F EBRUARy r, 1884.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



579 



centre of a group of eatates would not only be more 

 likely to be the means of more eveu breaks of tea 

 being turned out, but would probably lessen the cost 

 of manufacture per lb. considerably, we firmly believe. 

 This system would be peculiarly of advantage to closely 

 adjoining estates, and those of small acreage, which 

 otherwise would have to incur the cost of separate 

 tea-houses, and all its paraphernalia, besides having 

 to pay anither European for the supervision of the 

 tea hou^e which would make the cost of superintend- 

 ence very heavy on a small acreage. All this would 

 be obviated by the scheme pinpoaed above, as the 

 manager of a garden, eveu of large acreage, whose 

 tea was made at a central factory, could concentrate 

 his attention on the cultivation of the plant, and the 

 more legitimate work of the planter proper, without 

 eveu the aid of an assistant. This subdivision of 

 labor would, as it always does, induce economy as 

 well as efficiency — the two great elements iu skilful 

 manufacture.] — Local " Times." 



TOBACCO CULTDKE IN VIRGINIA. 



BY C. N. liEKKELEY, AMELIA CO., V. A. 



The "Old \'irgini<i Leaf" has probably seen its 

 best days. Whatever were the means by which the 

 staple attained its great reputation, the planters have 

 not troubled themselves to sustain it. Formerly, the 

 facility of raising tobacco through the double advant- 

 age of rich Soil anil cheup labor, with the prolit of 

 ready sale, induced all who could to plant as large a 

 surface of the crop as was possible. Complaints, fiow- 

 ever, as to quality began to be heard sometimes be- 

 fore the war, but were unheeded, and now, while 

 the demand continues fteady, the increased co«t of 

 producing the weed, and the decline in prices, have 

 borne heavily on the farmers, and their favorite crop 

 is ftist losing its place as a paying product. 



To secure a crop of tobacco, two things must be 

 assured ; a full plant-bed, and a full planting. The 

 bed is a spot in the woods, with a southern exposure, 

 cleared off to the required number of square yards, 

 which varies from .5J0 to 2,1)00. Great care is neces- 

 sary iu the preparation, the first part of which is 

 the burning. This is done to kill all grass-roots, and 

 seeds of weeds, that they many not grow with the 

 plants. Parallel rows of poles (skids) are laid, four 

 feet apart, e.vtending the length of the bed ; across 

 these is built a good sized lidge of wood, reaching 

 from side to side, then Kred along its whole extent. 

 After burning until the coals and ashes have covered 

 the ground underneath, the fuel is pulled over upon 

 a fi'esh strip of ground, the process being repeated 

 until the bed is burned all over. A powerful break- 

 ing- plow is used to tear up the plot, followed by 

 grubbmg hoos and rakes, kept going untd the charr- 

 ed, stumpy area is turned into a nice soft bed of 

 uniform fineness. It is necessary to put strong manure 

 (in the bed to make good plants. The seed is th( n 

 sown, mixed with dry ashes, at the rate of a gill to 

 the 100 yards, and put in by a brush, a small-tooth 

 rake, or by stamping. Plenty of brush must be put 

 on the bed to protect the young plants from late 

 frosts. Having manured his laud, the farmer makes 

 liMta (ihrowing three furrowi m one), and cuts them 

 into hills. The best planting time is from the mid- 

 dle of May to July ; after this, the out-worm and 

 heat destroy all replanting. After a rain, the plants 

 are drawn fr.jm the bod, and dropped by one person 

 for tw 1 othern, who make a hole in the hill, insert 

 the root, and press the earth close. The working of 

 the crop is the same as with corn. When the to- 

 bacco is high enough to have ten leaves, after prun- 

 ing, the bud is taken out, to prevent seeding, and 

 the plant grows broader and heavier, but no taller. 

 With the second week iu August cimcs the Hy which 



fastens its white oggs upon the underside of the leaf, 

 from which the worms hatch by hundreds. Unceas- 

 ing attention for three or four weeks is imperative, 

 fo keep down worms and suckers, or they will de- 

 stroy the crop. Cutting is began about the middle of 

 September. The plants are split from the top to 

 within six inches of the root, severed, and turned 

 bottom up to " fall," after which they are collected 

 in piles of about a dozen each, and hung by the 

 splits on sticks riven for the purpose. Some farmers 

 cure tobacco on scaffolds in the Held, but the rule 

 is to house and fire at once. When the stems are 

 dry enough to crack, the curing is done, and some 

 damp day is chosen, when the tobacco is "in order," 

 to "strike" and " bulk " it. Stripping is done duriug 

 winter. — American Ajricullurist. 



NOTES ON SOME NEW ECONOMIC PRODUCTS 

 RECENTLY, RECEIVED AT THE ROYAL 



GARDENS, KEW. 

 Bv W. T. TmsELTON Dveb, m.a., o.m.u., f.b.s., f.l.s., 



AsSISTA.NT DiUECTOH. 



A copy of this paper, extracted from the Linnean 

 Society's Journal, has been sent to us by Mr. Thisel- 

 ton Dyer. It coantaius a notice of West-African 

 Indigo ; Inhambano Copal ; Ogea Gum ; Bhaib (Polli- 

 nia eiiopoda, Hance), which the late Major-General 

 Munro, C. B. , promptly ideutitied the plant with 

 Upodiopogon ang^citl/bliui (Trin. in Act. Petrop. vi, ii. 

 p. 300 ; Spec. Gram. t. 33C). It may be convenient 

 to reproduce here what is stated in the Kew Report, 

 for 1S7S (p. 4o) : — " Eiiophorum comosum. — This plant 

 is well known in Noith-western India, wliere, under 

 the name of hhabar <jhas, it is largely used as a 

 material for ropes. It was submitted by Dr. King 

 to Mr. Rautledge, wlio writes to us : — ' A small quant- 

 ity of bleach brings it up to a good colour. The 

 ultimate fibre is very tino and dilicate, rather more 

 •o than Esparto, and of about the same strength ; 

 the yield, however, is 4-2 per cent., somewhat less. 

 I think I may venture to say it will make a quality 

 of paper equal to Ksparto.' " Wax from Rhus veruici- 

 fera, Dec ; Myrica-wax from Jamaica ; Various species 

 of Mtjrica yield a wax in ditf'ereut parts of the 

 world. The berries are simply boiled, and the wax 

 rising to the surface is skimmed off and moulded 

 into cakes. Mixed with tallow, the wax of Alyrica 

 cordifolia, L. , is used at the Cape in candle-making. 

 M. ceri/era, L., yields asimilar product in N. America, 

 and a variety of species are utilized iu a similar way 

 in Central America. The Kew Museum po.-ssesses a cau- 

 dle of i/(/rica-wax from tli ■ " W. Indies," presented by 

 Professor Ansted, and a moulded block of what is prob- 

 ably » similar material from St. Domingo. For the first 

 authentic sample from these islands we are, however, 

 indebted to D. Morris, Esq., B'.L.S., Director of 

 Public Gardens and Plantations, Jamaica. The follow- 

 ing particulars respecting it were contained in a letter 

 dited March 15, 1883 : — " I am sending iu a separate 

 parcel a small specimen of wax prepared by Mr. Hart 

 from one of our native trees, which maybe of sufficient 

 interest to have a place iu your Museum. It has been pre 

 p.ired from the seeds of Myrica microcarpa, Benth., an 

 amentaceous plant, growing abundintly on the hills 

 of Jamaica at elevations of about 5,000 feet. The seeds 

 were simply boiled with water for about half an hour, 

 and then allowed to cool, the wax forming (when 

 cool) a cake on the surface of the water. This was 

 melted again in an earthen vessel to allow the dross 

 to settle to the bottom, after which the wax becomes 

 clean and clear." As the tree is very abundant iu Jam- 

 aica, and is of no use except for fire-wood, it would be a 

 very desirable thing if any commercial use could be lonnd 

 for the wax, aa it can be prepared in such au ex. 



