The Benibana Museum (The Safflower Museum)

27. Yield of Benibana (紅花の収量)

In Edo period the demand of benibana was increased rapidly and the yield of it also was of further growth. The Mogami-benibana won one of the best qualified production. What large harvest could be got around this area per an are?

"Mebaya" and "Sanbe" collected benibana flowers from farmers at the beginning of July and then buyers sent them, after making a cake of "beni-mochi" (紅餅), to Kyoto. The Inamuras (稲村家) of Owarabi Village (大蕨村) was the biggest merchant and the head of this family entrusted Kishichi Inamura (稲村喜七) to collect the flowers and process of making a cake of beni. In 1800, he reported the Inamuras that the total of collecting flowers amounted 1,374 kans (貫) and its price was 174 ryos (両). Its cakes were accumulated 4 das (駄). The total of men to work for the job was 60 men and 40 women and he spent 15 days to make cargos, for which straw mats needed were more than 2.000 sheets. He gathered them from all of the neighboring houses. In this case, the upper limit of weight of a cake of benibanas was counted 9.3% of raw flowers and it cost 7 kans 900 monmes (7貫900匁) for a ryo (両).

The benibana harvest quiet depended on the weather condition of the year. Generally, the harvest of raw flowers was from 30 to 40 kans (貫) and the process of making cakes needed 10% of it at its best. But the worse case was only 7%. The production of the cakes, as an average, was commonly 3 kans (貫) per 9.9 ares.

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  1. Benibana (Safflower : Carthamus Tinctorius) Revived
  2. From the Horigome Residence of a Wealthy Farmer to the Museum
  3. Horigome's Former Residence
  4. The Benibana House
  5. Place of Origin of Benibana
  6. Flora of Benibana
  7. Kinds of Benibana
  8. Its Use and Effect
  9. How to Grow Benibana
  10. Variety of Dyeing Materials
  11. Main Plants Dyes
  12. Technique of Benibana Dyes
  13. Benibana Dyeing for Everybody
  14. How to Make Benibana Wine
  15. How to Make Rouge
  16. History of Benibana
  17. Benibana Charmed the Noblemen
  18. Benibana for Tax Obligation
  19. Nobunaga Oda Made a Present of Benibana
  20. Supplication of Yoshiaki Mogami
  21. Anrakuji Temple Documents of Benibana Donation
  22. Evaluation of Mogami Benibana
  23. Prosperity of Flower Market
  24. "Mebaya" and "Sanbe" as Traders
  25. All the Fields Covered with Benibana
  26. Two Haiku Lines of Benibana
  27. Yield of Benibana
  28. Area under Cultivation of Mogami-benibana
  29. Price of Mogami-benibana
  30. Route of Benibana Conveyance
  31. Deterioration of Mogami Benibana
  32. Decline of Domestic Benibana
  33. Life of Mogami-benibana
  34. Kahoku Town - Town of Safflower
  35. Benibana Tradings
  36. Benibana Jizo as a Guardian
  37. Color of Twelve Official Ranks
  38. Rich Benibana Traders and Road of Culture
  39. BENIBANA CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE
  40. Conversion Table
  41. Access