Vol. XVIII. No. 440. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS 



73 



Recently a letter has been received by the Im- 

 perial Commissioner from ^fr. 0. Brown, Stann 

 Creek, British Honduras, to whom some seeds had 

 also been sent, which bears testimony to the value 

 of the plant. Mr. Brown says th«t he planted 

 the beans in his yard where devil's grass was very 

 plentiful, with the result that it is slowly choking the 

 grass out of existence, and at the same time is forming 

 a very pretty clover-like covering of the ground. No 

 information has at present come to hand as to whether 

 D. Hosei is of value as fodder. Should this be the case, 

 in addition to its use as a cover crop in orchards, it 

 would appear to be suitable for cultivation in pastures 

 in these islands. 



The Combined Use of Sulphate of Ammonia 

 and Nitrate of Soda. 



It is well known that the coatmned use of sulphate 

 of ammonia on soils deficient in carbonate of lime is 

 calculated to give rise to acidity of the soil: at the same 

 time it is also known that the continued use of nitrate of 

 soda gives rise to an alkaline condition in the soil. The 

 suggestion h;js therefore been made, that by using a 

 mixture of sulphate of ammonia and nitrate of .soda in 

 proper proportions, a neutral condition of the soil may 

 be maintained, so far as the use of these fertilizers is 

 concerned. 



The conect proportions to secure this result are, in 

 round numbers, 1001b. nitrate of soda to 78 it), sulphate 

 of ammonia; or 100 lb. sulphate of ammonia to 129 lb. 

 nitrate of soda; or, approximately, i parts of niirate of 

 soia to 3 parts of sulphate of ammonia. 



This practice of using a mixture of these two 

 fertilizers has been in vogue with .-;ome planters for a 

 number of \ears. 



Relation of Lint Length in Cotton to Rainfall. 



Mr. W. Robson, Curator of the Botanic Station, 

 Montserrat, has forwarded to the Imperial (Commissioner 

 of Agriculture for the West Indies some results of 

 examinations oflius length in cotton in that island, 

 which seem to confirm the observations recorded by 

 Mr. R. E. Kelsick in the West Indian Bulletin, 

 Vol. XVII, No. 2, viz.; that in these islands the length to 

 which cotton lint will attain in any season is dependent 

 on the water-supply of the plant during the critical 

 period of the development of the boll. Mr. Robson's 

 results with regard to three type.s^of cotton cultivated 

 in Montserrat are tabulated as follo\^s, tor the last four 

 crops; — ■ 



It is thus seen that there i.> a reduction of about 

 2 mm. in all the cottons in the present season, doubt- 

 less due to the effect of the dry weather experienced 

 dviring development. The reijuction, however. 

 Mr. R.obson thinks ought not ii.be regarded as very 

 sprimif partrjcularlv a? one of the three types was 



described in the present season by the British 

 Cotton Growing Association as extra tine, long, silky 

 staple, the actual measurements for lint length being 

 48 mm. on an average of forty plants, with a range of 

 from 4.5 to 50 mm. — an unusual wide fluctuation for 

 cotton of this type. 



Wild Ginger. 



In Watt's Dictiuw.hTij of the Econoiibic Pruchict'^; 

 of India: it is stated that ginger {Zingiber officinale) is 

 not known in a truly wild state, but that it is doubtless 

 a native of tropical Asia where it has been cultivated, 

 and from where the rhizom 3s have been exported from 

 very remote times. From Asia it was introduced into 

 the West Indies and has spread now throughout 

 the warmer parts of both hemispheres. The name 

 ginger is derived through the Greek from the ancient , 

 Sanscrit. It was known as a spice to the eaurW Greeks 

 and Romans. During the middle ages it is frequently 

 mentioned in Eui-opean lists of articles derived from 

 the Far East. 



In an interesting account of a journey down the 

 Magdalena River and through the Peninsula of Goa- 

 jira, undertaken at the request of the Minister of 

 Agriculture and Commerce of the Republic of Colombia, 

 for the purpose of studying the agricultural conditions 

 and possibilities of the region, Mr. M. T. Dawe, F.L.S., 

 Agricultural Adviser to the Government of Colombia, 

 makes the interesting statement that he found ginger 

 grovs'ing wild over cvtensive areas on the lower hills of 

 the Sierra Nevada range. He thinks, therefore, that the 

 theory that ginger was originally a native of tropical 

 South-east Asia must be abandoned, and < "olombia be 

 considered its original habitat. This, however, would ' 

 appear to be open to (juestion, for it its quite cer- 

 tain that ginger was introduced by the Portuguese into. 

 Brazil as early as the middle of the sixteentu century, 

 and ii. is possible that the ginger now found growing 

 wild in Colombia is reall|' only the descendant of plants 

 escaped from cultivation, which have become thor- 

 oughly naturalized. 



Mr. Dawe goes on to remark that this discovery 

 is of commercial importance, owing to the fact that 

 there are extensive wild sources of a valuable product, 

 which can be immediately exploited, and a new local 

 industry established in the collection and preparation 

 of the roots. 



Apart from thr question of the exploitation 

 of the wild pro<liicc, there arises the possibility of 

 its cultivation, .uid the initiation of a new plan- 

 tation industry tor that part of Colombia. Ginget 

 is well known to be fastidious as to its soil require- 

 ments, and the fact that it is found growing wild 

 is a proof that not only the clima'.e. but the soil 

 is suitable to it. The rhizomes of the wild plant 

 however, are not nearly as large as those of the 

 cultivated ginger. Mr. Dawe adds a word of warning 

 to intending expor;;ers of ginger, whether wild yr 

 cultivated, to th>:- etJ'ect that, whatever method of 

 curing and drying h'- emotoyed, the rhizomes must be 

 thoroughly dnprl and Mp^iohed before shipmen- 



