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esparto

 
Dictionary: es·par·to   (ĭ-spär') pronunciation
n., pl., -tos.
A tough, wiry grass (Stipa tenacissima) of northern Africa, yielding a fiber used in making paper and as cordage.

[Spanish, from Latin spartum, from Greek sparton, rope.]


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Either of two species of gray-green needlegrasses (Stipa tenacissima and Lygeum spartum), native to southern Spain and northern Africa, or the fibre produced by esparto. L. spartum grows in rocky soil on the high plains. S. tenacissima flourishes in sandy, iron-rich soils in dry, sunny locations on the seacoast. Esparto fibre has great strength and flexibility; it is used for making ropes, sandals, baskets, mats, and other durable articles. Esparto leaves are used in the manufacture of paper.

For more information on esparto, visit Britannica.com.

Wikipedia: Esparto
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Esparto Grass

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Monocots
(unranked): Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Genus: Macrochloa or Stipa
Species: M. tenacissima
Binomial name
Macrochloa tenacissima
(L.) Kunth.
Synonyms

Stipa tenacissima

Esparto, or esparto grass, also known as "halfah (alpha/alfa) grass" or "needle grass", Macrochloa tenacissima and Stipa tenacissima, is a perennial grass grown in northwest Africa and southern Spain employed for crafts (cords, baskets, espadrilles, etc.).

Woven esparto.

Esparto paper

It is also used for fiber production for paper making. The fiber makes a high quality paper often used in book manufacturing. First used in Great Britain in 1850, it has been extensively used there and in Europe, but is rarely found in the United States because of the cost of transport. It is usually combined with five to ten percent wood pulp.

The "Spanish" grade is usually regarded as the higher-quality, while the "Tripoli" grade, from Africa, is the lesser in quality. The fibers are fairly short in relation to their length, yet do not create any significant amount of dust. Because of the short fiber length, the tensile strength of the paper is less than that of many other papers, but its resistance to shrinkage and stretching is superior, and the paper is a well-filled, dense paper with excellent inking qualities. It also has very good folding properties.

Lygeum spartum, a broadleaf perennial in the family Gramineae , is also used in combination, and is also sometimes called esparto grass or albardine.

Some manufacturers of rolling paper may use esparto, which might lead to a slightly higher carcinogen level when burnedRef.

Related terms

  • Espartinas, a town in the province of Seville, Spain
  • The family name Espartero means "esparto worker or seller".
  • Atocha is another Spanish word for "esparto".

External links

Esparto ready for crafts

 
 
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espadrille
esparto wax (materials)
Almería

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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Esparto" Read more