October i, 1883. J 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



287 



flow of sap in the trees and to form well-developed 

 flower buds ; during the ensuing blossom which lasts but 

 two or three days sunshine after a foggy, steamy morn- 

 ing and a few light showers soon after the blossom has 

 passed away. But sometimes the rain falls too early and 

 brings out a January or February blossom which may 

 set well, provided the succeeding months are not too dry. 

 On the Mercara plateau and the Sampaji valley rain 

 generally keeps off and a late blossom is the rule, often 

 e.xposed to heavy showers, and the question arises, m how 

 far these affect an efficient fructification. Some planters say 

 in such a case the pollen has all been washed oft and 

 there is no crop to be expected. Others prognosticate 

 failure from stunted flowers, where, for want of suificient 

 rain, the petals of the corolla are small and of a yellow- 

 ish coloiur ; most planters naturally expect from a perfect 

 flower the best results, and yet I have heai'd a practical 

 and most successful planter utter the paradoxical dictum : 

 ' the finest blossom, the worst crop.' How are these ad- 

 verse opinions to be reconciled? Perhaps by laying not 

 too much stress on the appearance of the blossom, but 

 take into principal consideration the natural condition of 

 the trees as effected by cultivation apart from the weather. 

 ioT my own s.-itisfaction I have ascertained that in a well- 

 developed flower bud fructification may take place in the 

 state of aistivation or just before expansion into the full 

 blown flower. The experiment is easily made by removing 

 the stamens just before the flower bud opens and marking 

 the bud for after observation. 



The great difEculty planters have to contend with this 

 year is the scarcity of Jabor. At this busiest season, but 

 few coolies havt! come in from Mysore, where their pro- 

 tracted field work for want of timely raiie detains them, 

 and are they not amply supplied with money from the 

 planters' advances ? On weedy estates the weeds enjoy 

 a high holiday and the prospective manure from this som-ce j 

 must gladden the hearts of weed-favouring planters! It 

 is to be hoped, that the cooly question will be urged to \ 

 ?. .satisfatory solution by the planters. After the loss of , 

 a million of souls of the cooly class in Mysore by the | 

 late famine, the increasing demand for labour in the coffee- 

 producing districts of Southern India must open up new 

 sources of labour supply. '\\'hy should coolies emigrate 

 to foreign countries with the prospect of semi-slavery ; or 

 why should statistics lament the increasmg over-population 

 in In<lia, when remunerative work under easy circumstances 

 is to be found near the coolies' doors? It is the large pro- 

 prietors who should turn the tide, and direct cooly im- 

 migration into Coorg from new centres of supply. 



It was presumed that the abnonnally heavy monsoon 

 of 1882 with 203 inches of rainfall, or 83 inches more 

 than the average of the previous five years, and the 

 consequent vigor of the coffee trees, should have shaken 

 off the Borer pest, but it maintained its destructive sway 

 with unusual severity in a sporatic manner all over Coorg. 

 Perhaps a sense of false security on the part of the 

 planters gave the insidious enemy new vantage ground. 

 i have observed, that wherever dense shade of the right 

 kiud (Family Ficus and C'edrela) had long been established 

 on a highly cultivated estate, the damage from borer has 

 been less, but nowhere is the enemy to be disregarded, 

 but summarily to be dealt with. 



Having formerly referred to the judicious method of 

 shading as now practised in Ooorg^ I wouhl allude to 

 the important question of manvring, I think all planters 

 are agreed, that, wherever practicable, the best manure 

 for coffee is a compost of imported atifieial — bone dust, 

 oilcake, superphospate of lime — and local, natural manure — 

 vegetable and animal — and the more cattle manure the 

 better ; but they disagree as to the method of application. 

 Some advocate direct manuring of each indiwdual tree 

 into semi-circular holes at some distance from the stem ; 

 others are for terrace-manui-ing beiiind each tree on steep 

 land; others are for 'oroadcast, ma muring, with after dig- 

 ging or forking in. I have seen the apphcation of all 

 these methods, and where the proprietor can afford the 

 generous treatment of broadcast manuring on a compar- 

 atively clean estate and on gently sloping coffee fields, I 

 prefer this method, as it produces a highly nutritive soil, 

 accpssii)le to the rootlets in all directions ; but it does not 

 suit, either the means of all proprietors, or every lay of 

 land. One thing, however, is certain and applies to all cases, 



that, if planters go to the trouble and expense of crushing 

 steaming, and pulverising bones, and oil cakes, these manure 

 particles should be kept asunder by a proper mixture with 

 the soil, and thus be made accessible to the rootlets for 

 assimilation and noiuishment to the utmost extent and not 

 be thrown in heaps or lumps into the holes round the trees, 

 as is so frequently done. 



Next in importance to coffee is Cimhona Cultivation, (I 

 thudt, for the reason stated by Mr. Markham, Cinchona should 

 be spelled with the initial Ch.) which now assumes large 

 proporations in Coorg. It is strange, that an mdustry, so 

 liberally undertaken by the Madras Government and so pro- 

 fitably worked and retamed when successful, should have 

 taken so long in gaming giound in Coorg. 



For the last 15 years, Cinchona cultivation has been advoc- 

 ated in my season reports as a means of shade for coffee and 

 as a sappiementary source of income ; but only the late coffee 

 crisis m Ceylon aud the resolute and energetic determm- 

 ation of planters there to open up to new economic , resour- 

 ces, and especially Cinchona cultivation has given a decisive 

 impetus here, to follow then- steps. Now Coorg can boast 

 of large Cinchona nm-series and nothing less than Ledgeriana 

 will satisfy ; however, all the principal varieties are represent- 

 ed Even shrewd natives want now 'the new aud best kind 

 and soon we shall have estates, where Oh. Ledgeriana, verde, 

 condaminea, robusta, succirubra, &c., &c., wiU be couuted 

 by lacs instead of by thousands as now. Also the Coorg 

 i'orest Department vies with the planters, and the Mercara 

 Firewood Plantation is being stocked with Cinchonas, and 

 varieties of seedUngs are raised in flom-ishing nmseries. I 

 have seen most vigorous Ciuchona plants m North Coorg, 

 and as fine ones may be seen on some estates m the Sampa] 

 Ghat, and in South Coorg, and the Perambadi Ghat, and 

 since m has been ascertained that Ledgeriana succeeds best 

 at an elevation of about 4,000 feet about sea level, Coorg 

 seems to be the very locality for this valuable species, and 

 there is great hope for the re-occupation of abandoned coffee 

 estates for Cinchona cultivation. 



From an oflicial statement, it appears that 8,68,725 Cin- 

 choua trees are spread aU over Coorg. covering an area ot 

 1 086 cases acres, most trees h.ave been put down among 

 eoflee and in a few cases separate plantations have been 

 formed on lands originaUy taken up for coffee. One planter 

 alone owns two lacs of Succiruba, 70,000 of Condaminea. and 

 40.000 Ledgeriana! In my experimental garden near Mercara, 

 I find that Ledgeriana seedlings planted in July 18S1, along 

 with Succirubras of the same age have out-grown the latter 

 in height and general vigor. 



It mav be worthy of remark, that whereas the first shaved 

 bark of 5 to 12 years old trees of Succirubra gi-own m the 

 same experimental garden sold last year at 3.«. 8,;. per pound; 

 the renewed bark shaved ui October last fetched at the late 

 sales in^uneonly 2.s. 4</. Whether this difference m prices 

 is attributable to the general depreciation of Cinchona bark, 

 or a special deterioration of the second shaving, I am unable 

 to say, but opinions are expressed to the latter effect. 



Systematic cultivation of Cardammns in suitable locaUtieS 

 has also fair prospects of success and men of pluck and 

 energv.are setting to work to redeem lost fortunes. Mr. 

 Graham Anderson's example of success m Cardamom culti- 

 vation in the Munzerabad District is highly encouraging, 

 Ind with the established fame of the Coorg, or Malabar 

 Cardamom in the Home market, even a moderate crop will 

 pay, and the prospects of the present year are favourable. 

 Euhher cultivation i* stiU in its infancy ; but I have seen 

 Ceara trees ah-eady bearing fruit m South Coorg and as at 

 one time the castor oil tree was recommended lor quickly 

 growing, and tempo..-irv shade, so the Ceara may gam favor 

 for the same purpose and yield the precious jmce besides, 

 its growth is most rapid and its handsome lobed leaves are 



"' OfMJe'ffi-evi^m roUsta or silver oak introduced by me 

 in 1876. one of the trees neai-ly 50 feet in height, Uossomed 

 for the first time at the end of May, but^I am afraid the 

 monsoon wiU interfere «-ith the ripening of the seed. 



My oil-palms (Klais Guineense) and Pithecolobium Saman 

 are in a flourishing condition, but a nm-sery of the former 



''X' livtrietyof Eucalyptus, the seed of «^ieh I ob- 

 tained from the Society, has nicely come up and the plants 

 are now over a foot in height; also the Clemat,, fiammula. 



