What is rattan furniture cane and where does it come from?
Cane for chair caning is actually the peeled bark of the rattan vine. Rattan, of the liana plant species, is a spiny climbing palm that grows in tropical forests throughout Southeast Asia attaining lengths of over 600 feet, though some of that length is lying on the forest floor. Rattan cane is quite different from bamboo which is hollow, rigid and grows strait up supporting itself, where as rattan cane is solid but flexible and needs the support of surrounding trees to climb in search of light. Its economic value helps preserve tropical rain forest by providing a profitable alternative to timber logging. Rattan cane grows much faster than most tropical woods and is easier and cheaper to harvest, not requiring the heavy equipment, oil consumption and land degradation required to harvest timber. These attributes make it an excellent renewable resource providing sustainable income to some of the most disadvantaged segments of people living in and near the forests. Many families have cultivated rattan cane on their villages cooperative farms for generations through planting and harvesting. Because of its strength and flexibility, the stem of rattan is used extensively in the manufacture of cane furniture with most of that production consisting of cane, rattan and wicker chairs....