Vol. VIII. Xo. 187. 



THE AGKICULTURAL NEWS. 



■21)5 



STUDENTS' CORNER. 



JUNE. 



Last Period. 

 Seasonal Notes. 



Now that the plant canes are mostly reaped, attention 

 turns to the fields to be kept for ratoons, and the questions 

 of the cultivation and manuring of these fields come up for 

 ■ consideration. What tillage should such fields have and 

 ■what manures, in what form, and when and how applied i 

 A careful comparison of the condition of the soil under 

 trash, and that exposed to the sun and entirely undis- 

 turbed will suggest to the mind the course to be followed. Is 

 the soil moist and friable, or dry and hard ? If in addition, 

 a small area, say about four rows wide and ten holes long, is 

 taken for an experiment as follows, new ideas may arise : 

 Thoroughly pulverize the surface soil on this plot to a depth 

 of 3 inches, not more, and work as close to the old stumjis 

 as you can conveniently. Kepeat this tillage twice at intervals 

 of a week each time, and then compare the loiver depths of 

 soil with the conditions found under the trash and in the 

 open field where the soil had not been tilled since the canes 

 were cut. 



Consider carefully and try to ex|ilain the reasons for 

 4hese conditions, and from your conclusions decide how 

 ratoons should be tilled. How do these methods conii)are 

 •with the practice of deep forking, and deep plowing ( 



With the advent of favourable rains cotton planting will 

 shortly be in progress. The process of the disinfection of 

 seed should be well understood, as well as the reasons why 

 this should be done even when the seed is to be planted on 

 the same estate where it was grown. 



Students should learn what is tlie action of corrosive 

 sublimate, and why it is used for this purpose. What strength 

 solution is used, and what amounts of material are used to 

 make the required strength. It should also be noted that in 

 general, the most successful cotton growers destroy all old 

 cotton plants in the fields and wild cotton near the fields, 

 before beginning to plant the new crop. Why is this done ? 



In lime cultivations, careful observations should be 

 made on scale insects, and their natural enemies, especially 

 the beneficial fungi, accounts of which have appeared in recent 

 numbers of the Ai/ricultural Se^vs, and in this present one 



<P- 202). 



Careful consideration should be given to the soil condi- 

 tions favourable to cacao and nutmegs. Do these crops both 

 make their best developments under similar soil conditions '! 

 If not, what tlifterences arc there in the adaptability (if these 

 plants to the soil in which they are grown t 



Questions for Candidates. 



PRBLIMlN.iRY OUESTIi iNS. 



(1) Why is the ;e ration of the soil neecesary to good 

 plant growth '. State how drainage aids ;eration. 



(2) What is meant by cross-fertilization, and what is 

 the object of the operation i 



{i) What are the benefits to be derived *rom burning 

 or burying the old cotton plants when the ciop is over, and 

 what are the risks if this is not done 



INTERMEDIATE QTESTIONS. 



(1) Are any parasites known to attack the moth borer 

 of the sugar-cane in the West Indies '. If so, what are they, 

 and how do they act ? 



(2) How does farmyard manure benefit the soil '(■ 



(3) Are stones of any value to a soil ? If so, in what 

 way are they valuable 1 



Ifc is proposed to hold an examination about 

 October next, in connexion with the Reading courses 

 for overseers. Candidates are advised to bear this in 

 mind. Notice as to the exact date will appear later. 



AGRICULTURAL NOTES. 



St. Kitt's-Nevis. 



In connexion with his visits to St. Kitt's an<I 

 Nevis, Mr. Teiiipany, Acting Superintendent of Agri- 

 culture for the Leeward Islands, in a letter to the 

 Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture, makes some 

 observations of general interest on agricultural condi- 

 tions in the islands, from which the following notes 

 are taken : — 



The Indian ram goat Piajah, which belongs to the Depart- 

 ment, was then at the experiment station. Its condition and 

 general health were excellent. 



The past cotton crop in Nevis was a poor one, as was 

 the case in other West Indian islands, though the position 

 was better than was at first anticipated. The yield all round 

 was expected to be about 100 ft. of lint to the acre. Accord- 

 ing to Mr. !Maloney's estimate, the total area in !Nevis under 

 cotton for the coming crop will be about 1,000 acres. 



The cacao on all the estates visited seemed to be in 

 a healthy and satisfactory condition, and at Maddens in Nevi.^ 

 many of the older trees were blossoming well. 



The vanilla, both at Maddens estate, Nevis, and 

 Molineux estate, St. Kitt's, was doing well. It was planted 

 along the sides of the cacao areas, the young vines being 

 trained on posts wrapped in banana trash. 



The lime cultivation in Nevis was very satisfactory, 

 especially on the lower grounds, where the trees were doing 

 well with but moderate attention. In St. Kitt's, however, 

 one estate in particular showed trees of an unhealthy 

 appearance ; they were attacked by scale insects and 

 black blight, lllack blight was also conspicuous on man- 

 gos and other trees in Nevis. The cocoa-nut cultivation 

 at Pinneys estate was making satisfactory progress, and the 

 older trees presented a promising appearance. 



A small area of sugar-canes at Molineux estate had 

 been cultivated with implements according to the Louisiana 

 system, as it is called. A field of B. 208 cultivated in this- 

 way presented a very healthy appearance, in contrast to the 

 surrounding fields planted according to the method usually 

 employed in St. Kitt's. The plants, although put in some 

 weeks later than the neighbouring estate canes^ had made 

 far better growth, were considerably higher, showed a better 

 stand, and withstood the dry weather lietter. The ett'ect was 

 most striking, and was visible from a considerable distance. 



The broom corn machine was in Nevis, but had not 

 been worked, as apparently its method for working was not 

 quite clear. INIr. Tempany explained the -working of the 

 machine, and it was expected that no further difficulties 

 would arise. 



At Maddens a considerable area on the mountain.s 

 side was planted in Guinea grass, which was making 

 good growth des[iite the dry weather, and was expected 

 to give satisfactory returns in a comparatively short time. 



