Vol. III. Xo. 66. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



347 



i 



DATE PALMS FOR ARBOR DAY 

 PLANTING. 



It has been suggested that an excellent tree for 

 planting in connexion with Arbor Day celebrations in 

 the West Indies is the date ])alni {Pluienij: ihuiu- 

 lifera). An article in the "KatAl AjjricidtwralJournal 

 on 'Some ornamental and useful sub-tropical Trees' has 

 the following reference to the date palm: — 



Many specimens of this exist in and around Durban, one 

 well-known tree being that in the garden in front of the 

 Royal Hotel ; but though tropical in appearance, it is one of 

 tlie most hardy palms, fine .specimens being in evidence in 

 Capetown, while one at Kat River, Cape Colony, occupies 

 a hot valley just below the Katberg, on which snow often 

 lies for weeks. The date palm luxuriates in hot, drj', desert 

 country, where its roots can strike water — whether fresh or 

 brackish is of little importance. Egypt and Arabia are its 

 native habitat, and thei-e it is .said to fruit better in the hot, 

 dry interior than near the coast. Probably the same will lie 

 found hei'e, and it may prove more profitable in the hot 

 valleys of the l^mkomaas, the Tugela, and the Umfolozi than 

 on the coast, though in growth at least it has thus far done 

 well on the coast. It is dioecious (i.e., the fertile flowers are 

 on separate trees from the male flowers), so several trees 

 should be grown together to ensure fertilization. It grows 

 easily from seeds taken from commercial dates, but the plant.s 

 grow slowly at first, and seedlings often fail to maintain the 

 reputation they have had in Australia and California of 

 fruiting while quite young. On the Mediterranean coast 

 many named varieties are cultivated having diffeient fruit- 

 forms and different seasons of bearing ; the fertile trees of 

 these are propagated and maintained as distinct varieties by 

 the use of suckers, but seedling male trees are satisfactory. 



The date [lalm grows to a height of nearly 100 feet, and 

 will probably be an important article in the drier portions of 

 Zululand. None liut seedlings are as yet grown here, but 

 the Government is making an endeavour to obtain suckers of 

 be.st fruiting kinds from Egypt. 



It 3'et remains to be proved whether dates can 

 be produced on a commercial .scale in the West Indies, 

 but there can be no doubt as to the desirability of 

 planting this tree for purposes of ornamentation. 



CACAO MANURIAL EXPERIMENTS AT 

 GRENADA. 



The following report and table, showing the 

 results of the working of the cacao experiment plot at 

 Nianganfoix estate, Grenada, have been forwarded by 

 the proprietor for publication : — 



This plot was handed over on September 30, 1903, 

 by the Dej.iartnient of Agriculture to the proprietor who still 

 carries on the experiments, in order to obtain the highest 

 possible yield from an acre of land by the use of fertilizers 

 and green soiling. * 



During the period, extending over four ci-ops, from 

 April 1, 1900, to September 30, 1904, two applications of 

 manures were made, as shown in the table, the first during 

 the fir.st crop 1900-1; and the second ajiplication in the 

 .spring and sununer of 1902 just before the third crop. 



'A', the pen manure .section, is the wettest section of the 

 plot, anci it will be noticed that, notwithstanding the heavy 



application of niaiuu-e in May 1902, the yield fell below 

 the two preceding crops, and only reco\'ered after several 

 rods of new drains had been added to those alre.idy existing 

 — and dug diagonally across the .slope. This illu-strates the 

 value of drains in a wet clay soil, without which manure is 

 at a discount. 



The potash section 'D' has steadily advanced, and, 

 unlike .sections 'B'and 'C,' which unaccountably fell off by 

 •J- to I bag, held its own during the crop 1902-3. The cost of 

 production for the first two years averaged £1 per bag of 

 cacao, and for the second two years 12s. per bag, or an 

 all-round average of 16s. per bag for four years' working. 



When the results of the fifth year's working are known, 

 the cost of prodviction will be considerably reduced. 



The sections have been bedded twice yearly. 



