October i, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



271 



Datooriali, (an estate the teas of which always top 

 the market,) but the Superintendent infonned us that 

 the plants of a nursery, allowed to grow up thickly 

 gave a much larger yield per a^.re than the big. thick 

 stemmed bushes with all the soil, light and air at their 

 disposal. Our good friend, ilr. Kerkhoven, of Sinaear 

 in Java, liad nietouch say in favour of his "hedge 

 system ": four feet between the rows for trenches and 

 cultivation, but the bushes [China in his case] only 

 one foot apart in the rows. We find we were informed 

 that in Darjiiing, " Trees were tijpped in the first year 

 and that they were not allowed to giow [untopped] 

 hit'her than two feet. The great object is to get the 

 plants to spread and Ihey sh uld never he allowed to 

 grow higher than ?,h feet." This was with reference 

 to China plants on lull estates, for on a Terai pro- 

 perty we saw bushes four feet high and over, with 

 a grand spread of surface, but these were best Atsam 

 Hybrids. On this Terai estate, sal and other trees 

 were allowed to grow for shade and we were told 

 that the drip from them did no harm. Amongst our 

 notes we find that " China bushes can bear rougher 

 treatment than hybrids." Also tliat_pruning is always 

 done in the dormant season from November to March 

 and that in iducking' which is really a pruning, two 

 sets of leaves should always be left., Bamhu and 

 cane which abound in the Sikkhiin forests, are valuable 

 for tea baskets, as well as for building purposes. 

 We took special notes of the paucity of estate roads 

 'and the absence of drains ; as also of the large space 

 occupied by factories and the general use of steam- 

 engines. Steam-machinery is absolutely necessary on 

 the low Terai and Dooars estates. We find that we 

 have noted " tea land is first hoed to the depth 

 of lOi inches and when the stumps are taken out a 

 Fecond hoeing down to 18 inches is given'" The land is 

 therefore regularly trenched. A common mode of planting 

 on the hUl estates was Siid to be 3 x 4 wluch gave 3,630 

 trees to the acre, from each of which .-Jib. of dried 

 tea [over 900 lb. per acre '. seldom realized, wc suspect] 

 was deemed a reasonable return : The steeper and 

 higher the land, the closer ought to be the planting. 

 We noticed that the presence of mica in the soil was 

 conducive to its porosit}' : we might have added to 

 its instability if on hill sides in rainy weather. The 

 pioneer planters had sutfered much (two had just 

 died froui Teiui fever) but unhealthy places were said 

 to be improving. There was and is much room for 

 amelioration, and we ought not to underrate the 

 great advantages of our salubrious hill climate in 

 Ceylon. A note runs : " If in China the best mean 

 temperature for tea is from 65" to 70', the temper- 

 ature of most of tlie mountain country of Ceylon is 

 all that could be desired." While the danger of very 

 high altitudes is the prevalence of mist, there is greater 

 liability at lower elewations to alternations of drought 

 and heavy rainfall [?] That the last note referred to 

 Daiiiling is evident from the remark which follows, 

 that, "The usual February and March showers had 

 failed in 1S76 " We then fiud "the Chinese have 

 only half the rainfall and half the pluciiing that 

 Indian planters get, but cheap labour [production by 

 small fanners] is in favour with the Celestials." We 

 find we have put a note of admiration after the 

 statement that 1 maund (S2 lb.) per acre was gathered 

 from tea estates in theii- nc'ioiul year; but it is 

 added, "above 3,000 feet, only one-third of this." 

 I altitude of 3,000 ft. in Darjiling, we may remark, 

 lully the equivalent of 4,500 in Ceylon. We noted 

 mat there was a universal opinion in favour 

 of toon (red cedar) timber for tea boxes, that 

 "■«• lead-lining of boxes was deemed very expeu- 

 .-, tiiat careful soldering was required and 

 I 'hasty drying leads to burnt-tes : good fires 

 cooet'il w'Uh ath'K [?] a-e necessary." Then comes 

 the nterjected remark tbat coffee planters were not 



subjected to the annoyance of the "bulking" of their 

 produce [?]. While withering was generally performed 

 in the shade, we find it noted that "leaf plucked at 

 7 a.m. and withered in the sun, c;in be made into 

 tea the same evening." Then as to band-rolling wliich 

 was then ttill the rule, "401b. green leaf 1 10 lb. dry) 

 per man per diem can be rolled. Question if right 

 to have given-up panning : seeais to be upcessary for 

 coarse leaf." We suppose this question has not Ijeen 

 quite settled jet, for it is stated that on Loolcondnra 

 (perhaps on other places in Ceylon '!) tea is still 

 •Spanned." Then we went on. "The rolling, ferment- 

 ing and drying of tea are nice chemical operitions. Hill 

 tea is especially benefitted by good fermentation." 

 We then- noted that we had been told of the 

 "superiority of brick drying dhools to baskets and 

 that for 48 lb. tea only 40 lb. of charcoal 

 while 66 for brick." The meaning of the com- 

 pressed note we take to be that while 40 lb. of 

 charcoal was necessary for the preparation of 481b. 

 tea with baskets, the same quantity when used in 

 brick dhools or s'oves, sufficed for the drying of 

 66 lb. tea. In cither case, our information that 2 lb. 

 charcoal were required to cure 1 lb. tea must have 

 been wrong. Every tea planter must rejoice that 

 dhools and charcoal fires are no longer indispensable, 

 although, no doubt, charcoal has stiU the great merit 

 of being tmokelfss. We took a special note of "the 

 wonderful hardiness of the tea plant," growing as it 

 did in the latitude of Darjiling from little above aea-level 

 (300 feet at Siligori) to over 5,000 feet, la Darjilmg, 

 prot-ction is sought from the south and south-easterly 

 winds which are not and dry. "The cold of the higher 

 altitudes retards flushes, . but fiivcs superior aroma. 

 The regular flushes between March aud November are 

 six with gleanings between." [We can generally 

 double this] In the good soils of Darjibng there are 

 large proportions of organic matter and oxide of iron, 

 with scarcely a trace of lime. Rich free soil is the best, 

 whUe the black odour secures a hot temperature. 

 [This proposition, tupvosed to be established OT 

 Franklin's exporiments, has ben recently qu-Stioned.] 

 "There are sandy soils even in the Terai,'' on which, 

 »e may remark, that a gentleman familiar with China 

 telU us thnt much of the tea in that country is grown 

 on light sandy soil. So far our pencilled notes, but 

 many others laid no in our memory have been em- 

 bodied in writings which expresred the conviction then 

 formed and never departed from, that many as were 

 the advanlagea of Darjiling as a tea growing country 

 those of Ceylon were superior. The results of seven- 

 and-a-half years' further experience have more and 

 more shewn that we judged correctly. Tue position 

 has indeed so changed that inst-.-ad of Ceylon tea planters 

 going to India, it is the Indian tea planters who now 

 resort to Ceylon. Tbey come to see if the reports of 

 our marvellous yields of leaf are true, and niostof 

 th«^m when they have seen have exclaimed: "The 

 half was not told US." If only competition in growth 

 does not eend down tea, like coffee, below remunerat- 

 ive prices, it seems beyond doubt that there is a 

 great and prosperous future before tea planters in 

 Ceylon. 



THE GKEAT CINCHONA LEDGERIANA 



COSTEOVEKSY. 

 May surely be considered to be finally disposed of by 

 the trenchant Utter of Dr. Triinen which we give 

 on page 282. Of Mr. Howard it may be said 

 that his bark is better than his botany ! Mr. Ledg.-r 

 also, on who=e authority, the great Q'linologist seems to 

 lUn is a cinchona bark and seed coUec'or— not a 

 botanist. It is absurd, therefore, of the editor of 



