Vol All. Vo. 289. 



THE AQRICDLTDRAL NEWS. 



173 



STUDENTS' CORNER. 



JUNE. 

 First Period. 

 \ Seasonal Notes. 



During this quarter, yams that have been allowed tc 

 remain in the lield should be dug, and students .should note 

 the difference between those so kept compared with yams 

 that have been harvested and stored diro.-;t]y they ripened. 



Yams will also be replanted during this quaiter, and 

 student.s should observe the growth of the plants where large 

 sets have been used for replanting, as compared with small 

 ones. Ol'servations should also be made on the manner of 

 applying farmyard manure, whether underneath the yams or 

 spread on the surface around them. Note any difference 

 in the yields resulting from each method of application. 



Anumber of sweet potato cuttings will, in all probabil- 

 ity, be planted during thi.s quarter, and where there is any 

 Scarabee {Cri/ptorhi/nchus hatatae) present, a certain num- 

 ber of cuttings should be soaked in Bordeaux mixture and 

 the effect noted. How long can the cuttings be kept before 

 planting; 



About the present time a good deal of corn and cotton 

 will be planted and an opportunity may be taken to study 

 some of the aspects of germination. 



au 



Fii:. 6. Ger.mination of Indian Corn. 



The internal appearance of a germinating monocotyle- 

 donous seed is shown in Fig. *j. What are the names of the 

 structures indicated by the different letters? The internal 

 characters of cotton seed should be compared with those of 

 the maize. The following instructive experiment can be 

 carried out in a field of recently planted corn or cotton. 

 i' Cover a few square yards of the bare .'oil with light trash, 

 another similar area with soot or charcoal dust, another with 

 lime, another with small stones, and still another may be 

 pressed down tight or rolled. Make observations a.s to which 

 treatment ia quickest to stimulate germination. The cause 

 of any differences will bo due to the effect of the coverings 

 on the soil temperature and water-supply. The results will 

 be regulated, to a large extent, by the depth at which the 

 seeds are planted. 



Careful attention may be paid to the article on Para rubber 

 preparation in this issue, because one of the chief diHiculties 

 attending Castilloa cultivation in the West Indies is the 

 coagulation of the latex. The results described may 

 throw some light on the problem. In conjunction with 

 the article referred to, read the note on the watering of 

 tapping cuts (Vol. XII, p. 12I)an(rthe following: Experi- 

 ments with Hevea in Ceylon, VoJ. XII, p. 10: Effect of 

 Tapping upon the Composition of llubber, p. 43; Pea Disease 

 of llubber Trees, p. 62; Tapping of llubber Trees, p. 62; 

 Function of Insoluble Constituents of Kubber, p. 10-5; the 

 World's Production of Rubber, p. 132. 



Questions for Candidates. 



Preliminary Questions. 



( 1 ) What circumstances prevent flowers setting fruit.' 



(2) Write a short account of the movements of subsoil 



water. 



Intermediate Questions. 



(1) Mention any two recent inventions that are likely 

 to prove of value in tropical agriculture. l.iiscuss their 

 application in practice. 



(2) 1 'escribe a new stock for oranges. 



Final Qdestioks. 



(1) Write an account of the employment of explosives 

 in agriculture. 



(2) What is bovine tuberculosis? What measures have 

 been adopted in many places for its eradication? 



In several islands in the West Indies where conditions 

 are sufficiently moi.st. Para rubber is being extensively 

 planted. In dry localities Jequie Manicoba is being tried. 



Medicinal and Other Properties of the 



Papaw. — The following interesting information is taken 

 from the J'ropkal Agricullurist for February 1913. 'The 

 milky juice of the unripe fruit of the Papaw tree is admitted 

 by high medical authorities to be an efficient vermifuge, and 

 a similar property is possessed by the seeds, which have 

 a pleasant flavour resembling that of cress. The juice is also 

 a good cosmetic, which is used for the removal of freckles. 

 But the most remarkable thing connected with the Papaw tree 

 is the property possessed by the milky juice of the unripe fruit 

 of separating the fibres of ffesh and making it tender. The 

 late L. A. Bernays, who was undoubtedly a reliable authority 

 on the properties of plants and fruit.s, says, in his valuable 

 work on "The ( 'ultural Industries of Queensland," that this 

 property is not confined to the juice of the fruit, but the very 

 exhalations of the tree are said to possess it; and of this fact 

 the Brazilian butchers take advantage to make their toughe.st 

 meat saleable. This is accomplished by suspending the new- 

 ly-killed meat in the tree, or by wrapping it in the leaves. 

 So powerful is this softening action of the juice that it must 

 be used with caution, the meat will drop to pieces, which makes 

 it more unpalatable than if left in its original condition of 

 toughness. 



'Some interesting experimrnts were made some years ago 

 upon this subject at the Royal Agricultural .Museum, Berlin. 

 A portion of the juice was dissolved in three times its weight 

 of water, and this was placed with 1.5B). of quite fresh, lean 

 beef in one piece in distilled water, and boiled for five minutes. 

 Below the boiling point, the meat fell into several pieces, 

 and at the close of the experiment it had separated into 

 coarse shreds. The juice can be dried without losing its 

 effect, but its etticiency in this respect does not appear to 

 have been tested over a longer period than six months.' 



