Larn, belonging to the PALMAE family, genus Corypha, is the most popular fan palm used in handicraft making. They have used its young leaves as writing paper and as material for making basket articles. Its mature leaves have been used as house beams or for roof structures. Its stems have been used in construction and for furniture, and finally its roots and fruit as food and medicine.

1. Larn Wat (Corypha leconte Becc)
A native of Sri Lanka, this species is grown for decorative purpose mostly in temple areas ; as temple is wat in Thai, hence the name.
2. Local Thai Larn ( Corypha lecontei Becc)
Consists of many sub-species, this type of palm is popularly used of material for wickerwork.
3. Larn Pru (Corypha elata)
This species is abundant in the southern provinces of Thailand. Young shoots of this palm are used in making ring net tails which are the typical products of the south.

In the days when there was no paper, people used young palms leaves to write on, especially the Buddha' s stories and teachings, historical events and poetry. Palm-leaf books are considered to be very important historical documents. The Buddhist teaching palm books are the most numerous as there has been a belief that the making of such a book would enable the writer to meet the future Buddha who will be the saviour of all mankind. The oldest was written in a northern script called Tingsanibatkulrajajataka dating about 1471. The second oldest, inscribed some thirty years later, is now preserved at Wat Laihin, Kao Ka District in Lampang Province.

There have been attempts recently to create more products from palm leaves, for example name cards, bookmarkers, greeting cards and invitation cards. Other popular lines of products using this material and handed down from the past include ngob or farmers' hats and pla tapian or fish mobiles.

Ngob
This kind of hat is worn typically by Thai farmers in Central Thailand. The uniqueness of this hat lies in this structure which is comprised of two parts. The outside, serving as shade, has a bamboo woven framework with fan palm strip sewn over in a neat arrangement. The inside, or the head gripper, which is fixed to the crown of the outside part by hand stitches, is made of bamboo strips plaited loosely in such a way that enables it be fitted securely to most head sizes.

Pla Taipian
This is a name of typically fish mobile which originated about a hundred years ago. Fish mobile are usually hung over baby cots to lull babies to sleep and those made from palm leaves are generally the most popular commercially because they can be painted and are more durable. Different varieties of size and color are now sold as souvenirs and as decorative prices in the home market and abroad.

Coconut belong the PALMAE family with Cocos nucifera Linn the scientific name. Thai people consider the coconut tree the 'tree of life' as a great deal of their substance, food, shelter, facilities and clothing comes from this plant.

The best-known products from this plant are fans which are identified with the south, especially in Ronpibul District of Nakhon Sri Thammarat. These fans have several others names in the south; pad baikapor, pad baipor, pad kokyang. Legend has it thai the fan makers were inhabitants of another district who migrated to Ronpibul where they passed on the technique to their neighbours, thus making this district famous for the production of fans to this day.

The two kinds of reeds used for Thai handicrafts are as follows :
1. Local Reeds or kok rangka : This kind of has a triangular-shaped stem with hard and brittle skin.
2. Kok Suer : The tern suer means 'mat', so this type of reed is widely accepted as good for making mats.

Articles made from reeds which began as home products are now also manufactured in factories due to their increasing popularity. They can be categorized into three groups as follows :
1. Mats : Mats are woven from reeds. However, for the weaving process, these reeds may be prepared in two ways : whole stems or silvers of stem.
2. Product from mats : With many mats being produced in homes and factories in Chantnburi Province, new products as well as varieties have been developed from to expand market. At the moment, not only bags, but also other articles like file covers, picture frames, kleenex boxes, office equipment, souvenir boxes and the like can also be bought in various models and design.
3. Other products from reeds : These handicrafts are woven manually from reeds like other fibrous plants and belong to the wickerwork group. A variety of articles are produced, for example hats, bags ect..

Bulrushes or krajood grow well in swampy areas, can reach up 3 metres in height and have hollow stems. Most are found in Narathiwat Province, while other southern provinces have a small number.
The most popular designs for this type of mat are those inspired by nature : flowers, leaves, animals etc. They may be categorized as :
* Thai Muslim designs : Muslim weavers make their designs symbolic and differ according to the locality which also gives the work its name.
* Thai Buddhist Design : Mats of this kind have no limit in design. As the result, the design woven are multifarious, natural and unnatural.

The first product to be made from this plant was hammocks. For most articles made from water hyacinth only simple tools like scissors, a needle and a simple iron are required for production. Occasionally facilitator such as moulds and the like may be needed. The weaving is done by hand and the techniques are not different from those used in making other types of wickerwork.

Over 300 varieties of banana can be found in Thailand but the most commonly grown for consumption and commercial purposes include only four, namely horn, namwa, khai, hukmook. There is one particular variety which yields inedible fruit but is grown almost as commonly-tanee, scientifically known as Musaballbisiana a native species of Hawaii.

" Banana sheath strip " wickerwork is mostly produced in the southern provinces including Songkhla, Phatthalung, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Surat Thani.

Products made from corn husks are relatively new in Thailand, as the idea was only initiated by the Department of Industrial Promotion in 1993. After some experimental studies, the department came up with a set of dolls made in variety of designs. The weaving process for corn husks is not different from that of other materials. The difference lies in the preparation as the corn husks need to be treated against fungus first. Another minor difference may be the dyeing method.

The kinds that serve as raw materials for wickerwork in are made from this variety.
1. Tei Shaeng : This species has leaves that can be as long as 4 metres with tiny thorns along both edges. Mats and sacks are made from variety.
2. Tei Nam : This species grows in swampy areas and has longer and larger leaves which have bigger thorns on their edges, than Tei Shaeng but they have a similar use.
3. Tei Naam : This species has very big thorns along the edges of its leaves and is usually grown near the home. More varieties of wickerwork are made from this type.
4. Tei Khow : It is mostly found in hilly areas. Compared with the other three, this type has the longest and thorniest leaves.

Panan has stronger fragrance than tei but shorter leaves with tiny thorns along the edges. It is very good material for wickerwork because its leaves when dried are soft and easy to handle, therefore suitable for refined products. Some are rather traditional and used around the home such as mats for sitting or resting, while others are specifically made for agricultural use such as mats for drying grain and varieties of containers called locally mook, (or samook for Central Thailand)

Some rural people use this plant as medicine. For most people, however, it provides good material for paper and handicraft making as its bark yields very tough and long fibres. In the north and northeast, it is called Por Sa, in the west Mo Pee, Mok Pee and in the south Por Fai. New products from sa papers include artificial flowers and plants, varieties of boxes, souvenirs, cards for various occasions, name cards, office equipment, picture books, notebooks, lampshades, kites, and wall paper.

This kind of vine fern, or yan lipao, is from the SCHIZACEA family. It is green climber, a native of damp rain forests, found in Thailand in the swampy areas of the south.

There are three common varieties :
1. Yan lipao khao : This grows mainly on the mountains and is not generally used.
2. Yan lipao yung : This is the leafy variety with a small stem. It is used locally for trying or sometimes for decorative purpose during religious ceremonies.
3. Yan lipao yai : This variety can grow to about two metres length with a stem as big as a match stick and is usually found in groves or small woods.

Sisals can withstand a very dry climate as they love strong sunshine and can live as long as ten years. They resemble pineapples when young but after a few years they grow much bigger. The fibre from this plant is very strong and insect resisitant. Consequence, it is very popular for making ship hawsers, metal brushes, carpet underlay, mosquito whips and a variety of wickerwork items.

The two sisals that are most grown for fibre are :
1. Agave sisalana : This species has big and thick leaves with a glossy skin, dark green in color and sharp thorn along the edges, except at the tip.
2. Agave fourcroydes : This type of sisals also has big and thick leaves but the color is not green and the thorns are not so big. It yields whiter fibres than agave sisalana.