188 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



JijiK 7, 1913. 



An editorial in Tropical Life for A^iril 1913, cnlls 

 attention to the scarcity in the supply of soya beans. It 

 would appear that thi.< is partly the outcome of Eastern and 

 Wf,-;tern competition. A large supply is reciuired by 

 Manchuria which has been met from the same sources as 

 tho.se on which the industry in (Jieat Britain is dependent. 

 It is suggested in the article that strenuous ett'oi t should be 

 made in Rritish colonies to extend the cultivation of soya, 

 beans. 



GLEANINGS. 



One of the latest publications of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture is a large scale map showing the 

 <jUarantine for Te.xas fever of cattle in that country. The 

 publication should be useful to tho.se who anticipate either 

 imjKTticgor exporting animals to this part of North America. 



The exports from Sicily of citrate of lime for the 

 months I'ecember 1912, January and February 1913 were, 

 xo the United Kingdom 3.54, -509 kilos., to the I'nited 

 States 527,760, to France 275,853, to the Netherlands 

 202,512, to Austria 70,429, to Germany 9,S21. (From 

 T)if Heard of Trade Journal, May 1913.) 



It is stated in the Ji' ■ieiv of Applied Ktitomolo'jy for 

 .\pril 1913, that a useful method for exterminating Hie.s is 

 to expose a mixture of formalin, milk and water in shallov/ 

 ^jjate.s, or what is better still, to sprinkle the mixture about 

 4 room in tiny drops of {inch to 1 inch in diameter. In 

 -his state the Hy readily drinks it. The method lia."» been 

 ised with sireat succp.ss in India. 



The reaping of the c^ne crop in St. Kitt.s is being 

 rapidly carried on in the Kasseterre di.strict. The Central 

 Factory results thi.-* year are very satisfactory, the condition 

 of the canes being superior to that of last season The 

 Agricultural .Superintendent reports an average yield of 

 abciut IS tons per acre. The young pane crop is well 

 advanced and healthy. 



A communicalioii received from the Agricultural 

 Instructor, Nevi.s, states that the cane crop in that island 

 is now almost reaped. The returns continue to be very 

 poor, and the young canes throughout the island are sutler- 

 ing from want of rain. The cotton lands are nearly 

 all prepared, and a few acres were planted towards the end 

 of April, but these have all died from the ertVcl> of drought 



Manganese sulphate ha.-- on some occasions been found 

 useful :is a fertilizer. Appli'.;ations at the rate of about 

 100 ll'. to the acre have been found to stinutlate the growth 

 of rice. The useful effect of manganese on plant growth is 

 due most probably to its o.vidizing activity, and its inHuence 

 ai)on the oxidizing power of plants, micro-organisms and 

 soil. (From Cinidar No. 75, Kurpau of Soil.*, United 

 i^tatps r>ppartment of Agriculture.) 



According to information received from the Curator of 

 the Botanic Station, Uominica, the green lime trade with 

 that Presidency during April was very active. I'rices ranged 

 up to the abnormally high figure of 25s per barrel, unpacked 

 in Roseau. Applications have been received at the Agricul- 

 tural Department fi.r over 35,000 lime plants in response tc- 

 an offer of 25,(iO(l. In regard to cacao, a consideral>lft 

 amount oi die-hack is reported, which is believed to be the 

 indirect effect of the high winds experienced since Christmiis. 



It is predicted in Diploimitic and Consular Ht'j)orf 

 No. 5047 — Annual Series, that the competition of Hawaii will 

 probably be felt in the West Indies, particularly as regards 

 pineapples, bananas and other fruits, coffee, tobacco, cotton, 

 sisal fibre and rubber. An exceptional ecnnomic condition 

 obtains in Hawaii , in connexion with the fact that the 

 population is so small that an unusually large percentage of 

 directly consumable produce is alile to he exported. Hawaii 

 also posses.ses the advantage of free commercial entry into the- 

 United States. 



The Annual lieport of the Inspector of Schools oa 

 Elementary Education in Trinidad, for the year 19111:;, 

 contains interesting remarks on the teaching of agriculture 

 and nature study. The suspension of local .school garden 

 shows appears to have had a dispiriting etfect on teachers, 

 and energies have been relaxed in regard to outdoor practical 

 work. C>n the other hand, the theoretical studies appear to 

 be very satisfactnry, and an encouraging sign is the largely 

 increased interest that is being taken in collecting specimens 

 for the .school museums. 



The effect ot earthwurni> on ilu- Icrlility of the soil is 

 referred to in the K.riieriiueiil Situian Uaurd (Vol, .X.WII, 

 No. G). It is stated in this that investigations cirried on by 

 the British Government in the valley of the White Nile ia 

 the Sudan, indicate that the great fi-rtility of the soil in this 

 valley is largely due U< the work of earthworms. Worm 

 castings formed iluring a period of six months weighed 

 239,580 tti. per acre. (Ither observations in I'pper Egypt 

 indicate that the castings tliert- amounted to 58,785 j>. 

 during the same si.\ months 



Information has recently been received from the Cam- 

 bridge University Press to the eflect that there will be pub- 

 lished shortly a book entitled llubber and Rubber Planting, 

 by Dr. II II. Lock, Assistant Director of Agriculture, Ceylon. 

 It deals with the history of the use and cultivation of rubber, 

 its botanical sources, the physiology of rubber and latex, the 

 diseases, chemistry and manufacture of rubber, and with 

 rubber planting. The work is likely tf> appeal to manu- 

 facturers, (ilanters, botanists and botanical students, and to 

 the general public interested in rubber. 



