ToL. VIII. Xo. 197. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



365 



STUDENTS' CORNER. 



AGRICULTURAL EXAMINATIONS. 



In accordance with the statement in the last number of 

 -the A'ji-icullimt! ^''en•s, further particulars are given in this 

 issue in regard to the recent Preliminary Examination, in 

 connexion with the scheme of Reading Courses established 

 by the Imperial Depaitment of Agriculture, which was held 

 on October 11 in Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, 

 St. Kilts, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent. The results of the e.\-am- 

 ination were given in the number of the Aijru-idfural Xews 

 to which reference has been made already. 



The number of questions set in the written part of the 

 examination wa-^ thirteen, and of these not more than nine were 

 to be attempted by the candidates. They were as follows : — 



I. De.scribe the structure of a bean and a grain of corn 



(maize). ... . , 



•2. Give an account of the germination ot two ot the 

 following seeds : —Corn (maize), Pigeon Pea, Bonavist bean, 

 •Onion, Guinea Corn, Castor, Cotton. When sowing seeds 

 such as beans, corn or onions, should you iH'ass the earth 

 firmly round the seeds, or leave it loose. Give the reasons 

 for your answer. 



3. Mention three crops grown from seed and three from 

 cuttings. What particular advantages result from the use 



-of cuttings? 



4. Describe carefully how you would bud or graft one 

 of the following plants :— Orange, JIango, Cacao. What is 

 the object of budding or grafting ? 



5. What results are sought in (a) deep jiloughing, 

 (b) surface tillage* When should these operations be per- 

 formed in connexion with such a crop as corn (maize) ? 



6. What is farmyard or pen manure ? What precautions 

 should be taken in preserving this material before it is used I 



7. Mention two artificial (or chemical) manures, and 

 give their origin or mode of preparation. State whether they 

 are used for c°ops in your neighbourhood, and if so, why ? 



8. In what ways are weeds harmful to field crops I 



9. Describe the functions of a leaf. 



10. Describe the means (or structure) by which certain 

 plants are protected from excessive loss of w^f ter. Mention 



.as examples at least two cases, and not more than three 



II. What do you understand by rotation of crops, and 

 what are the advantages from this practice ? 



12. Describe the difference between the stomach of the 

 horse and that of the ox. What bearing has this on the 

 feeding of these animals 1 



13. State what element contained in the air is always 

 necessary to animals, and describe the process by means of 

 which they are aV)le to procure and make use of ic. 



Generally speaking, the questions were answered fairly 

 well, with the exception of numbers 8, 10, 11, 12 and 13. 

 Taking them in order, the first question brought forward 

 some good answers, but illustrative diagrams were weak or, 

 most generally, absent; in fact, this remark may be made in 



■ connexion with all the questions in which such illustrations 

 would have been useful. Several good answers to the .second 

 and third questions were given, but, in regard to the former 

 of these, there seemed to be a good deal of uncertainty as to 

 the question of pressing earth upon sown seeds, and in the 

 latter in connexion with the particular advantages that result 

 from the u.'se of cuttings. It should be remembered that the 

 latter, in addition to their giving a plant which is true to 

 type, in most cases, often yield plants which reach maturity 

 comparatively early, and that they sometimes form the only 



-convenient means of propagation. Weakness was often 



shown in the latter parts of the sixth and seventh questions; 

 some candidates paid attention to the loss of plant food 

 substances from manure by their being given oft" into the air, 

 and did not remember that they may be washed out of the 

 manure, while others paid attention to this circumstance and 

 took no r.otice of the other. 



In dealing with the question of the manures used in the 

 candidate's district, the fact of the employment of these was 

 generally known, but this was not the case in regard to the 

 reasons why such manures are used. When making observa- 

 tions as to different facts, do not forget to provide yourself 

 with answ-ers to the question 'why?', or at least to the 

 question ' how V. The eighth (jiiestion involves, in addi- 

 tion to the consideration ot the interference of weeds 

 with the supplies of air, light, water and food to culti- 

 vated plants, that of their eS"ect in forming cover, and 

 possibly food, for pests. Leaves (question 9) often have 

 special functions, in addition to the three chief and most 

 general ones. Examine as many leaves, leafy structures, 

 and structures borne where you would expect to find leaves, 

 as you can, with a view to discovering any special use or 

 uses in each case. In question 10, the various means by 

 which certain plants are protected from excessive loss of 

 water were not generally known, and the descriptions of 

 stomata given were feeble. The rotation of crops (question 

 1 1 ) was sometimes confused with the employment of catch 

 crops; the more obvious advantages of rotation were appre- 

 ciated fairly generally, but those which consist in the facts 

 that such a method entails the raising of plants with diti'erenfc 

 root systems and that it causes the soil to gain the benefit of 

 several different kinds of cultivation, as well as the circum- 

 stance that it often simplifies the matter of employment of 

 labour, were generally ignored. Question 12 provided 

 a good opportunity for neat sketches, but advantage of this 

 was not usually taken. The fact that the lining of the 

 horse's stomach is divided into two very distinct portions, of 

 which the one on the left is merely an extension of the lining 

 of the gullet, while the one on the right differs from the former 

 by the fact that it is ca[iable of secreting digestive juices, 

 did not appear to be known. In answering the second i)art 

 of question 13, most of the candidates did not realize that 

 they should have included a general description of the 

 circulatory system; for the provision of oxygen to the blood 

 is only one of the stages in the transfer of that element from 

 the air to the tissues. 



The 'Students' Corner' has now appeared in the A;i)-i- 

 cnltural N'oos, without intermission, for a year; that is since 

 the issue of October 31, 1908 (Vol. VII, No. 170). It there- 

 fore now contains, in its complete form, hints connected with 

 every stage in the growth of the plants which yield the chief 

 crops of The AVest Indies, and will thus be found to be full 

 of useful and suggestive matter for those who may wish at 

 any time to undertake a revision of the work, as well as. -for 

 those who are passing through the preliminary stage of 

 the Reading Courses. It is not intended, however, to 

 cease to devote part of every issue of the Aiiricultiind Xetim 

 to the more immediate interests of agricultural students, and 

 the ' Students' Corner ' will therefore continue to appear in 

 every number. The (continuation will, of course, entail 

 a certain amount of repetition, but this will not be a disad- 

 vantage, as most agricultural matters are capable of treatment 

 from several different siandpoints, and an opportunity will 

 be afi'orded for giving more attention (while still keeping the 

 interests of the Preliminary Student in mind) to the require- 

 ments of those who are preparing for the Intermediate and 

 Final Examinations. 



