402 



THE AGEICULTUEAL NEWS. 



December f19, 1914. 



THE CULTIVATION OF VANILLA. 



In the Agricultural Ntivs, Vol. XI, p. 148, there 

 appeared an article on the curing of vanilla. Since then 

 from time to time, enqniries haye been made of the Imperial 

 Department as to the cultivation of the plant. In view of 

 this, and also becau.se vanilla seems to be a plant suitable for 

 growing in some of these islands, the following notes on its 

 culture may be of interest. 



The vanilla of commerce is the cured fruit — known as 

 bean — of a climbing orchid, tw'o species of which are chiefly 

 used in cultivation for the production of this spice — Vanilla 

 planifolia and 1'. poinpona, both being natives of the tropic 

 regions of ilexico, Central America, and the northern parts 

 of South America. It has been most .successfully cultivated 

 as an exotic in the tropic islands of the Seychelles, Keunion, 

 Java, Tahiti, the Fiji Islands, and the West Indies. In 

 Queensland also there are flourishing plantations. 



The two species resemble each other closely. The leaves, 

 however, of Vanilla pompona are larger than those of 

 F. planijolvi, while the pods are thicker and more fleshy, but 

 they do not fetch as high a price. 



Vanilla requires a tropical climate, hot and moist, with 

 frequent but not excessive rains. It cannot stand drought 

 or strong sea winds. 



The soil which is necessary for the successful cultivation 

 of vanilla is a light one \\\t)x abundance of humus, and good 

 drainage. Stift clay soils or water-logged ground must be 

 avoided. Mr. A. Mc.Farlane, in an essay on vanilla, published 

 in the Trinidad Bidletin, Vol. V, p. 465, recommends as an 

 ideal site for a vanilla plantation the sloping sides of a valley. 

 The natural drainage is an advantage. 



In his book S2nces, Mr. Henry X. Ridley .suggests 

 a sloping hillside covered with woods, which oi course must 

 be suitably thinned out to allow of sufficient light during the 

 flowering and fruiting season.?. In newly cleared ground, 

 which is not furnished with trees suitable for the support of 

 the vines, support trees must be planted, or the system of 

 cultivation on trelli.ses must be adopted. Whichever plan is 

 follovFed, the clearing should never be effected by fire. All 

 trees and branches should be cut into pieces, and left to rot 

 on the ground as plant food fof the vanilla vines. 



Many kinds of trees are used for supports. The best 

 kind is one which will grow from 'cuttings', that is to say 

 posts, from .3 to S inches in diameter, and 7 or 8 feet 

 long. It should Ije a moderate grower which does 

 not give too dense a shade. Mr. ^McFarlane suggests as 

 good supports, BoMliinia .sp. ; the anatto (Bira orelland); or 

 the candle nut {Aleurites triloba). Jatropha Curcas, known 

 in the West Indies as physic hut, is also recommended by 

 some authorities for the purpo.se. According to the author 

 of an article in L' Ayriculture Pratique des Pays Chavds, 

 1910, Part II, some trees, if used as supports, become very 

 hurtful to the vanilla which clings to them. He considers 

 that att species of the orders Artocarpeae, such as all figs and 

 breadfruit, and Anacardaceae, such as mangoes and cashews, 

 are poisonous to the vanilla, the former because of their 

 milky sap, which, he says, is injurious to the clinging, and 

 even to the subterranean roots of the vanilla vine; and the 

 latter, because they are usually infested with the black blight, 

 which quickly attacks and weakens the vanilla attached to 

 the trees. He also dislikes for the purpose, Alhizzia Lebhek, 

 a common tree in the West Indies. Instead of living trees, 

 posts with bars across the top are used in some plantations. 

 McFarlane, in the essay referred to above, dislikes this 

 method, for the reason that when the posts and cross bars 

 rot, as they will do, too much labour is entailed in replacing 

 them, with too much risk too to the supported vine. The 



trunks of tree ferns hUve been found in the West Indies t'j be 

 well adapted for supports, as they are practically indestructible, 

 and at the same time afford excellent attachment for the 

 aerial roots or tendrils of the vanilla. This attacliment, 

 in case of the supports having too smooth a surface, 

 can be assisted by wrapping dry banana leaves, or 

 other suitable fibrous material, around the support, secur- 

 ing them with the necessary ties. The supports, of 

 whatever kind, .should not be too close; from 8 to 9 

 feet apart is recommended. In the case of the ground 

 . being cleared of trees and exposed to the full light of 

 the sun, banana plants have been beneficially employed as 

 shade for the young vanilla, until the trees on which it is 

 intended that it should climb have attained sufficient growth 

 to provide the necessary shade. If the site selected be 

 exposed to strong winds, it is recommended that a hedge of 

 some quick growing shrub, such as the red hibiscus, be grown 

 as a wind screen. Important points to keep in mind are 

 that the vanilla requires (1) partial but not too heavy shade, 

 and (2) protection from injury by strong breezes, because 

 vanilla is naturally a forest plant. 



Vanilla is practically always propagated by cuttings. 

 Where <3nly a limited amount of vines is to be had, they 

 may be cut into pieces of about 1 foot in length, and 

 for such short cuttings it is preferable to plant them 

 first in a nur.sery bed composed of decayed leaves and 

 leaf mould. By keeping this well watered and shaded, the 

 young plants will have made good roots in a couple of 

 months, and may then be removed to the plantation. Much 

 longer cuttings, however, are generally used, if obtainable, 

 from 4 to 12 feet ex'fen in length. McFarlane says that such 

 long cuttings will be^'in to bear a few beans in about eighteen 

 months after planting. In any case the method of planting 

 is the same. About a foot from the post a slanting hole is 

 made a couple of inches in depth. Into this the end of the 

 cutting is inserted, and the soil pressed tightly around it. 

 The vine is then laid flat on the ground from the hole to the 

 post, and the rest of; it tied up on to the post. The part on 

 the ground should bp, a length of at least two or three joints. 

 This should be thickly covered with dead and rotten leaves, 

 and one or two stones laid atop to keep the vine and its 

 covering in place. Though the cutting will send out roots 

 from the cut end, the strongest roots will be produced at the 

 joints. The best time to plant is in rainy weather. The 

 plants must be kept well watered until growth starts. 



The vanilla is essentially a surface feeder, the roots 

 spreading between the humus and the underlying soil. 

 On this account it is unnecessary to dig or plough the ground. 

 But it is very essential that the plants be kept supplied with 

 a sufficient amount of decaying vegetable matter. Ai'tificial 

 manures should not be used, nor animal manure, except in 

 small cjuantities, well rotted, and mixed with leaf mould. 



As regards weeding, McFarlane is opposed to it. He 

 believes that it is better to have the ground of the plantation 

 well covered with weeds of various kinds. These act as 

 a mulch for the surface feeding roots of the vaniUa, and the 

 deeper rooted varieties bring up food from the deeper layers 

 of the soil, which the vanilla roots cannot reach, converting 

 it into food, in the shape of fallen leaves, etc., thus constantly 

 manuring the plant. Among plants which he thinks are 

 specially beneficial as surface protectors are species of Trade- 

 scantia, common in the West Indies. The French writer above 

 referred to recommends the same thing, but he considers that 

 two species of Oxalis, one of which (0. corniculata) is also 

 common in some of these islands, are the most useful jjlants 

 for the purpose. Of course, if there are climbers among the 

 weeds, which will strangle the plants, or strong growing 



