Vol. XV. No. 372. 



THE AGKICLFLTUKAL NKVyg. 



247 



agricultural instructors for visiting the cultivation.s and 

 advising in connexion therewith. Returning to the subject 

 of the factory, this may be regarded as a .sound business 

 investment, while it has several indirect effects of great value 

 in that it encourages the development of tlie industr}", and is 

 of importance as a model for the estates. The factory is 

 being enlarged to double its previous capacity. 



Concerning coco-nuts, iJr. Watts saw considerable pos- 

 sibilities, but there is great need for care and manuring in 

 the early stages. The coco-nut is a plant without branching 

 habits, and a great deal depends upon making conditions of 

 growth favourable during its development from the seedling 

 to maturity. The same care is not so vital in the case of 

 branching crops like limes and cacao. There are many 

 places around the coa.st of St. Lucia, and also some 

 inland areas very suitable for coco-nut cultivation. 



The last subject dealt with in this address was the 

 activities at the Government estate. Reunion, where there 

 exists a Land Settlement and an Agricultural Station. 

 Three years ago Reunion estate was taken over by the 

 Government in practically a derelict condition, but now by 

 pro])er management it is in a very satisfactory state indeed. 

 Its value lies in several directions. It has hel]jed in the 

 development of a district; it has led to the inculcation of 

 sound methods; it has increased the demand for land by the 

 peasants; and has led to varied improvements. The develop- 

 ment of Reunion has infu.sed a healthy tone into the lives of 

 the peasantry, and has been a sound investment from a strict- 

 ly commercial point of view. It has given a new district to 

 St. Lucia. The Land Settlement in particular has been a 

 very great success; thirty-six luts have already been .sold, 

 and the keenness to acquire more land amongst the occupiers 

 exerts a useful stimulus to make occupiers pay up their 

 money in good time. The Agricultural Station itself is of 

 great practical value even from the point of view of the 

 plants raised for distribution; but this by no means com- 

 prises all the useful work done. In connexion with land 

 ■settlement and the peasants, I»r. Watts referred to the 

 co-f perative credit society movement. Societies have been 

 formed in Soufriere, Choiseul, Micoud. and 1 )ennery, and it 

 would appear that this ettort should develop and spread. 



In conclusion. Dr. Watts drew attention to and emphasized 

 the importance of what he termed the community eft'ort. 

 There is ample evidence of individual activity in pressing 

 forward agricultural developments in St. Lucia, but it is 

 quite pos.sible for individual efforts to manifest themselves in 

 diverse and sometimes even in opposing directions. For 

 a colony to make prf)gress in the best and most economical 

 manner it is necessary to develoj) common aims, and to create 

 bocds of thought on community lines: this may well be the 

 function of such bodies as the -Vgricultural and C'ommercial 

 Society. Frequent meetings to deliberate concerning matters 

 which are of general welfare will tend to keep alive those 

 interests which the members ot the conmiunity should share 

 in commoD; while stimulating individual efforts, this will 

 direct them to common ends frir the general welfare. 



Soundness of ideas in this connexion will greatly facili- 

 tate the work of the Government and of the Agricultural 

 1 )epartment, and will lead to the provision of proper facilities 

 for doing the work required, just demands concerning the 

 work to be done, and proper and critical appreciation of what 

 is effected. 



THE SOIL-BALANCE OF HUMUS AND 



WATER. 



Tho toUowinn extract, containing instructive con- 

 siderations applicable to West Indian conditions, is 

 taken from an address on cultivation and cover crops, 

 published in tlie Monthly Bulletin of State Commis- 

 sion of Horticulture, of California, for May 1916 : — ■ 



Cultivation, meaning the stirring of a soil to accom- 

 plish aeration and to prevent evaporation, is a practice 

 which has been in vogue among agriculturists .since the 

 beginning of agriculture. LTnder the semi-arid conditions of 

 the south-west, cultivation has assumed a more importaat 

 role than in most of the sections of this country. Water 

 ha.s, in reality, been the limiting factor with most of the 

 cultivated land. Thus certain cultivation was necessary to 

 conserve this valuable element. Investigations carried on 

 some little time ago showed that cultivations to a depth of 

 4 to 6 inches materially lessened the evaporation of soil 

 moisture, and in this regard were much superior to shallow 

 cultivation, such as is adapted to eastern humid conditions. 



Cultivation, in that it aerates the soil, tends to increase 

 the oxidation of organic material. The high temperatures 

 met with during the summer months in this Stai;e also make 

 for the increase in the oxidation process. Thus, in the 

 conservation of water the excessive cultivation has caused 

 a considerable loss of organic material in many of our soils. 

 In fact, there are many who believe that the loss of organic 

 material by such frequent cultivation, is more serious than 

 the loss of water caused by systems employing less frequent 

 cultivations. As with all things, we usually find a happy 

 medium, which is better than going to either extreme. Too 

 frequent cultivation is extremely exhaustive of organic 

 material; too infrequent is just as exhaustive of the irriga- 

 tion water. The type of soil, the location and the crop will 

 all have a bearing on the frequence and depth of cultivation. 

 In the heavier types of soil, cultivations are usually more 

 frequent, while the lighter .soils are frequently well pro- 

 tected from evaporation by a single cultivation after each 

 irrigation. 



Cattle Spraying in Antigua.— A correspondent 



in Antigua writes to say lliat the spraying of cattle has now 

 become general in that island. It can be safely said that 90 

 per cent, of the estates employ this treatment regularly. 

 Peasant proprietors, owning one or two head of cattle, have 

 not yet started to use it, but the.se small stock-owners are 

 better able to control ticks by close personal attention to 

 their animals. 



The regular use of a dip for spraying is not only found 

 to keep the cattle free from ticks, lice, etc., but it is also 

 found to be a reliable preventive against various diseases 

 known as skin disease, mange, etc. ^loreover, as a result of 

 spraying, the animals improve in general physical condition, 

 are better able to work, and they increase in value. 



The smaller estates use the ordinary bucket pump for 

 .spraying purposes, but a regular dipping tank for the cost 

 of which Messrs. Cooper A- Nephews cont;ributed £"2.5, has 

 been built on one large estate, and has been found to be 

 very successful. The cattle readily become accustomed to walk- 

 ing through the tanks, and the process gives the minimum 

 of trouble to all concerned. 



Another large group of estates has a large sprayirTg 

 machine which has been very successfully used for some 

 years now, and another large property proposes to instal 

 a similar spraying machine in the near future. 



