Vol. XVII. No. 43i. 



THE AGKICDLTUEAL NEWS. 



597 



CEREAL CROPS IN MALAYA. 



The Government <it the Federated Malay States, 

 through the local JJepartment of Agriaulture, has been 

 enoouraging the planting of foDdstuti's and increas- 

 ing the lonal production of food. Gorid progress in this; 

 direction seems to have been made, and it is evident that 

 the cultivation of various kinds of cereals is meeting with 

 a considerable amount of success. 



An article on the cultivation of foodstuffs, by Messrs. F. G. 

 Spring, and .1. N Milsum, in the AgriaiZ/urn/ Hiilhtin of 

 the Federated Malay Siiites, .June 1918, deals especially with 

 the cultivation of cereal crops. »• 



The authors state that it seems probable that soon the 

 majority of estates having suitable land will sericusly con- 

 sider the production rjf cereal crops. They go on to say 

 that in many instances rubber and coco-nut clearings up to 

 two and a half years old aie suitable for the cultivation of 

 cereals, and that the utilization of even a small proportion 

 of such land in this connexion would materially affect 

 the food iiuestion in a beneficial way. They crmsider 

 that a new clearing can support one or perhaps more 

 annual crops which take a matter of a few months 

 to mature without, to any appreciable extent, injurious 

 results to the permanent crop. It is quite possible that 

 the culture and tilth required for the temporary crop 

 will more than compensate for any materials removed from the 

 land. The resultant stubble, when turned into the ground, 

 considerably assists in improving the mechanical condition 

 of the soil, and in this way benefits the permanent crop. 



Among the cereals described are three which seem to be 

 at present unknown in the West- Indies. It might be well 

 for experiments to be made with these cereals in thesa islands, 

 seeing that they are evidently suited to tropical conditions, 

 where the rainfall is about -50 inches per annum. 



The first of these is known in India as Hagi {E/eii 

 sine ioracaiia). This is' a stout, tufted grass, growing 

 ubout 2 feet high, producing globular, brown seeds. There are 

 two main classes of the several varieties grown in India — close- 

 headed varieties, and open-headed varieties. Kagi is an impor- 

 tant food crop in India, and it is estimated that the total area 

 devoted to this crop- for all India average's from -5 J to <)-]: 

 million acres. It many parts it is the staple grain, being 

 perhaps the most productive .if Indian cereals. It keeps 

 well, and is frequently stored in pits for several years in 

 Mysore. Cakes made of Kagi flour are largely eaten in some 

 parts of India. It is also eaten mixed with rice. The crop 

 begins to mature from five to si.> months after sowing. The 

 heads ripen unevenly, and are cut as they mature. It is said 

 that a yield of about 2,100 B). per acre maybe reasonably 

 expected from this grain. 



Another cereal to which attention is being paid in the 

 .Federated Malay .States is known as Italian millet {Setarin 

 /taliea). This is a graceful, annual grass, about .S feet high, 

 producing small, smooth seeds, commonly yellow in colour. 

 This millet is cultivated and eaten in many parts of India. 

 The grain is ground, and is eaten in the form of cakes and 

 porridge. The flour is said to be scarcely inferior to wheat, 

 and makes excellent pastry. When boiled with milk it makes 

 a pleasant, light food. It is a short duration crop, occupy- 

 ing the land for about three months. Seeds sown at the 

 Kuala Lumpur Airricultural Experimental Plantation in the 

 middle of November 1917 germinated rapidly, and the crop 

 was harvested during the third week of February 1918., It 

 is estimated that a crop of 1 ,0.50 1^'. per acre per crop might 

 be expected on eood land. 



The third of the cereals referred to abive is bul- 

 rush miller, sometimes knownas spiked .;r pearl niillet; 

 {Pennisetnm typlvddeuw). This is described as an erect grass 

 with thick round stems !r .m 4 to (J. feet high, bearing spikes 

 from f> to 9 inches in length,' eylindrical in shape. The 

 seed.s are of medium size, smootlv.and of a dull', slatybrowa 

 colour. This millet is extensiTely cultivated in many part« 

 of India, and in districts where it is grown It forms the staple 

 food of the people. The area'devoted to this crop in British 

 India is probably well over 1 0,000. 01 )U acres." ..Tiie tioiir' is 

 made into cakes and breadt.": The; plant also nukes a useful 

 fodder, and is used generally in-. Madras for this uarpnse. 

 The crop is ready for harvesting in'three and a half'nnnth-i 

 from sowing. The heads are placed in the sun to dry, and 

 the grain is removed by threshing with sticks. The yield is 

 estinrated at about 1, 801) lb. per acre per crop 



Besides these cereals described above, which .are unknowa 

 to the West Indie.s the Dep.trtment of .Agriculture of the 

 Federated Malay States is also advocating more extended 

 cultivation of varieties of sorghum (G'linea corn), and also of 

 rice, bot^h as an irrigated crop on alluvial soils, and as a dry 

 ctop umler the hill variety on newly burnt Jungle land. Much 

 attention is alsr. being devoted to the improved prodm;tirm of 

 maize. 



Market Sought ior Capybara Skins— Accord- 

 ing to x.\iQ /(jiitnut '// tlie Royal Sockiy ,>/ Artsior October 

 18, 1918, a market is at present beint; sought for Gapybara. 

 skins .Millions of, this animal, which is the largest living 

 rodent, and is common throughout South America fron> 

 Venezuela toCentral .Argentine, .ire found in the( )rinocoKiver 

 and its tributaries. This animal is also known as the "chiguire', 

 and is sometimes called the 'carpincho'. ' It is aquatic, 

 inhabiting the marshy banks ijf brackish streams, and \% 

 notorious for the great damagt that it does to neighbouring 

 sugar plantations. When full-grown the animal is about 

 4 feet long, and has a girth of 3 feet, weighing nearly li)0 B). 

 The skin i.s thick, and is covered with a rough brown coat of 

 short coarse hair. It appears from a repirt from the United 

 States Consul at La Guayra, that the chiguires have been 

 oiticiaily pronounced undesirable animals, and the Govern?nent 

 of Venezuela advocates their extermination. No use for their 

 skins, however, has yet been found. 



'J'hr Board 'if Trade /oiir/iil, October 3. 1918, states 

 that an American company, with a cipital of :?.")0,000, is con- 

 structing at Colon a factory for the manufacturing of coco-nut 

 oil and palm oil, and their byproducts, soap, glycerine, ciustic 

 potash, carbonate of potash, .soda, etc. The factory will have 

 a capacity for making l,-i00 gallons of coco-nut oil and 250 

 gallons of palm oil daily. An ample supplj* of coco-nuts caa 

 be obtained froaj the neighbouring territory all the year 

 round. Palm oil will be extracted from the nuts of palm 

 trees growing in various parts ■ii the Republic of Panama, as 

 well as in the Canal Zone. 



The Empire Cotton Growing Committee met at the 

 Board of Trade on September 2.5. At this meeting a schema 

 for the development and expansion of the (-'ommittee's work 

 was put forward in I'Utline. and fully discussed. It is pro- 

 po.sed to set up a number of sub-committ.ees to deal respec- 

 tively w^ith finance, commerce and development, research and 

 education, and the collection and dissemiimiion of informa- 

 tion as to CO tot gr oving. (77/.' Board of Trad' Jour'ial^ 

 t)ctober .3, 1918.) 



