Vol. XI. No. 2-5.5. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



45 



STUDENTS' CORNER, 



AGRICULTURAL EXAMINATIONS. 



The following is the continuation of the questions set 

 in the recent examination.s, held in connexion with the 

 Courses of Heading of the 1 )epartnient, the first having ap- 

 peared in the last number of the jUjticultwal News. They 

 will be completed in the next number of this journal. 



IXTERMEDIATK Ex AMI.N.\TIOX. — (Coiuluded.) 

 .SPECIAL CROP SlIUECTs. — {Continued.) 

 Cacao. 

 (1) Give an account of the [irecautions to be taken in 

 connection with the pruning of cacao trees. (2) Write 

 a description of the disease known as the blacjt rot of cacao 

 pods (3) What arrangements would you make on an estate 

 ■ for grafting cacao, and at what time of the year is it best for 

 this to be done? (4) Give particulars of a method of drain- 

 ing cacao land, under conditions with which you are familiar. 



(5) Provide a list of insect pests of cacao that you have obser- 

 ved, and supply a description of the life history of any one of 

 them. (6) Describe the proper treatment of young cacao 

 plants, in a nursery. (7) To what processes are cacao " beans ' 

 subjected after removal from the ' pods ' and what are the 

 reasons for the various stages of these processes? (8) Give 

 an account of any good system for the manuring of cacao. 



Limes. , 



(1) Write an account of methods that arer suggested for 

 the control iii scale insects on lime trees. (2) Describe the 

 manner in which lime plants are raised from seed. (3) Give 

 .shortly your experience of any method of lime-crushing that 

 you have seen employed. (4) How is concentrated lime juice 

 manufactured, and how is the proper degree of concentration 

 ascertained ? (.5) State any precautions that should be obser- 

 ved in the harvesting of limes for shipment. (6) Give an 

 account of any good system of manuring lime trees. (7) Write 

 a description of a. method of laying out a lime planta- 

 tion. (8) Give particulars of the more general properties of 

 either essential oil of limes or citrate of lime, stating the use 

 in commerce of the one with which you deal. •• 



Cotton. 

 (1) Make an examination of the sample of seed cotton 

 provided, and express the results of the examination in 

 tabular form. (2) Write a general account o^ any manurial 

 experiments with cotton with which you may be accjuainted, 

 stating broadly their results. (3) Give particulars of the 

 methods of control that are adopted for leaf-blister mite. 

 (4) State the purposes for which the cotton seed produced 

 on estates may be utilized. (5) Give an account of a method 

 of cotton cultivation with which you have jji^d experience. 



(6) Write a description of two fungus disease.*! "of cotton that 

 you have observed. (7) Describe an example of the case of 

 the control of one insect by another which preys upon it, the 

 pest in this instance being one found on cottgi;i. (8) Discuss 



the importance of the removal and destruction of old cotton 

 bushes, at the proper time. 



Provision Crops. 



(1) Give an account with any experiment with a provi- 

 sion crop that you have observed, or of which you have 

 studied the description, stating it.s object and apparent results. 



(2) Write a description of the life-history of an insect pest 

 of the sweet potato, suggesting measures for its control; 



(3) Give particulars concerning the planting, cultivation. and 

 harvesting of a field of eddoes. (4) Describe the yam plant, 

 and give particulars of what you consider to be the best 

 method of cultivation for yams. (5) Supply an account of 

 any fungus disease of mai/.e, and indicate the precautions 

 that should be taken in order to prevent its spread. (G) State 

 the best method of raising onions, under conditions with 

 which jou are familiar. (7) How would you conduct corn 

 selection on an estate, in order to obtain an improved product? 

 (8) What are the chief uses of provision crops, on an estate? 



Final Examination, 

 oeneral subjects. 



A. PRODUCTION OF PLANTS. (1) Give a full account of 

 the manurial and cultural treatmeat required previous to, 

 and during, the growing of any crop with which you are 

 familiar, stating the reasons for the procedure at the dirterent 

 stages. (2) Taking any economic plant with which you 

 have had practical experience, discu.ss the means by which it 

 may be protected, as far as possible, from the introduction 

 and spread of insect pests, under estate condition.'^. (3) Write 

 an account of the life-history of a plant that is of com- 

 mercial importance, describing it carefully at the dift'erent 

 periods of growth. 



B. PP.ODCCTION OF ANi.MALs. (1) Give particulars as 

 to the feeding of any estate animal, under all the eondiiion.s 

 of life and use to which it is ordinarily subjected. (2) Write 

 an account of the means that you consider to be suited 

 best for the improvement of working stock, in j'our district. 

 (3) Give an account of any good type of working animal with 

 which you have had [iractical experience. 



c. coxsTP.uiTloN ox ESTATES. Give a description, with 

 simj/le drawing.^, of the interior arrangements of any building 

 employed directly for agricultural production on an estate. 

 (2) What information can you give concerning methods for 

 the preservation of the timber in wooden buildings and posts, 

 under ordinary conditions in the West Indies. (3) Write an 

 account of any recent improvement, of which you po.ssess 

 direct knowledge, in .'egard to machinery, employed in con- 

 nexion with agricultural production. 



D. ECONOJiics OF PLANTING. (1) Provide such infor- 

 mation as you can as to the way in which the labour- supply, 

 on an estate, is arranged and managed so as to obtain tlie 

 best and most economical use of it. (2) Give particulars as 

 to the quantity and kind of agricultural implements required 

 for the work on any estate of a stated size. (3) Supply 

 details as to the cost of packing, for ex'port, any kind of 

 agricultural produce with which j'ou are practically familiar, 

 indicating any circumstances, in connexion with this, that 

 j-ou consider to be matters of false economy. 



DEPARTME3NT NEWS. 



I'tie Imperial Comnii.ssioner of Agriculture lef'fc 

 Barbados on January 1-5, 1912, by the R.M.S. ' Arca- 

 dian ", for Trinidad, in order to give attention to mat- 

 ters connected with the West Indian Agricultural 

 Conference commencing on Janilar)' 2S. 



