296 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



Septembek 10, 1904. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



Letters and matter for publication, as ■well 

 as all specimens for naming, should be addressed 

 to the Commissioner, Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture, Barbados. 



All applications for copies of the 'Agri- 

 cultural Ne'ws' should be addressed to the 

 Agents, and not to the Department. A com- 

 plete list of the London and Local agents will 

 be found at foot of page 271 of this volume. 



The 'Agricultural News': Price Id. per 

 number, post free l^od. Annual subscription 

 payable to Agents 2s. 2d. Post free, 3s. 3d. 



^gncultural llmufi 



Vol. hi. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1904. No. 63. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



In our editorial we draw attention to some of the 

 more important points connected with the growing of 

 onions. The short article on p. 29-5 on the cultivation 

 of onions in Egypt is also liively to be ot interest. 



The first portion of a progress re])ort on the 

 .sugar-cane e.xperiments that have been conducted on 

 estates in British Guiana is given on pp. 290-1. This 

 report will be concluded in our ne.\t issue. A short 

 review of the last season's operations on sugar estates in 

 Guadeloupe and Martinique will be found on p. 291. 



On p. 292 we jjublish information relating to the 

 banana industry in the Canary Islands. It will be 

 seen that the trade with the United Kingdom has 

 been considerably affected by the imports from the 

 West Indies. 



From our cotton notes it will be seen that the 

 prospects of establishing a cotton industry in the West 

 Indies are considered by persons connected with the 

 trade in England to be encouraging. We also publish 

 extracts from a repijrt on experiments in cotton growing 

 in Jamaica. 



In the present issue Mr. Barclay concludes his 

 interesting and useful notes on I'abbit Iceeping. Hints 

 are given as to the treatment of the diseases of rabbits. 



On p. 2dH a review is given of the present position 

 of the experiments that are being carried on in the 

 United States against the Mexican cotton boll weevil. 

 Although this pest has not, fortunately, so far, appeared 

 in these islands, it is considered desirable that jjlanters 

 should be supplied with information as to the methods 

 which have been found necessary for combating it. 



Lectures on Cotton Cultivation. 



In connexion with the lectures on cotton cultiva- 

 tion being arranged by the Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture, the following fixtures have been made in 

 St. Vincent : — The Coiu't House, Kingstown, on Wednes- 

 da}', August 31 ; the Barracks, Colonarie, on Monday, 

 September .5: the Schoolroom, Stubbs, on Tuesday, 

 September G ; the Schoolroom, Campden Park, on 

 Monday, September 12; the Schoolroom. Barrouallie, 

 on Wednesday, St^ptember 14. 



His Honour the Acting Administrator will preside 

 at the first lecture, and all the lectures will be fully 

 illustrated by lantern slides. The lecturers will be 

 Mr. W. N. Sands and Jlr. C. H. Knowles, B.Sc. 



m a »-^^— 



Cocoa-nuts for New York. 



Hemingway's ' London Purple ' Co., Ltd., has 

 addressed a letter to the Imjjerial Commissioner of 

 Agriculture asking for information on the situation of 

 the cocoa-nut oil industry in the West Indies. 



The firm desires certain information, the nature of 

 which will be gathered from the following extract: — 



'We may shortl}? be interested in an enterprise 

 for the manuficture of cocoa-nut oil, and would be 

 glad to have particulars as to the localities in 

 wdiich cocoa-nut palms are abundant ; also as to the 

 cost of land in these .sections and the usual terms of 

 land tenure. The above points are of particular in- 

 terest. We should also be very glad if you could put us 

 in the way of ascertaining at what price we could 

 buy a good grade of cocoa-nuts alreidy picked and 

 delivered at different points.' 



■ — ^^^►-♦--^ 



The Mexican Cotton Boll Weevil. 



We publish on p. 29<S extracts from a recently 

 issued bulletin on the Mexican cotton boll weevil. As 

 is well known, this has proved a most serious pest, and 

 there are indications that it will spread further and 

 further. Yet it has been demonstrated 

 can be grown profitabl}^ in spite of the 

 But this is possible only when great 

 given to cultural methods. 



The efficac}' of these cultural methods against 

 insect pests is not sufficiently realized in the 

 West Indies, the tendency being to think that 

 the application of insecticides will always put things 

 right. In sevei'al of these islaiids we have noticed old 

 cotton plants left standing long after their period of 

 usefulness has passed. Such a practice only serves to 

 give additional opportunities for the development of 

 pests. As soon as it becomes apparent that no more 

 cotton will be produced on the plants, they should be 

 jiulled up and buried, or, in the case of plants obviously 

 affected by some pest, burned. 



It has farther been demonstrated that the boll 

 weevil is distributed with seed : this fact furnishes an 

 additional argument for the sterilization of all seed 

 before sowing, as has been done in the case of seed 

 distributed by the Imperial Department of Agriculture. 

 It would also be advisable to fumigate the seed in the 

 chambers that have been, or are being, erected for the 

 fumigation of imported plants. 



that ' a cpjp 

 boll weevil.' 

 attention is 



