merce is not the product of the tea-plant, but of an allied species (C. Sasanqua, or C. oleiferu). The Chinese assert that this plant is identical with the tea-plant, only oultivated differently ; but they may have easily confounded the two plants, and additional confusion has arisen from the fact that the Japanese add Camellia-leavea to their tea, on account of their pleasant aroma. The Camellia is very largely cultivated in China, the shrubs being grown to a height of 8-9 ft. The seeds are crushed to a coarse powder, boiled, and pressed. The oil is employed locally for many domestic purposes, and is an important artiole of trade. Hankow exported 3640} piculs (of 133k lb.) in 1878, and 5826 piculs, value 11,442/., in 1879; Shanghai, in 1879, imported 5792i piculs, and exported 2991i. Another species, C. drupifera, grows abundantly on the E. Himalaya, and under oultivation in Cochin China ; in the latter country, its oil is used medicinally.