6i6 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[March i, 1884 



to soil- exhaustion and consequent decrease in plant vigour- 

 and in the letters addressed from this office to Professor 

 Lawson, the Collector of the Godavari, and Messrs. Arbuth- 

 not & Co., it was suggested that in a dressing of salt, 

 petre- and common salt might perhaps be found at once 

 the most suitable manure for the soil and the cure for 

 the disease. 



5. In his reply, dated 11th June 1883, Professor Law- 

 son said that the proposed remedy would probably decrease 

 the pernicious effects of the parasite by increasing the 

 vegetative activity of the tobacco, but would not destroy 

 the pest. 



6. Besides ^vriting to Professor Lawson, I addressed also 

 the Collector of the God;ivari asking for any information 

 it was in his power to give me on the subject, and I 

 took advantage of the recent deputation of Mr. Benson, 

 Assistant Suporiutendent of the Government Farm, on a 

 tour of agricultural inspection in the Kistna and GodAvari 

 deltas, to direct his special attention among other things 

 to this. The season of his tour was not the best that 

 might have beau got for the investigation, as there 

 was no tobacco on the ground then, but it was thought 

 that JVIr. Benson would be able notwithstanding to acquire 

 a good deal of useful information on the subject. The 

 result has not disappointed the expectation ; Mi\ Benson 

 was fortunate enough to find ''Bodu" in situ, and lias 

 submitted an iuteresting report on the whole question of 

 tobacco culture in the Godavari, the " Bodu " pest and its 

 possible remedy. 



7. The result of the various inquiries made is briefly 

 as follows: — 



The parasite has been identified by Professor Lawson as 

 the Phelipipa Indica, natural order Oi'ohcfncJu/ce(P, and from 

 Mr. Benson's inquiries it appears to show first about a 

 month after the seedlings are transplanted from the nm-ser- 

 ies to the fields, and aljout a week after the first and in 

 general only weeding the land gets. At first sight, there- 

 fore, the stirring of the soil in weeding would seem to be 

 the stimulating cause of its grovrth, but Mr. Benson fur- 

 ther states that it appears also on fields that have not 

 been hoed at all. 



From the report of Messrs. Hall, Wilson & Co., it was 

 thought that the " Bodu " was confined to the Godavari 

 lunkas and attacked only plants of the natural order So^ 

 la}iac€(pf the only plants that were observed to suffer from 

 it being the tobacco and the brinjal. 



Further inquiries, liowever, showed that it attacks the 

 tobacco of the upland villages, and that its attacks are 

 not confined to the Holanacemy the Sub-Collector of -the 

 Godavari reporting that it also attacks turmeric (natural 

 order Zingiherace^)^ but apparently without injuring it. 



8. The Cause of the Pest. — Various opinions have been 

 expressed as to the cause of " Bodu." Messrs. Hall, "Wilson 

 & Co.'s letter pointed, as abeady remarked, to soil-exhaus- 

 tion. The ryots ajjpear everywhere to ascribe it to this 

 and to excessive moisture: their testimony is to the effect 

 that it always increases on land not frequently silted by 

 the river freshes. Mr. Benson does not think that this 

 caa be admitted to be the real cause, as it is found in- 

 differently on all kinds of soil, the best and the worst. 

 This argxmieut is not conclusive however, as the parasite 

 might have appeared first on exhausted soils and spread 

 thence to the better onev. There can be no doubt tliat 

 the evil has extended with the extension of tobacco, which 

 the parasite seems chiefly to affect, and that its attacks 

 are now more persistent owing to the accumulation of its 

 seeds in the soil. It appears to be somewhat capricious 

 in its altacks, sonit^ fields and plants being entirely free 

 from it, though in the immediate neighbourhood of others 

 that may be suffering severely from it. 



9.^ Its I\ff'i'cts on the 7'o/jtf^(ro.— Opinions differ, too, as 

 to its effects on the plants it attacks. Some say that the 

 tobacco dies if it is not removed: others that the removal 

 of the parasite involves the death of the tobacco: and 

 others, again, that the para.Mte may weaken the tobacco, 

 but cannot, except in the case of a weakly plant, kill it. 

 The general opinion is that it does no material injury to 

 strong healthy plants on good soil, but injures greatly, 

 even to killing, weakly plants on poor soil. 



10. Its Uses. — In the Punjab, the kindred Pkelip(pa Cah- 

 tropidis is used for cattle fo<lder, and there seems to be 

 no doubt that in this province also it might be used for 



the same purpose. Notwithstanding the assertion of the 

 ryots of some parts of the Godavari that cattle will not 

 touch it, there seems every reason for believing the con- 

 trary testimony that though they may be averse from it 

 at first, they in time become greedily fond of it, and 

 when fed on it yield more and better milk then when 

 otherwise foddered. 



11. Tlie liti/iedi/. — The " Bodu " propagates itself by seed- 

 ing. One obnous remedy for the disease is, therefore, as 

 suggested by Professor Lawson, the persistent removal of 

 the parasite as soon as it appears above ground and before 

 it seeds. This requires, of course, a general and continu- 

 ous co-operative movement on the part of growers not 

 onl5' in the deltas but in the uplands, and this, it is to be 

 feared, is hardly to be expected. If removed from the 

 tobacco — and it can be removed by the most gentle pull, 

 breaking clean off at the junction with the root stock — 

 after it has seeded and merely thrown down, as it appears 

 generally to be, besides the plants on which it grew, the 

 worms that had their abode in its flowers attack and eat 

 up the tobacco, and its seed remains to propagate a fresh 

 crop in the next season. "When removed from the plant, 

 it should be removed from the field and given to cattle, 

 which midoubtedly feed on it and like it. The most ob- 

 vious remedy was, in Messrs. Hall, Wilson & Co.'s opinion, 

 liberal manuring, but this it was. they thought, hopeless 

 to expect the ryots to adopt so long as they get the 

 Godavari silt. They suggested, however, that the ryots 

 might be induced to manure their seed-beds heavily so as 

 to ensure a strong and healthy seedhng to begin with, 

 but from Mr. Benson's report it would appear that the 

 tobacco nurseries are now very highly manured. All author- 

 ities consulted concur in recommending the liberal use of 

 manure ias a means of at least minimizing the evils of an 

 attack of '* Bodu," but Mr. Benson does not seem to think 

 that this would be requireed except in the case of the 

 high lands which the Godavari freshes do not cover. An- 

 other remedy is interculture and change of crop ; but as 

 the "Bodu" does not, as was at first thought, confine 

 its attacks to plants of one natural order only, it mTght 

 be found that mere change of crop would not starve the 

 parasite out. 



♦ 



Preserved Gixger. — The following is an account 

 of the process as given by an American eyewitness: — 



" The ginger root, a large white variety, is first dug and 

 the outer skin scraped off. This is chiefly done in the 

 country surrounding Canton, where it is raised. It is then 

 shipped down to the city in boats, carefully washed, and 

 thrown into large kettles, where it is boiled for about 

 twenty-four hours. It is then taken out and thrown i:ito 

 salt water, and allowed to remain there about twent3--iL,ur 

 hours more. After this it is taken out, the rough edges 

 trimmed off with a knife, and thrown upon tables, which are 

 surrounded with operators, holding in each hand a kind of 

 three-pronged fork, with which they prick thereof uutitit 

 is thoroughly punctured through and through. It is then 

 washed in fresh water and dried in the sun for a time, afer 

 which it is again placed in large kettles, containing abtut 

 an equal weight of sugar, and boiled for about t w ove 

 hours; it is then taken from the kettles and put into lejge 

 earthen jars. The syrup is poured over it, and it is alloared 

 to remain therein for several days — sometimes weeks — wweu 

 it is boiled up again for a short time, and is then rehdj' 

 for packing. It is put up in jars and half-jars, such asaall 

 dealers are familiar with, and packed in cases containi ng 

 .six jars or twelve half-jars. In all the various manipulations 

 the Chinese are particularly dexterous. The process of 

 putting the network of rattan over the jars, by which 

 they are carried and handled, a workman would seize a 

 piece of rattan, t\vist it into two rings just big enough to 

 go over the top and l).>ttom, and with another slender strip 

 would weave a network between these two rings so quickly 

 that one could hardly believe that it had been accom- 

 plished by an individual, and not by some marvellous 

 machine. The pasting of the papers over the tops of tho 

 jars is also a curious piece of work. One end of a long strip 

 of paper is first stuck to the edge of the jar, and the strip 

 is then twiste<l over and over, each time receiving a little 

 dab of paste, until the jar is hermetically sealed, and all thist 

 is done with such exceeding quickness and dexterity tha. 

 you can hardly follow the motions of the operator's bauds 



