249 USEFUL PLANTS OF GUAM. 
planters on the island are the Western Commercial Company, having its plantation 
in the district of Upe, in the northern part of the island (10,000 to 12,000 trees); Don 
Vicente Herrero, in Orunao, Retiyan, and Lalé (7,000 to 8,000 trees); the Japanese 
Oyama, in Hiladn (6,000 to 7,000 trees); Don Luis Torres, alias Cortez, in Gokfiga 
and Lupog (5,000 to 6,000 trees), and Don José Duefias Evarista, in Sinagésd (6,000 
to 7,000 trees). There are also good plantations in the district of Yofia and in the 
vicinity of Agat. Though coconuts do not thrive in swampy places as a rule, yet 
there are good plantations near San Antonio, across the river from Agafia, and near 
Punta Piti, where the trees grow on hummocks almost on a level with the water’s 
surface when the rivers are unobstructed. Coconuts are fond of sunshine and ocean 
breezes; but it is evident that they can not stand exposure to repeated hurricanes, 
from the fact that on the fine stretches of sandy beach along the east or windward 
coast of the southern portion of the island not a coconut tree is found, while near 
by, in more sheltered sites of Pago and the valleys of Ilig and Taloféfo, fine groves 
are met with. Great damage to the coconuts of the island is caused by baguios, or 
hurricanes. Both ripe and green fruits are whipped off and the leaves are destroyed. 
It is from the axils of the petioles of the old leaves that the young flower clusters 
issue; and when the leaves are killed these become aborted and it takes at least two 
years for the tree to recover. During the year which followed the hurricane of 
1900 not a single ton of copra was exported from Guam. ¢@ 
All enterprising natives on the island are now planting coconut trees, as there is a 
ready sale for all the copra that can be produced. Clearings are made in the forest, 
the undergrowth removed, and the tree trunks gradually gotten rid of with the aid 
of fire. (Pl. XXIII.) This requires hard work, and few white men coming to the 
island are either able or willing to clear land forthemselves. Land taroand bananas 
may then be planted until the stumps are removed, after which coconuts are planted 
in regular rows. As the natives have plantations of their own they naturally prefer 
to work for themselves rather than for another; so that it is almost impossible to 
obtain laborers on the island. Moreover, the natives will not part with a coconut 
grove in good bearing condition or a thriving young plantation at any price. A 
fairly good yield for a coconut palm is 25 to 30 pounds of copra a year, though there 
are many trees on the island which produce double this amount. In the process of 
clearing, taro, yams, and bananas are often planted in the new ground. The nuts 
selected for seed are taken neither from very young nor very old trees, but from 
trees at least 15 years old. Many of the natives pay no attention to seed selec- 
tion, but plant sprouting nuts indiscriminately; others, however, realize the advan- 
tage which results from planting seed taken from trees yielding the greatest 
amount of copra. The tendency is to plant large nuts; but these may have been 
produced by young trees or trees bearing few nuts and yielding less copra than trees 
bearing nuts of smaller size. Nuts selected for seed should be lowered to the ground, 
not thrown down or dropped. Nursery planting is not practiced in Guam. The 
ripe nuts are simply collected in piles in the shade of trees or in the corners of inclo- 
sures and left to sprout, without further care. When the sprouts are about 60 cm. 
high they are ready for permanent planting. If the roots have in the meantime 
penetrated the ground and are broken off in removing the nuts, they should be 
neatly cut off with a sharp knife, so as not to leave ragged ends. 
It is the practice in Guam to plant coconuts in rows 5 to 6 meters apart, but this 
is too close. From 7 to 10 meters is a good distance. Holes about 60 cm. deep are first 
dug, and they are sometimes arranged so that the holes in one row will be opposite 
the intervals of the next. On some plantations coffee, cacao, or bananas are planted 
between the rows, but this custom is not recommended. The evil effects of crowd- 
“See official report of Governor Seaton Schroeder to the Secretary of the Navy, 
1. 
