Vol. Vn. No. 15}. 



THE AGRICULTUKAL NEWS. 



S?l 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



Seedling Canes in the Leeward Islands. 



No. 50 in liie Pamplilet Series issued by the 

 Imperial Department of Agriculture has just been 

 published, and contains particulars of the experiments 

 with seedling and other canes, carried on in Antigua 

 and St. Kitt's during 1906-7, under the direction of the 

 Department. The critical notes on the characters of 

 the chief varieties of canes on trial should be of interest 

 to planters anxious to make the best selection for 

 their estates. These notes are therefore reproduced 

 below : — 



.SV(7y Sn-dliiKj. This cam- ha.s given good results in tlie 

 experiments both at Antigua and St. Kitt's. At tlie former, 

 it has given satisfactory results as plants and also as ratoons, 

 but at St. Kitt's it has not ratooned well. It is a cane of 

 great vegetative vigour, capable of growing on rather poor 

 and heavy soils where other canes will not thrive, and it 

 api)ears to stand drought fairly well. It is to be recommended 

 for cultivation on heavy, clayey soils. This cane mills well, 

 but its juice is not exceptionally rich in sugar. 



B. :.'(>S. This cane requires good, well-tilled soil with 

 a fair rainfall. It grows freely and is easily established ; 

 it ripens quickly and thus ofl'ers advantages in cases \\here 

 the land is required for other crops in a rotation. It yields 

 juice of exceptional richness. 



Ill ordinary mills it mills well, but is inclined to be 

 somewhat brittle, and therefore is rather difficult to handle 

 where a Krajewski crusher is used. 



7>. 623. This is a yellow <-anc, usually of large size, 

 a vigorous grower, but yielding juice' wdiich is not exception- 

 ally rich in sugar. The average sucrose content of the juice 

 from plant canes for this season at Antigua was low. It is 

 a cane that is likely to attract the attention of planters and 

 will .shortly be introduced into tlu- experiments at St. Kitt's. 



H. l'>6. This is a yellow, ciect cane having light-green 

 leaves. It arrows rather freely. It would appear to lie 

 more suitable for the heavy, clayey soils of Antigua than for 

 the light ones of St. Kitt's, thus somewhat re.?embling the 

 Sealy Seedling. The juice which it yields is not very rich in 

 sucrose. 



D. lO'.J. This is a purple cane introduced somewhat 

 recently into these expsriments. It has given good results 

 at Antigua both as plants and ratoons. At St. Kitt's the 

 jilant canes were satisfactor}-, l;>nt the ratoons were poor. 

 The juice is of moderate richness in sucrose. Like some of 

 the other canes (notably Sealy Seedling),; it would appear that 

 this cane is more .suitable for the heavy soils of Antigua than 

 for the light ones of St. Kitt's. 



r>. J07. This is a short, erect, grey or pink-tinged cane 

 with bioad, light-green leaves. It arrows freely. At one 

 time it was thought promising in St. Kitt's, but it has not 

 occupied a prominent position there recently. It ratooned 

 well during the last season at .\iitigna.' The juice is only 

 moderately rich in sucrose. This cane must be classed as one 

 of moderate merit. 



71 -P/O. This is a yellow cane not unlike the Hombon. 

 It does not arrow exces.sivelj-. It has given gooi.l returns 



both at Antigua and St. Kitt's as jilants an 1 as ratoons, 

 though the ratoon canes at both places have, this season, 

 been somewhat below the average. It is a cane worth 

 attention in a moderate degree. Sucrose content of juice 

 moderate. Instaiices are reported where this cane has become 

 dry and hollow in parts, and there is a sus[iicion of liability 

 to disease. These points should be noticed. 



D. 116. This is a yellow, erect cane with very broad, 

 dark-green leaves. It arrows freely. The cane appears well 

 suited to the conditions obtaining at St. Kitt's where it has 

 given good results and wdiere it can be reconnuended for 

 jilanting. It appears less suitable for planting in Antigua. 

 The juice is .somewhat jioor in sucrose. 



D. 140 is a dark-green, erect cane \\ith dark-green 

 leaves. It is easily grown and arrows freely. It apjiears to 

 be of moderate merit only, but might be cautiously tried on 

 a small scale. The juice has a fair sucrose. 



D. !lo. This is a dark-purple, erect cane wliicli, when 

 grovi'ing, often presents a shabby, unsatisfactory aijpearance. 

 It therefore frequently happens that w^hen the cane is reaped 

 the yield is in excess of wdiat was antic^ipated. The sucrose con- 

 tent of the juice of thi.s cane is usually very high, though it is 

 to be observed that this feature has not been conspicuous this 

 season in the juice from plant canes. This cane thrives best 

 on .somewhat heavy moist land, and it does not stand di'onght 

 well. It is not well .suited for the conditions of St. Kitfs, 

 but in some districts in Antigua it gives very good return.s 

 and is being planted in fair quantity. 



D. 7 Jf is a pale-green, erect cane with light-green leaves,. 

 aiul is of interest because of the attention which it has 

 attracted in Louisiana. It has given fairly good results 

 under experiment at St. Kitt's, but has not been .so successfuL 

 at Antigua. 'I'he juice is of moderate richness. 



B. lJ/7. Ayellow, long-jointed cane, inclined to trail, having, 

 broad, dark-gi'een leaves. It rarely arrows and is now ver}"" 

 extensively planted in St Kitt's. Its cultivation is also being 

 rapidly extended on the lighter .soils in Antigua. It is con- 

 s[)icuous as a disea.se-resi.sting cane ; its timely introduction 

 into St. Kitt's saved the situation when the ravages of disease 

 bade fair to ruin the sugar industry. Its juice is of full aver- 

 age richness in sucrose when the canes are fully mature. It 

 is an excellent milling cane, containing a large quantity of 

 juice, wdiieh it yields very freely. When this cane is being, 

 crushed the capacity of the puuqjs attached to the mills is 

 fre(|uently taxed to the utmost, owing to the great flow of 

 juice. 



Kliili y'l'diis/xin lit. This cane, which is known locally 

 under many names (Xaga B., Caledonian Queen, Kappoe, 

 Moiuit Blanc, and .Tamaica cane are believed to be .synonyms), 

 is the variety that is most extensively planted at Antigua 

 where it was introduced to replace the disease-stricken Bour- 

 bon with ha])py results. lAs it fell a prey to disease at 

 St. Kitt's, its place has there been largely taken by B. 147. 

 It is a grey or pink-tinged cane, somewhat inclined to trail, 

 having broad, dark-green leaves. It arrows freely. The 

 juice is of average richness in .sucrose, but at times is inclined 

 to be gummy. It is a .somewhat fibrous cane. It is believed 

 that several canes of greater merit are now at the disposal of 

 planters, and it is anticipated that it will be steadily super- 

 seded by other ca.ues at Antigua in a manner similar to that 

 already adopted by the planters in St. Kitt's. 



B. -lO-l. This cane, which has only recently been 

 introduced into .Vntigua. showed a dis|ii.isitioii to die out in 

 ratoon canes during tlii.s season. This was [irobably due to 

 the dry weather experienced during the early part of the 

 season, but if this character is confirmed, it will i-ender this 

 cane an undesirable one for planting in this i.-land. 



