Vol. XII. No. 283. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS 



STUDENTS' CORNER. 



MARCH. 

 FiR.sT Period. 

 Seasonal Notes. 



The cotton crop will now soon be over and the 

 bushes will have to be buried under or burnt. 'Ratooning' 

 is not to be recommended. How long will the land lie 

 fallow before being replanted? In the meanw'hile the 

 selection of seed should receive attention. It would be 

 worth while to observe the occurrence of any five-loc bolis in 

 the field and to collect seed from such bolls with a view to 

 planting at least .some of it, if found, in a small plot immedi- 

 ately. Seed which is saved in the ordinary way from this 

 years crop must be stored in places free from 'damp and 

 disease. Seed which is obtained for planting purposes, from 

 other estates should be disinfected, unless there is good 

 reason to believe that it has been carefully selected from 

 healthy plants. 



In places where the grafting of cacao is going on, great 

 care is required in keeping the pots well watered. The dry 

 season is the time to undertake the annual sanitation 

 of the cacao orchards. All dead wood should be removed. 

 Wounds should be treated by painting over first with 

 Bordeaux mixture followed by tar or some other anti- 

 septic. How would you deal with diseased pods and other 

 infectious material removed from the trees? 



In those districts where onions are grown, the harvesting 

 will soon be over. Now is the time to get practical experience 

 in curing and packing for market. State the reason why 

 onions cannot as a rule, be stored for any length of time, in 

 the West Indies. What precautions should be taken in the 

 drying of the bulbs? 



The substance tannin was referred to in the questions to 

 these notes in the last issue of the Af/iicuUural 'JVews, and 

 the student will have obtained good practical knowledge on the 

 subject by reading the articles dealing with wattle bark and the 

 artificial ripening of bitter fruits, published in the same num- 

 ber. The economic importance of utilizing locally occurring 

 substances for manurial purposes has frequently been dealt 

 with in this journal, and in the last issue a good lesson is 

 contained in the account of the manurial practices that are 

 followed in Southern India. The matter is dealt with, in 

 a wider sense, in the article entitled Recent Publications on 

 Soil Fertility in this or the succeeding number of this 

 journal. 



Questions for Candidates. 



will allow of, what the cost per acre is for some particular one 

 under certain conditions, and state the benefit derived from 

 its cultivation. 



(2) Write a short account of either (a) sugar and cotton 

 prices, or (b) lime-juice and cac.io prices, during 1912-13. 



PRELIMINARY QUESTIONS:* 



of 



(1) Write a short description of a new method 

 mechanical analysis of the soil. 



(2) Give an account of any ca.ses where the application 

 of chemical substances to the leaves of plants is likely to 

 produce a beneficial effect. 



INTERMEDIATE QUESTION.S. 



(1) What are the more important characters of a seed- 

 ling cane? 



(2) Has tapping any effect upon the composition of 

 rubber? 



FINAL QUESTIONS. 



SILK PRODUCTION IN FRANCE. 



An abstract in the Bulletin of the Bureau of A'jrictdtural 

 InlMifjence and of Plant Diseases for October 1912 deals 

 with methods that are suggested for putting an end to the de- 

 cline that is taking place slowly in silk production in France. 

 It commences with a table which shows that the number 

 of breeders of silkworms and the number of fresh cocoons 

 produced annually in that country have decreased from 

 200,538 and 21,716,4.5.5 lb. in 1872 to averages of 120,732 

 and 16,3-12,.572 ft), for the years 1906-10. At the same 

 time the yield of cocoons per ounce of eggs has almost 

 doubled, since 1852. The prices have in the meanwhile 

 decreased very little, in spite of the competition of the 

 Far East. 



A study of the statistics demonstrates that the lessened 

 production has been caused by a cessation of silkworm- 

 breeding on a large scale, as far as the years preceding 1890 

 are concerned; since that time the number of small breeders 

 has decreased. Since 1900, breeders have generally dimin- 

 ished their output. The abandonment of the industry on 

 the large scale cannot be attributed to fall in prices, since 

 these have remained almost at the same level, as has been 

 said; nor to the increased cost of labour, for this has been 

 more than made up by the higher yields. The true cause 

 seems to be found in the opinion, gradually adopted, that 

 the conduct of the industry on a large scale was doomed to 

 failure, and in the present justifiable attention, that is being 

 given to vine-growing. 



It is thought that the idea concerning the unsuccessful 

 nature of large silkworm establishments has no foundation in 

 fact, and it is claimed further that the opinion is contradicted 

 by experience. To increase the chances of the success of these, 

 the number of attendants should be greater, and a profit-shar- 

 ing scheme should be adopted, of the kind followed by many 

 large owners in Italy and by all those who produce silkworm 

 eggs in that country and in France. 



Attention is paid in the paper to the disastrous results 

 that are likely to follow the want of diversification of 

 agricultural industry entailed in cultivation almost restricted 

 to one crop, like the vine, and it is suggested that 

 these should be brought forward with emphasis, as a means 

 of resuscitating silkworm rearing on the large scale. At 

 the same time, the small breeder .should be helped to obtain 

 results that will make the industry more popular, and this 

 may be done, it is thought, by proper instruction in silk- 

 worm-rearing; this .should be given in the schools, as well as 

 by means of stationary or travelling demonstration silkworm 

 nurseries and experiment plots for mulberry cultivation. 



The paper concludes with other, more special sugges- 

 tions, including the creation of a central service of sericulture, 

 or at least an inspectorate authorized tf) adopt means to 

 encourage the industry, especially as a concomitant with 

 vine-growing. 



(1) What are the chief leguminous crops grown in your 

 district as green dressings? Discuss, as well as the matter 



A consignment of a new fruit has been received at 

 Covent (iarden. It is called .Jamra, and both in shape and 

 size is like an ordinary pear, but is blood red in colour. 

 Specimens were sold yesterday at one guinea each. (The 

 Tillies, November 12.) 



