The largest plantations of “toquilla” are fifteen kilometers from the coast, on the lower slopes of the western cordillera, swept by cool winds between the rainy season and the tropical moistness. The plants, which belong to the palm family, are long, high and light, of a fine bright green. The end of their stalks are adorned with leaves which spread out like a fan. It is these leaves which, as shoots that have not yet fully developed, are cut for turning into straw. They are harvested throughout the year, but the time when cutting takes place is important because the shoot, still sheathed in green, must be young and yet at the same time already firm. Whether it is a reality or just a belief, the phases of the moon have as much importance for the cutters as the age of the plant or the temperature of the day. Poetry remains an influence, amidst all this.
The “toquilla” plantations of Pilé, Manglar Alto, Olón, Valdivia and elsewhere are veritable tropical forest. They are worked by the villagers, who often get the actual cutting of the plants done by “pajeros”.
The shoots, or sheaths of immature leaves, look like stalk of about a meter in length and a centimeter in diameter. In Ecuador they are called “cogollos”. Gathered together in bundles, the green straw is then transported by lorry or by mule, according to its destination.
