Vol. A7I. No. 174. 



THE ' AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



409 



Destruction of Injurious Insect?. 



A notice lately published in the TriiiUIad Royal 

 Gazette iiivites school teachers and children in the 

 colony to co-operate with the Board of Agriculture in 

 tlie destruction of injurious insects. The pest to which 

 attention is particularly drawn is the larger moth borer 

 of the sugar-cane {Cufttnia //(-«-*), also known in Trini- 

 dad as the ' cane-sucker. ' This insect is a native of 

 South and Central America, and so far has not reached 

 farther north in the West Indian islands than Trinidad. 

 The larva oi' Cast nia licus is a borer in the stems of 

 the sugar-cane and also the banana. In certain dis- 

 tricts of Trinidad the moth is very plentiful, and as 

 many as 300 were recently caught on the Caroiii estate. 

 The Board of Agricidture offers to pay school children 

 at the rate of Sl'GO per 100 moths sent in to the 

 Secretary. 



Cacao at St. Kitt's-Nevis. 



Cacao cultivation has been started on at least two 

 estates at St. Kitt's, and at Jlolineux estate 22 acres 

 have been planted with the crop., Some of the earlier- 

 planted trees bore a few fruits in the past season. 

 A fui ther 10 acres have been prepared for cacao, and 

 trees planted for wind-breaks, before the young cacao is 

 put in. It is hoped in time to extend the cultivation 

 to 100 acres on this estate, but it is necessary to 

 jtrovide belts of trees as wind-breaks beforehand. 

 Large numbers of Castilloa and Funtumia rubber trees 

 have been planted at Molineux, and advantage is being 

 taken of their presence to utilize them for pur[)oscs of 

 shade, and as wind-breaks for young cacao. 



About 40 acres are also under cultivation with 

 cacao at Maddens estate in Nevis. The older trees are 

 now beginning to bear, and the area is being e.xtended. 



Rubber Exhibits from Dominica. 



Among the sami)les sent from Dominica to the Inter- 

 national Kublier Exhibition held in London from Sep- 

 tember 14 to 2(j last, were specimens of Para, Castilloa, 

 and Ficus rubbers, prepared in biscuit form. A report 

 from Messrs. Lewis & Peat, rubber brokers of London, 

 on the quality and value of these Dominica samples, is 

 very satisfactory. 



The biscuits of Para rubber are described as being 

 well prepared and in good condition. They were vahu'il 

 at about 4s. Sd. per Jb. It is added that the specimens 

 compare favourably with biscuit rubber from Ceylon. 



The biscuits of Castilloa rubber sent from Dominica 

 were strong and well prepared. It was pointed out. 

 However, that the biscuits should be rolled thinner. 

 They should not be exposed to the sun or bright light, 

 •but cured in a darkened drying room. 1"he value of 

 ihe Castilloa sample was about 3s. 6'?. per lb. 



A single small biscuit of Ficus rubber is described 

 by Messrs. Lewis & Peat as being extremely well cured 

 and in good condition. There would be a ready 

 demand for Ficus rubber prepared ifi biscuit form. 

 Tiie value of the sample was about 3.s. dd. per lb. 



A ball of rubber, twelve years old, from the vine 

 Foivtci-onia.jlorlhanda, of i':\\r qunViiy, was valued at 

 from 2s. 4(/. to 2s. 6d. per lb. 



Artificial Manures in Italy. 



The increasing quantities of artificial manures 

 prepared in Italy, or imported from abroad, bear wit- 

 ness to the greater attention that has lately been given 

 to the improvement of agriciiltui-o in that country. 



The production of superphosphate in Italy in 1904 

 was estimated at 400,000 tons; in lOOli, it had advan- 

 ced to G00,000 tons, and iii 1907, to ^50,000 tons. The 

 utilization, as well as the production of this manure in 

 the country has doubled in the last four years. 



Sulphate of ammonia is another manure manufac- 



■tured on an increasing scale in Italy. The present 



production is over 10,000 tons. Organic nitrogenous 



manures are also ])repared and utilized in large quantity. 



About 100,000 tons of basic slag are imported 

 from other European countries, while nitrate of soda to 

 the extent of 42,000 tons is obtained from Chili. 



Agricultural Show at Barbados. 



The annual Barbados Peasants' Show of agricultu- 

 ral produce and live stock, held under the auspices of 

 the Imperial Department of Agriculture, took place at 

 Mount Plantation, St. George, on December 9, and was 

 a distinctly successful event. 



The district in which the Show was held was one 

 which suffered least from the drought of the past 

 season, so that the exhibits were well up to the standard 

 of past years, and on the whole, the exhibition was 

 adjudged to be the best of the series that has been 

 held, as regards the quality of produce sent in. 



The vegetables and garden produce formed a good 

 collection, coming principally from the parish of St. 

 George. As usual, the best samples of fruit (oran<yes, 

 grape-fruit, shaddocks, bananas, etc.) weie from St. 

 Thomas and St. Joseph. Some good specimens of 

 grafted mangos were also sent in. 



The exhibition of live stock (bulls, cows, goats and 

 sheep) was a prominent feature of the Show, and here 

 a distinct advance was noticeable compared with the 

 exhibitions of past years. A goat to which was awarded 

 first prize together with a Diploma of Merit was the 

 son of the Toggenburg Billy ' Bruce,' imported some 

 years ago by the Imperial Department of Agriculture. 

 Some fowls of the Plymouth Rock and Buff Coi-hin 

 China breeds were best among the poultry on view. 



The number of exhibits from elementary schools- 

 was 133, and the quality of the best among these bore 

 evidence to the good results of the agricultural teach- 

 ing given, and to the interest taken by the pupils in 

 the work. 



The prizes were distril)uted by his Excellenc\'' 

 Sir ( lilbert Carter, K.C.M.G., and Lady Carter present- 

 ed the Diplomas of Merit. 



Professor d'Albuquerque, Acting Commissioner of 

 Agriculture, in his speech', referred to the general good 

 quality of the exhibits, and mentioned several which 

 were especially, worjthy of note. Refer(>ncc was made 

 to the absence of ,3,ir Daniel Morris, and also to that of 

 Mr. F. M. Al|c,yfie, J>oth «l' whom had always been 

 present at jiast shows. 



