Vol. VII. No. 173. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



395 



STUDENTS' CORNER. 



Seasonal Notes. 

 DECEMHKI!. 



l.st FoKTMliHT. 



Note what varieties of cane are being |ilanted : \ouk up 

 and read what i.s .said eoucerning them in the reiioits on 

 sugar-cane ex|ierinients i.ssued by the Iniiieiial Department 

 of Agriculture. Also ascertain from planter.? the peculiarities 

 exhibited by the different varietie.s of cane. 



Go through the cacao plantations and examine the trees 

 for different di-seases. Study the precautions and the remedies 

 against disea.ses given in the publications of the Imperial 

 Department of Agriculture. 



Make a study of the various .scale insects found on lime 

 trees. Try to learn what natural agencies keep them in 

 cheek, and learn what remedial measures may Ije resorted to. 



Continue the search for desirable cotton trees for .seed 

 selection. Look out for such di.seases as leaf-bli.ster mite 

 and l)lack .scale : if these are discovered, try to ascertain how 

 and in what tlirection they spread. 



QUESTIONS FOR CANDIDATES. 



PRELIMINARY c,HESTIO.\'.S. 



(1) What do you mean by ' light ' and 'heavy' soils 

 respective!)' ? Fill a measure (.such a.s a kerosene tin, or 

 a smaller tin) with sand, then with clay, and then with mould 

 and other soils, and note if the ' heavy ' or the ' light ' soils 

 weigh most. 



(2) What changes take place if you burn a .sample of 

 .soil 1 



(3) Why is it nece.s.sary to drain certain soils ? How is 

 the residual water necessary for ]ilant growth retained in 

 a soil that is efficiently drained. 



INTBRMEI>I.\TE VUESTIoXS. 



(1) Descril)e the principal manures which are useful as 

 providing nitrogen. 



(2) Discuss the cjuestion of deep ploughing in connexion 

 with the soil in your neigh boui hood. 



(3) What im[ilements would you u.se for weeding and 

 maintaining a dust mulch ? How deep would you allow the 

 implement to penetrate in the case of (</) a fallow field (fi) 

 one bearing young [ilant c:ines ? 



AGRICULTURE AT ST. VINCENT. 



The trade returns of St. Vincent, show that the 

 chief exports from the island dnririE; 1907-S were cotton 

 and cotton-seed (valued at £:^8,i:i3), and arrowroot 

 (valued at £25,555). A long way below come cacao, of 

 which the exports for the year were valued at £4,9()0 : 

 live stock, which were shipped to the value of £4,781 ; 

 muscovado sugar (£3,172), vegetables (£2,21.3), ground 

 nuts (£1,5'S!;)), and cassava starch (£1,2!KJ). The increase 

 in the output of cotton, and the steady advance th.at 

 has of late years been shown in the production of cacao 

 are the chief [wints worthy of note. 



The Atiuiud lieporf (WOl-H) un St. Vincent con- 

 tains the following notes in reference to the agricultural 

 industries of the island : — 



Arrowroot still holds the fir.st place in area of cultiva- 



tion, but cotton this year has overtopped it in value as 

 an export. 



The Sea Island cotton export in 1907-8 was 388,833 It).. 

 as against 225,632 lb. in the year previous, the area in 

 cultivation being 3,200 and 1,534 acres respectively. 



The yield did not cjuite come up to the anticipations, 

 and planters are learning the les.son that land iuu>:f be well 

 selected, prepared, and manured, and the cultivation most 

 scrupidously cared for in all stages, if the best results are to 

 be olitained. 



It is greatly to be hoped that some improvement in 

 |irice will take place before the next crop sales, and as the 

 serious fall has been attributed to the general money distur- 

 bance occasioned by the recent American crisis, whereby the 

 demand for the extra fine goods, for which this quality of 

 cotton is required, has temporarily diminished, there are 

 rea.sonable expectations that the .sale conditions at the end of 

 this year will be better. 



The Central Cotton Ginnery erected in 1903-4 still 

 remains under the successful management of the Imperial 

 Department of Agriculture. The rate charged for ginning and 

 baling is Id. per lb., and the profit on the handling of the 

 crop amounted to about £600. 



One new private ginnery has been established in 

 Kingstown with three gins, which has been of a.ssistance in 

 handling the largely increased crop, and another, with two 

 gins, is at work on the leeward side of the island. 



The disintegrator for crushing cotton seed has been used 

 to sriine extent, one proprietor having some 40 odd tons of 

 seed crushed for the purpose of manure for his cotton lands. 



The sugar industry may be .said to be only just alive. 

 Some cultivation there must always be, for the .sake of the 

 rum i:-anufacture, and as an incentive to attract and kee|i 

 a supjily of labour ; but except for an output from the Carib 

 country, where 160 odd acres have been planted with canes 

 by the pro])rietor as a first steji to the restoration of the 

 land, the pros[)ect of any large agi'icultural activity in this 

 direction is practically nil. 



On the Land Settlement Estates, matters are progress- 

 ing fairly, and this year an appreciable quantity of cacao 

 from the variou.s small holdings was marketed. 



RICE REPORT FROM BRITISH 



GUIANA. 



Messrs. Sandhach, Parker & Co., of Georgetown, 

 in their fortnightly report, dated November 27 last, 

 write as follows in reference to the' present situation 

 as regards the rice itidustry in British Gui;ina: — 



Showery weather has prevailed during the past fortnight 

 and milling has lieen considerably retarded, deliveries of rice 

 to town being, in consequence, very short. The rains have 

 also caused some small damage to reaped paddy that is still 

 in the fields. 



Shipments of rice to the West Indian Islands during the 

 fortnight amount to 2,600 bag.s, and further sales are 

 reported. 



The price of paddy has I'gain ailvanced. (irowers are 

 very independent and will not .sell except at fancy prices, 

 taking full advantage of the pre.sent competition among the 

 millers to obtain all they can for their produce. 



Pre.sent prices for good export quality rice, f.o.b. at 

 Georgetown : I8.s-. 6d. to 19.«. per b;ig of 1«0 lb. gross, and 

 17s. to 17-s. 6rf. per bag of 164 !t). gross. 



