Vol. III. No. 46. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



25 



Agriculture in Lagos. 



The Annuel Colon l<d Re^ioii on Layos for 

 1902 contains a review of the agricultural position of 

 the colony during the year. 



A model farm has been started at Oloke Meji 

 ■with the object of promoting the cultivation of tropical 

 products that can be grown in the colony and 

 protectorate. With the assistance of the British 

 Cotton Growing A.s.sociation the cultivation of cotton 

 has been embarked upon, several thousand acres 

 having been planted out. Cotton was an established 

 industry in the past, as shown by the fact that in 

 18G9 the value of the cotton exported was £79,0.57. 

 Of recent years the natives have grown merely sutticient 

 for home use. 



As a result of the appointment of a European 

 Produce Inspector, the quality of the palm kernels 

 shipped has been improved, the profits and the prices 

 realized being higher than for many years. A very 

 satisfactory state of affairs in the mahogany trade is 

 reported, African \\ood being in great demand both 

 in England and in America. 



The trade in cacao was not satisfactory : although 

 Lagos cacao is of good quality, sufficient attention is 

 not paid to curing. Of trade generally the Collector 

 of Customs reports : ' The j'ear was one of the best the 

 colony has ever experienced as regards both imports 

 and exports.' 



— ^ I ^ • 



Shade Trees and Manures for Cacao. 



It may be of interest to record the following 

 results of experiments, relating to shade trees and 

 manures for cacao, conducted at Trinidad, Dominica 

 and St. Lucia. 



The general experience with Immortel trees is 

 that on poor soils these trees do not supply sufficient 

 nitrogen for the cacao, and an application of some 

 nitrogenous manure is advisable. In Trinidad, 2i cwt. 

 to 3 cwt. of either sulphate of ammonia or nitrate 

 of soda have given good results. Shade trees are not 

 usually grown with cacao in Dominica on account of 

 the damage done to the cacao by the falling of such 

 trees as the Immortel or the Saman. The use of 

 Cdstilloa ('lasiiva is advocated by the Curator for this 

 purpose on account of its withstanding gales better. 



With regard to the a|)plication of fertilizers, the 

 large amounts of nitrate of soda and sulphate of 

 ammonia, suggested by the Botanic Department at 

 Trinidad, are not consitlered necessary either in 

 Dominica or St. Liicia. As the result of trials in the 

 latter island Jlr. Hudson recommends the application of 

 1 cwt. of nitrate of soda (costing 15.s'.) or 1 cwt of 

 sulphate of ammonia (containing 20 to 24 per cent, of 

 . ammonia) at a cost of 17.s. 



Basic slag has been found to give the best results 

 as a phosphatic manure for cacao. For St. Lucia an 

 application of 8 cwt. to 10 cwt. is recommended. 

 Much smaller quantities apjiear to be used in Trinidad. 



Potash is supplied in Trinidad in the form 

 of sulphate of potash (3 cwt. per acre) or wood-ashes 

 (7 cwt.); in St. Lucia the application of potash does 

 not, as a general rule, ajopear to be necessary. 



Lectures to Planters at Barbados. 



The third anil concluding lecture of the course of 

 lectures to planters on Sugar-cane diseases was delivered 

 by Mr. L Lewton-Brain, B.A., F.L.S., Mycologist and 

 Lecturer in Agriculture on the staff of the Imperial 

 Department of Agriculture, on Friday, January 8. 

 A summary of the lecture is given on page 23 of this 

 issue. 



The full text of the three lectures will shortly be 

 issued as No. 29 of the Pamphlet series. 



Notes on Balata. 



The Inilia-rubber Joarnal of December 7, 1903, 

 contains an interesting article on balata by Mr. H. L. 

 Terry, F.I.C. As a considerable amount of misconcep- 

 tion exists as to the nature and uses of this substance, 

 and there is a common tendency to regard it as 

 identical both with gutta-jiorcha and with India-rubber, 

 we give the following brief summary' of Mr. Terry's 

 article : — 



Balata and India-rubber are entirely distinct 

 bodies both as regards their origin and physical 

 characters and also in the uses to which they are 

 applied. 



With regard to balata and gutta-percha, however, 

 it is impossible in the present state of chemical 

 knowledge, to say that they are fundamentally different. 

 Many of their properties are the .same. Botanically 

 they are quite distinct : balata is the product of 

 Mlmufopf< ylohom, occurring prett}- generally in 

 Trinidad, the Guianas and Venezuela; while the gutta- 

 percha tree is Dichopnia (jidia (found in the Malay 

 Archipelago). 



Although it is commonly stated that balata is 

 employed as an insulating material, the writer is of 

 op'inion that its use for deep sea work is practically nil. 

 What is known with tolerable exactittide is the 

 destination, other than cable works, of the London 

 imports of balata, and when these various purchases 

 are added up, it is seen that there is not much left for 

 employment in the electrical industry. Moreover, the 

 fact that the market price of balata has not risen in 

 consonance with the great rise that has taken place in 

 that of gutta-percha, would seem to indicate that balata 

 cannot replace gutta-percha for electrical work. It 

 seems fairly safe to assume that balata has very small 

 ajjplication, if any, for insulating purposes. No doubt 

 its defects are largely due to the amount of resinous 

 matter that it contains, 40 to .50 per cent, being often 

 found in the better quality, compared with 20 per cent. 

 in the best gutta-percha. 



Like India-rubber and gutta-percha, balata is 

 obtained as a milky exudation on the incision of the 

 tree: the ver}' wasteful method of cutting down the 

 tree instead of tapping it being the procedure generally 

 in vogue. The milk has to be coagulated in order to 

 separate the valuable substance from the water in 

 which it is disseminated. This is done either by 

 boiling the sap in kettles until it is of a doughy 

 consistency, this on exposure to air soon solidifying to 

 a block ; or by drying the milky fluid gradually in 

 shallow pans exposed to the sun's rays. 



