September i, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



203 



To the Editor of the Ceylon Observer, 

 PLANTING MATTERS IN MYSORE. 



July 26th, 18S3. 

 Dear Sir, — Owing to its being a stern necessity to 

 grow coffee uuder sliatle, audowiugto a superabundance 

 of wood being allowed on the trees, the returns are notso 

 good ag they seem. This is caused by the lower branches 

 doing nothing owing to their "light being hid under 

 a bushel" (of crop) while the top branches have all 

 the fun to themselves. Now you may ask why it is 

 a stern necessity to grow under shade? I can read you 

 a sad story as to that as soon as I can get access to 

 past records of coffee planting in Munzerabad. Leaf- 

 disease lets you down so quietly that you have actu- 

 ally got to the foot of the precipice without realizing 

 it. But here the borer severed the tree forthwith, 

 and down! — crash !— went the whole district. Some 

 limped off thoroughly scared ; a very few plucky 

 planters held on and tried other coffee and other pro- 

 ducts ; and really Ceylon can't be compared to whut 

 one can see here. There is no great bumper to de- 

 moralize dories and coolies ; no temporary wealth to 

 attract all Eugland's younger sons and Scotia's plod- 

 ding energy ; but a good margin over outlay and 

 upkeep. It was found that the terrible borer liked a 

 nice dry place for its reproductive operations and 

 hatching its eggs. Open cleiiriugs and open hindling 

 suited it down to the ground, and the borer thus had 

 fine scope tor pushing its family in the world. Shade 

 and thick coffee thus became necessary. There is an- 

 other thing that makes up in a degree for want of 

 severity in leaf-disease. That is "stink rot." Now that's 

 not a pretty name, but it gives you a good idea of 

 its nature. I have seen something similar in un- 

 pruDed and neglected coffee in Ceylon. The top of the 

 tree gets blacks, the wood as well as the leives 

 being affected, and a thin film can be taken off 

 branches and leaves like a fine cuticle. This h:i3 

 been subjected to the microscope hy a gentleman 

 who is well-known here on account of his scientific 

 researches into the ailments of coBee, and its re- 

 (juireiuents in the way of food. He says tliia 

 blight is a fungus ; and he gave me the technical 

 jawbreaker, but I have failed in retaining it. The 

 deciyed foliage has a nice (?) smell of mushroams, 

 rather far gone. The blight I believe to result from 

 insufficient evaporation in the wet season. Dr.ainage 

 would modify it. ABERDONENSIS. 



THE PLANTING ENTERPRISE AND COFFEE 

 CULTIVATION. 



4th August, ISSo. 



Dear Sir, — In continuing the subjects of my 

 letter of 24th ult., I ought to mention that in using 

 the word " remedy " with refe'-onee to rape-cake, 

 etc., I do so in the sense oiily in which it is applic- 

 able to agricultural pests ; for experience both at 

 home and here teaches that a p^st once fully estab- 

 1 shed, It becomes impossible to utterly extii-j)ate it. 

 Hence there is no remedy in tJie strict sense of the 

 word. These pests remain always in a more <r less 

 virulent form as conditions favi^uring them ai-e pre- 

 sent or absent, or to the extent to which remedial 

 measures have been attended to or neglected. 



I .am satisfied that coconut poouac and castorcike 

 are the feitilzers in which g-ubs mostly tlourish, 

 and that caustic lime properly and seasonably ap- 

 plied, rape-cake in which mustard forms aproiiotiou 

 manures in the manufacture of which sulpluiric acid 

 is used, and all the alkaline manures are most efficient 

 grub deterrents. 



With regard to mustard seed sown broadcast under 

 the coffee and mulched in green before it reproduces 

 seed, I fear that, my experiments extend over too 

 short a time to justify me in giving out that I have 

 fallen on an effective remedy, but I can safely say 

 that the insect is anything but happy in close 

 proximity to growing mustard. On the space first 

 experimented on, and at the time the seed was sown, 

 grubs existed in large numbers when the green 

 mustard was dug in, about three weeks afterwards, 

 very few were to be seen, and now. two months after, 

 they have disappeared entirely ! Whether they have 

 gone down out of reach of the decaying pungent 

 plant and will return in course of time, remains 

 to be seen. 



The pest is assuming such serious proportions and 

 the remedy ofiers so many advantages, besides that 

 described, that I cannot do better than quote from 

 the letter of the friend in London who procured the 

 mustard seed for me :— " On purchasing the mustard 

 seed and refuse for you, Colman referred me to 

 several farmers that he was in the habit of selling 

 it to from whom I made enquiry concerning the uses 

 it was put to. 1 find it is used to rid the soil of 

 grubs and wireworm, preparatory to certain crops ; 

 the green stalks clear the ground for three years' 

 and it is considered that a green manuring in this 

 way is equal to ten tons of cattle manure 

 per acre. A quarter bushel of seed will 

 suffice to sow an acre, it is allowed to crovf 

 aboat a foot high and then harrowed, or ploughed 

 in at first, and before the stuff decays in the soil, 

 it may tend to give the tree a yellow appearance' 

 but will afterwards shew its good effects. You fear 

 weeds getting into your place, there is no dan<Jer of 

 this, mustard comes up so quickly. Mustard seed is'oheap 

 about 143 sterling per bushel, I think, so that the 

 experiment is within the reach of all whose estates 

 are not too steep." The remaining element, the notice- 

 iug of which I have at last arrived at. is one that 

 I can perhaps vvnte about with less confidence than 

 those 1 have already had in hand, for I have 

 neither kept temperature registering instruments or 

 a raingauge. I cannot help thinking, however that 

 too much weight has been attached to abnormal 

 seasons, although I must confess to some misgi vinos 

 in offering au opinion not exactly in accord with 

 Buch an authority as Mr. Giles Walker, his deduc 

 tions being the result of many years' careful observ- 

 atiou and comparison, while mine are merely the 

 result of a littse (xercise of memory. I am one of 

 those who think there has been but little abuorm 

 ality in the seasons for the past three years at all 

 events, with the exception perhaps that less rain 

 has fallen in the .laiiumu mouths than formerlv 



The last blossoming season in particular was vcrv 

 marked in the apparent ilMuck we had in rain comin./ 

 on the top of every blossom we had, eulmiua^inS 

 m heavy and lengthening showers at the critical 

 staye, but I hold strongly to the opinion that but 

 for these selfsame showers the trees had not strength 

 to force out a blossom. Ou the 17th of March °on 

 many estates in this vicinity a hlos om was in full 

 bloom, and a fine spike quite visible for three we-ks 

 the weather was of the most jjerfect description 

 very hot and dry without u single shower during 

 which the spike referred to nev.-r budotd • then 

 came light showers iu the afternoon, which soon 

 forced it out. The rains continuing every even nc and 

 the blossom having failed, of course the unfortSnate 

 weather got the credit of having done the dam.age 

 I feel sure from the appe.irance which that spike 

 presented after three weeks of hot dry weather that 

 It would have been iheie still had it" not got moist- 

 ure to force it out. But sir, even if I am mis. 

 taken here, what, I ask would our trees have been 



