ABSTRACT
The history of rubber growing started at the beginning of the 19th century when forest trees were exploited in Amazonia. The perfecting of a "latex diagnosis" has made obvious the advantages of the study of physiological parameters as selection criteria. The most commonly used classic criteria of measuring growth and production are essential. Study of the physiological characteristics of latex led numerous authors to define certain biochemical parameters connected with latex production in Hevea. Some of these parameters seemed to have very important roles and simultaneous study of them resulted in the definition of a "latex diagnosis" which could be used rapidly and for a large number of clones to find out the factors involved in the flow of latex and in its regeneration metabolism. The chapter also provides an introduction of the notion of "clonal typology" which will make it possible to characterize the clones in the complex set of interrelations of synthetic parameters.
