168 



THE AGRICULTUEAL NEWS. 



May 21, 1901. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



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 as all specimens for naming, should be addressed 

 to the Commissioner, Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture, Barbados. 



All applications for copies of the 'Agricul- 

 tural News' should be addressed to the Agents, 

 and not to the Department. A complete list of 

 the London and Local agents will be found at 

 foot of page 1 75 of this issue. 



The 'Agricultural News': Price Id. per 

 number, post free 1 [o d . Annual subscription 

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



^igriculturat |}eiu!) 



Vol. III. SATURDAY, MAY 21, 190-t. No. .55. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



Among the articlf.s in thi.s issue of the Aijrl- 

 cidtural Neiv^ the following may be referred to as of 

 particular interest : — 



On pages 1C2-3 will be found the concluding 

 portion of the progress report on the sugar-cane 

 experiments at Barbados. The instalment of this 

 report published in the last issue dealt particularl}' 

 with the manurial experiments at Dodds and Hopewell. 

 In this issue the report deals with experiments with 

 tillage and gives a detailed list of the experiments 

 inaugurated during the period under review. 



An interesting note on the method of tinning 

 jjine-apples, as practised in the Straits Settlements, is 

 given on page HH, where there will ai.so be found a 

 further extract from Mr. Smith's report to the Trinidad 

 Agricultural Societ}' on the Fruit Industry of Jamaica. 

 Mr. Smith's report deals principally with the banana 

 industry : the remarks given here refer to the trade in 

 other fruits. 



Under 'Cotton Xotes' will be found references to 

 the opening of a Central Cotton Factory at Grenada 

 and to proposed cotton experiment plots at St. Lucia. 

 We also publish an interesting extract from Sir George 

 Watt's lecture on the Improvement of Cotton. This 

 extract deals particularl}- with the history of cotton in 

 the West Indies. 



The short extract on page 10(j describing the 

 methods adopted in the Philippines for the extraction 

 of pine-apple fibre is likely to be of interest as indicat- 

 ing a possible new industry for the West Indies. 



In the article on Paris green and London purple 

 a brief comparison is gi\en between these two insecti- 

 cides, either of which might be used for the cotton 

 worm. On the whole, however, better results are likel}- 

 to be obtained from the use of Paris green. 



Exports of Northern Nigeria. 



According to the Coliinlnl Kcport on Nvrthcvn 

 y'Kjerla for 1902, the principal exports are rubber, 

 shea nuts and shea butter, palm kernels, ivory, gum , 

 arabic, wood oil, and ground nuts. I 



Shea butter is the product of a tree known as 

 Butyni^tpcyniurii Parkii, belonging to the natural order 

 Sapcfaccai'. The value of the ex])orts of .shea nuts 

 and shea butter amounted in 1902 to £1.5,20.5, against 

 a total of .£32,(i51 in the previous year. The failine 

 was due entirely to natural causes, and the crop is 

 expected to recover itself. 



The exports of rubber were valued at £21,927, 

 of palm kernels at £10,481, and ground nuts at £1,9.58. 



A Stitch in Time. 



Those about to plant cotton are advised to take 

 precautions in good time to secure supplies of Paris 

 green and lime in order to destroy the caterpillars 

 which attack cotton. 



The proportions to be used are 1 lb. of Paris green 

 and (i ib. of slaked lime. These are to be dusted on the 

 cotton plants tlirectly the worms ajipear. j 



Local merchants are being asked to import and I 

 keep in stock the necessary supplies of Paris green and 

 lime, from whom cotton-planters can purchase at i 

 reasonable rates and to whom they are advised to make I 

 known their wants at an early date. 



Cotton-planters are earnestly urged to provide 

 themselves with supjilies of Paris green and lime long 

 before the caterpillars are due to make their apiiearance: 

 it is only in this way that attacks can be cpiickly met 

 and the best results obtained from the industry. 

 — ^ 



Fodder Grasses for West Africa. 



The Bulhdla of the Imperial Iiist'dute, Vol. II, 

 no. 1, contains an interesting article on the above 

 subject. The particular problems to be solved in the 

 case of West Africa are, it is stated : ' The provision 

 of fodder during (1) the wet season, and (2) the dry ] 

 season, the latter being either ensilage, hay, or grasses ' 

 which yield crops during this time. The plants to be 

 employed must perforce be either native or introduced, 

 but in the first instance attention should be directed to 

 the former.' 



Xotes are given of the more important fodder 

 grasses recorded from West Africa, where many of 

 them are already held in high esteem. The list 

 includes : — Guinea grass {Panieum vw.rimum), ' the 

 most important for general purposes': Para grass 

 {Fanleum mutiemn), a ' permanent grass for swampy 

 localities': Barbados sour grass (A ud ropiyon 2>ci't usiL-t) 

 and Jamaica pimento grass {Stenofapliriim ameri- 

 canum), for dry regions and on poor soils; Bahama 

 grass or devil's grass (Cynoclon dacfylon), Jamaica, sour 

 grass (Fasj)alti III lUctichum), sugar-cane {Sneclairum 

 ajfivinarum), etc. 



Xotes, drawn largely from the Vext Indian 

 Btdlcfin antl the Ballet in of the Department <>f^ 

 Agriculture of Juinaica, are given as to the value of 

 these and other grasses as fodder. 



