Vol. III. No. 49. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



67 



The nioiitlis of July, August, Seiiteniber and October 

 ■»vere occupied by the usual agricultural operations proper to 

 the season. Tlie canes made good growth during this period. 

 During October and November examinations were made of 

 some thousands of new seedlings raised from seed in 1900 

 and 1901. 



The canes commenced to arrow late in August, No. 

 95 flowering freely towards the end of that month. It was 

 followed by No.s. 74, 116, 2,028, .",,157, .•'.,287, .■?,866, and the 

 "White Transparent, all of which were in flower during the 

 fir.st week of September. 



Many other varieties flowered during September and 

 October, but owing jirobably t<i tin' excf'ptional dryness of 

 the weather, a large jiroportiou of the arrows were abortive 

 and remained arrested in their sheaths. Due probably to 

 the same cause was the scarcity of fertile seeds produced this 

 year. Two liundred and nine sowings were made and only 

 3,216 seeds germinated, the lowest rate for many years. 

 About 2,500 young seedlings have been secured. 



The most prolific variety was No. 115, followed by 

 No. 1,087 and by No. 2,468. The White Transparent and 

 the Bourbon proved the least fertile. 



The cross-fertilization experiments again failed ; in the 

 case of the White Transparent and the !Mani completely, the 

 two varieties not arrowing at the same time ; the experiment 

 with these kinds will not be repeated : while in that of the 

 White Transparent and the Po-a-ole only four plantlets have 

 been obtained, which may or may not have resulted from 

 cross-fertilization. 



The following are the varieties cut on the North 

 field, the average of canes per acre yielded by them and the 

 indicated jiroportions of saccharose in the juices expressed 

 from them by a laboratory mill : — 



1st. E.\T00NS. 12 MONTH.S OLD. 



and reaped as plant canes seventeen months old are as 

 follows • — 



PL.\NT CANES. 17 MONTHS OLD. 



PLANT CANES. 12 MONTHS OLD. 



The average yield of the 1st. ratoon canes was at the 

 rate of 38 tons of canes per acre, that of the plant canes 

 29-9 tons. 



Similar details for the varieties planted on South field 



The average yield on this field was at the rate of 

 24-5 tons of canes per acre. 



The eff"ect of nitrogen on the canes was well shown, 

 the results being in tons of canes per acre : — 



These experiments therefore liave produced singularly 

 clear proofs of the dependence of the yield of the sugar-cane 

 on the proportion of available nitrogen added in manures, 

 and, with others previously reported, show that the various 

 varieties of sugar-cane resemble the Bourbon in the dependence 

 of their yield upon this constituent. 



{To he continual.) 



