Vol. XIV. No. 34 2. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



I ill 



has been found that holding fruit infested with the fruil fly 

 for a period ol ten days at a temperature of 32 F. destroys 

 the fruit rly in whatever stage it may be ■>■. •-. nt. It is sug 

 gested that perhaps cold storage will be accepted as a sufficient 

 means of rendering fruil such as avocadot safe for importation 

 into the I fnited States. 



BA 11 A MA S: A NNl A L BE FOR T OF THE BOA RD 

 OF AGRICULTURE, 191 ;. 



< twing to the exceptional and steady rainfall throughout 

 the Colony, and the encouragement and assistance given by 



the Board, the crops are proving themselves unusually g I. 



and the areas cultivated larger than for many years [rust. 



citri - fruit. The grape-fruit market was depressed 

 and little shipped on account "I low prices abroad. Some 

 quantities shipped by various war funds to England. 



corn. At the outbreak of the war s 77 bushels of 



seed corn were distributed to planters in the Windward 

 Islands. Kepi. its as to the crop now ripening are unanimously 

 favourable and the crop, both iii Indian and Guinea, will 

 undoubtedly be a g 1 and large one. 



COTTON, SEA ISLAND. An expert cotton planter from 

 St. Kitts having been obtained, two experiments have been 

 undertaken with the assistance and under the supervision of 

 tin- Board, One at Clarence Town, Long Island (10 acres), 

 and two at Exuma (aggregating 8| acres). Reports of the 

 former and of half of the area at Exuma arc good and 



em raging to the industry, provided the people can be 



induced to continue the cultivation in future years. The 

 pests have not been found insuperable. The crop is now 

 being reaped bul actual results are not yet obtainable. 



"\l"\s The Board having imported seed from Teiieritt'e 



for the purpose, the cultivation of this staple vegetable has 



been largch extended, and arrangements are being made to 



supply growers with crate material and facilities for shipping 



Northern market. 



PEAN1 rs, SPANISH. Save last season been imported 



and are again now being sold and distributed for the same 

 purpose. 



PEPPJERS. A beginning has been made in the growing 

 and ^hipping of these in the Out Islands that promises to 

 develop considerably now that growers have 1 learnt the 

 cultivation and found the market. 



pine-apples. The depression of the previous years still 



held good, and the erop was still smaller. For the last 

 twelve months, however, experiments in fertilizing have been 

 raned out b\ various growers in various sections with such 

 Success thai al all events a beginning in revival has taken 

 place, and it ean be confidently anticipated that the year's 

 crop will be larger and better than the one just passed. The 

 Hoard b is contracted for a quantity of slips (30,000 dozen) 

 to be distributed together with fertilizer and instructions of 

 tie- new method to reliable cultivators, not otherwise able to 

 extend their fields. 



potatoes, IRISH. (It these 95 barrels have been 

 distributed on terms ol payment on the n i] _ ■ • the erop, 



in order to enc age the industry. The effei I w seen 



by arrivals in Nassau from the Out Islands, at pr — il selling 



ir rates. 



potatoes, sweet. A stock of well recommended 

 Triumph' sweel potatoes has been imparted bj the Board 

 and distributed for propagation purposes it the 



< 'olony. 



sisal. While exports have more than held their own 

 in i|n.n lea have great!] fall i if the 



.-..ii ind the consequent stringency in the money mail 



the United Mat.-, and the l..w rate of Mexican exchange. 

 There has been no improvement in the quality of hand- 

 cleaned exported. 



tomatoes. This is a growing industry, as is shown by 

 the fact that up to January .'!l as man) boxes had 

 shipped as last season, altogi bfr (20,000 cral I - I I 



ha- assisted the cultivation by supplying seed, fertilize) 



earth), and .rate material in which to ship them, and by 



wise fostering the export by attending to tin- shipments from 



the Out Islands. A new foreign buyer In- entered tl>e 

 market who is doing the packing in Nassau, ami shipping 

 partly by S.S. 'Miami', thus breaking down the drawback oi 

 only fortnightly communication hitherto existing. 



vegetables generally. By the importation and sale 

 of various kinds of s Is, both in New Providence and the 



• >ut Islands, aided by the favourable rains, the growing of 



vegetables has been considerably increased, ami is educating 



i In- people in their consumption as food. 



LGRICULTURAL EDUCATION. In conjunction with the 

 Hoard of Education, elementary Agriculture has been taught 

 in the schools, text-books, seeds and tools have been supplied 

 by this Hoard and out of a total of sixty one school- 



and Grant-in-aid) fifty-one are now so engaged, and are 

 displaying interest on the part both of pupils and teachers. 



stock, sheep. Fr the Southdown ram imported at the 



end of last year (1913) and thirty ewes purchased here, I .venty- 

 foiir out of a total of thirty one lambs are now at the Botanic 

 Station. The starting of this venture was not made at the 

 right time of the year to give better results, which how- 

 ever of late months have greatly improved. Some of the 

 young stock are now ready for distribution through the ) \\ 

 Islands. 



pigs. Of those contracted for (seven) four arrived here 

 in April but so small that breeding could not then be under- 

 taken; with the exception of one that died, three are now 

 in a state to breed, and the other three it is hoped to be able 

 to get here in the immediate future, communication this 

 winter having ceased with Jamaica. The boar is offered for 

 service on the open market. 



PRODI CE EXCHANGE. This was carried . .11 last spring 

 and proved itself useful in the maintaining of prices to 

 growers of such articles as onions, Irish potatoes, corn, etc. 

 .Much of the latter the Hoard was able to distribute at the 

 time of the outbreak of the war. There is only apparently 

 a small field for this undertaking, but the moral effect if 



keeping prices firmer, by the Out Island farmer not having 



to make immediate sale in order to return home, is good. 



The expenditure of the Hoard to January 31, is 

 £685 1 6s. Id., and the receipts (from fruit and. si). ■ ,i 

 etc ) £67 7s. 5d. 



The Loss of Fertilizers in Tropical Soils. 

 In Bulletin Xo 1. (Scientific Series) ol the Department of 



Agriculture, .Mauritius, which deals with the absorptive 

 power of soils, the Director summarizes the results ..!> | 



by the writer of the paper | \|. I', de Soma) 1, as lob , . 



'A study of the absorbing powers oi Mauritius soils for 

 salts used as fertilizers has been the Subjecl ol careful 

 investigation by M de Sornay. The data given are the 



result of work carried out mainly during l'.lll', and 

 considerable interest to agriculturists in the Colony. 



'The results obtained indicate that the loss of 



fertilizing elements, even iftei cyclonic downpours, is not 

 siderable, if washing of soil does not actually take 



p] e e 



