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THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



Sei'Tkmbei; 5, 1908. 



RUBBER FROM TRINIDAD. 



Various samples of rubber, etc., liave been 

 forwarded to London from Trinidad for display at the 

 International Rubber Exhibition that is to be held at the 

 Olympia, from September 14 to 26. A pamphlet pre- 

 pared by Mr. Edu;ir Tripp, Hon. Secretary of the Trini- 

 dad Permanent. Exliiliition Committee, for distribution 

 at the show, contains the following introductory notes 

 with reference to rubber production in the colony: — 



The rubber iiulustry of Tiinidad and Tobasio i.s piacti- 

 eally in its infancy, but pronii.ses vigoi'ous and healthy growth. 

 Ten years ago rubber, as an ecunoniic i)lant, was unknuwn 

 in the colony. To-day it is being grown, either as the .sole 

 croi), or as an auxiliary to other cultivations, on .some titty plan- 

 tations, and bids fair to form in tlie future no im-onsiileralile 

 item in the exiwrts of the island. 



Samples sent for analysis to the Imperial Institute, 

 London, have been favourably reported on, and there seems 

 no rea.son to doulit that the soil and climate of Trinidad are 

 admirably ada])ted for rubber production. 



Initial shii)mt;nt,s, amounting altogether to about l,(.lOUtl)., 

 the tirst product of the earlier planted estates, were made 

 during the year ended Mai'ch 31, 1907. During the year 

 ended March :U, 1908, the quantity exported ro.se to 4,444 lb., 

 and in view of the area now rapidly arriving at the stage 

 of production, there should be a con~iileial)le increase in thi' 

 near future. 



RUBBER PRODUCTION IN CEYLON. 



The Ceylon fiovernment has prepared, for the use 

 of the Emigrants' Information Office, an account of the 

 position and prospects of the rublier industry in the 

 colony. 



As is Well l<nii\Mi, llir I iiltiv:itiiin ot rubber yielding 

 plants has attracted a giMid deal of attention in Ceylon f)f 

 late years, and it is ikiu estimated that there are from 

 12r),0'00 to l.")0,OOU acres under rubber, .Fara being by tar 

 the eliiet' variety grown, while Castilhia, (Vara, and Landol- 

 phia are also In'ing jilanted. Little attention was paid to 

 rublier in Ceylon luitil aljont seven or eight years ago. In 

 lilOl no more than 2,500 acres were pliuited : by the ye;ir 

 l',MII, the rubber area had extended to 11,000 ai-res; early in 

 190.") it had reached 25,000 acres, and as .stated above. 

 125,000 acres had been planteil by tla^ middle of 1907. 

 There has been a similarly ra])i(l development in the rnbber- 

 planting industry in the Federated Malay .States, while very 

 large extensions o| ilie rnb1)er area have lately luen made in 

 India, I'urma, .lava, and Horneo. 



Till' otticial report states that the Ceylon planli'r can 

 .safely conniience tapping his rid)ber trees \\lun they are six 

 years old. Only a small return is (jlitained, at tiist, of course. 

 The yield increases annnalls, however, and each tree may be 

 exi>ected to give fi'om 1 to 2 lb. of prepared rul)ber per 

 aninnn. .\liont 150 trees may be allowed to grow per acre, 

 .so that according to the aliovc estimate, a monetary return 

 ot from .£22 10<. lo L'I5 per acre per aniinni may I'l' 

 expected. 



The cost of ('rown laml in ('eyloii ranges Irom^l 5.<. 

 to as mui-li as i^l pci- acre, and laud which is readily access- 

 ible, and suitable for rubber plaiding, is becoming .scarce. An 

 expenditure of from £20 to ii."?(l is re(piired in order to clear, 

 plant, and bring an acre of rubber to the [)roducing stage 

 in six or seven years. In the official report, the cost of 

 rubber production is estimated at about l.<. per lb. This i.-. 



rather a low figure in the case of young trees, Iiut on large 

 plantations, and as the trees mature, experienced men have 

 i/stimated that rubber can not only be prepared, but also 

 delivered in London, at less than Is. per lb. It will be seen, 

 therefore, that though the price of rubber may drop to 3.<., 

 or even 2i<. («/. per It)., there should still remain a hand- 

 some margin of profit. 



The rubber expoi-ts from Ceylon are naturally showing 

 a continuous increase. While no more than 2,792 lb. were 

 shipped in 1898, the (piautity ro.se to 77,212 Bj. in 1904, to 

 168,547 lb in 1905,' 327,000 lb. in 1906, and to over 

 650,000 B). (or 300 ton.s) in 1907. Seeing that the world's 

 ])roduction of rubber amounts to 65,000 tons per aiuium, it 

 will be seen that neither Ceylon's contribution, nor that of 

 the federated Malaj' States, which is ecpial to about 600 

 tons of iilantatiou rubber per annum, goes far to increase 

 the danger of over-i)roduction. 



CAMPHOR CULTIVATION IN CEYLON. 



Cairiphor cultivation has been receiving attention 

 in Ceylon for some years past, and in an article wdiich 

 appeared in the Trvptidl Aijr'tculturisi for April hast 

 the progress that has been made is discussed. 



Kxperinieuts made at the Hakgala Botanic Gardens 

 demonstrated that the camphor trade would probably tlouri.sh 

 nn<ler the climatic conditions j)revailing in Ceylon. Several 

 })lanters becatue interbsted, and since then a large number of 

 plants have been rei^ularly raised from iiniiorted seeds and 

 from cuttings, and distriliute<l to plantiM- in different parts of 

 the island. 



At the ])reseut ti,me a good niunber of estates are found 

 with well established areas planted with camphor. The.se 

 are chieHy .situated ^it elevations of .■i,000 to 5,000 feet. 

 Cam[)hor is found to ]k suited to ravines, or hillsides exposed 

 to the wind, where s^-arcely anything el.se will succeed. It 

 does not flouri.sh at an altitude less than 2,000 feet. Apart 

 from the monetary value of the product, the camphor tree 

 is well adapted for ,shading roadsides, and forming wind- 

 belts for tea and othe^- small-growing crops, 'fhe tree is ever- 

 green, and is naturally dense and bushy, and furnisheil with 

 branches to the base. If luiiiruned it grows to a height of 

 40 feet or more, lu the method of cultivation adopted, 

 however, the plants are eut back and l<e|it at a height of 

 f or 5 feet. 



The article in the '/'mjiini/ Ai/iiriithoixt is illustiated 

 by a pliotograi)li <if a plantation five years old, the i)lants 

 oi which were raised from seed imported from .Tajjan. 

 The .seedlings have been planted out at a distance of 8 feet 

 by 4 feet apart, in land at an elevation of about 4,500 feet. 

 The trees were allowed to grow till they reached an average 

 height of 16 feet, when they were cut back to a height of 

 I feet. The [)runiugs obtained yielded about (iO II). of 

 (■ani|ihor Icp tlie acre, .\fter an interval of five months the 

 tree., were again cliliped, ami a yield of about 50 11). of 

 camphoi- per acie wa.s .obtained. Kxpcrience has since shown 

 that the trees should not be allowed to run up to 16 feet, but 

 shoidd be topped back when about three anil a half years old. 

 The bushes may be clipped at least three or four times a year. 



Cli|)pings obtained from llakgala (Jardens about six 

 years ago yielded upon distillation at the rate of 0'75 to 1 per 

 cent, of camphor, and from 27 to 34 per cent, of cani])hor oil. 

 It has been estimated that, on an average, 14 lb. of clippings 

 per annuui can be obtaiued fron\ each bush. Assuming that 

 the trees are planted 8 feet by [ feet apart, which would give 

 1,360 tr»'cs to the acre, this wdnid work out at a return of 

 about 190 It), of cami>hor per acre. 



