A FORTNIGHTLY REVIEW ubrary 



OF THE NEW YOR 



IMPERIAL DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOR THE WEST INDIES. '"'''''^' 



Vol. VII. No. 159. 



BARBADOS, MAY ;iO, 190S. 



PnicE Id, 



CONTENTS. 



I'XC.K 

 I>;uiiiii.a Tniliistiy in DiiUli 



(iiiiaii.i 104 



i!ali;m,i!s, Prutecti' f 



fniiii Iiisecl Pests ... 1C),S 

 i5i.es, Wiilc'i- Supiilv fur... 174 



Ulack Bli-lit ." Itil 



C'.-ica" Ilulustiv ill JaVM ... 175 

 Canadian Cattle and the 



West Indies 10!) 



Cdtfee Ciiltuie in Siniiiaiii l(i7 

 Cotton Notes ; — 



Cotton (jn.Wdis' Con- 

 ference at Bail'.idos Kid 

 .St. Vincent Centi.d 



Cotton Factory ... 10.5 

 St. Vincent, Coi ton 



E.xports of 105 



8ea Island Cotloii 



Market 105 



West Indian Co'.toii at 



Liverpool .. 105 



Departmental Kepoils : — 

 Antigua: I'otanic Station, 



etc., l!)llO-7 17:^ 



Department News 17o 



EddoK and Sweet Potatcis, 



Nomeiieiature of ... 171 

 Fruit-preserving Industry, 



Po.ssibilities of a ... 104 



Gleanings 172 



In.sect Notes :- 



Black Scale, the Parasite 



of 170 



Cacao-nut Palm Blight 



at La''os 170 



r.vcE. 



Insect Notes : — 



Ited .Sjiider on Sweet 



I'ofMos 170 



.T.uiiaie.-i Ivirthipiake, 'I'lie l7o 



Market ltep..rts 170 



IMilknig, Hides for 171 



lAlolasses as a Stock Food lOS 



Notes and Comments ... ]0S 

 Pen Manure, Preserva- 

 tion of 10'.) 



lied Sorrel Fruits. 



Preservation of ... 104 

 Kice Ciilli\ atioii in 



.Vrgeiitina Ki'i 



linldier in .lamaica ... 171 

 liiildier in New (xuinea... ]0'.) 

 Itiiliber. riaiilalion, in 



11)07 171 



SC ^'incent. Crown 



Lands in 107 



Sorghum Poisoning ... 10!) 

 Siig.ir Industry : — 

 Cuban Sugar Crop ... 103 

 Seedling Canes in 



Jamaica lOo 



Sugar-cane Plants, 



Kvaiii>ralion from ... 103 

 Sugar Factories, Capacity 



of, and Economy in 



Production 1G3 



Sulphate of Ammonia 



from Peat 108 



Tidjaceo Cultivation in 



Haw.iii 174 



Black Blight. 



^^\ [J^^ HE presence of ' black blight,' as it is torm- 



ed, is more or less in evidence on different 



kinds of vegetation in practically all the 



j^West Indian islands. It has, however, attracted most 



'—attention in Grenada, where during recent years it has 



2:been prevalent on a number of trees and plants. Its 



occurrence, in a more or less intermittent manner, is also 



notice.-ible at Dominica, .J.-tmaica, St. Kiit's-Nevis, 

 j\I(inseii-at, and Bar'bados, and more recently complaints 

 liavo been leceived of the spread of black blic^ht at 

 St. Vincent and St. Lucia. 



'I"he unsi'_;htly and soot-like appeal ance of the 

 leaves and branches id' the atfected trees which are 

 Covered with the black, velvety mycelium of the fungus- 

 accounts for the name ' l)lack blight'. It must be 

 remembeied. iiowever, that the damage done by the 

 liingus itself (which is a species of the genus 

 Ciipnocli.um), is comjiaratively insignificant, the- 

 iiijiify to the tree being primai-ily due to scale insects 

 with which an attack of black blight is always associated, 

 'i'he attacks of the scale insects lower the vitality of the 

 trees by sucking the juices from the leaves and young;- 

 shoots. In cases where the fungus growth has developed 

 to such an e.vtent as almost to cover the leaves, starcb 

 formation is probably interfered with, as a result of the 

 exclusion of sunlight; but this is the limit of the action 

 of the fungus upon the plant, since it is not parasitic in 

 its hal)it, but occurs in conne.xion with the scales, as it- 

 tinds nutriment and favouiable conditions for growth in 

 the secretions formed by these insects. 



The chief trees on which black blight occurs as 

 a pest in the West Indies are the orange, lime, mango, 

 breadfruit, sapodilla, guava, avocado pear, hibiscus, 

 Castilloa rubber, and coffee. Many other trees are 

 atfected in a minor degree. Fortunately, cacao is not 

 susceptible to attacks from scales, but in one or two- 

 instances, where the trees were growing under unfavour- 

 able conditions, black blight has been known to occur 

 on cacao in Grenada and Trinidad. 



Prominent among the scale insects responsible for 

 the occurrence of black blight may be mentioned the 



