Vol. XI. No. 2G5. 



THE AGRICULTURVL NEWS. 



207 



THE VITALITY OF PARA RUBBER SEEDS. 



The last imnibt-r but one of the Agricultural 

 I\'cws contained an account, taken from the Agricul- 

 tural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Mala;/ 

 States for February 1912, of an experiment to compare 

 the vitnlity of Para rubber seeds from tapped and 

 untapped trees. The following description of a second 

 experiment, for the purpose of finding the effective- 

 ness of various methods of pieserving see<ls from tapped 

 4rees, is given in the same journal. It was intended 

 3,0 repeat the experiments that are described. 



THE I'RESKUVING OF RUBBER SEEDS FROM T.\PPEI> TREE.s. 



The secd.s in the.'e experiments were collected and packtil 

 Ti a simikr way to those in the first experiment, but they 

 \vere coated respectively with beeswax, hard paraffin, and 

 vaseline The beeswax and hard paraffin were melted, and 

 tlie seeds dipped into their respective liquids, allowed to 

 solidify, and then packed. Previous to planting the seeds, 

 the hard paraffin, beeswax, and vaseline were removed. 



The iiercentage of germination of untreated seeds from 

 tapped trees can be seen by referring to experiment 1. On 

 comparing this with the seeds coated with beeswax, it will 

 ibe seen that the latter showed an increased germination to 

 the extent of approximately '50 per cent. The seeds coated 

 ■with hard paraffin gave better results than untreated seeds 

 fiom tapped trees, but not as good as those coated with 

 beeswax. 



The seeds treated with vaseline did not germinate. The 

 coating of rubber seeds with any substance is undoubtedly an 

 expensive treatment, but if seeds have to be sent to countries 

 which take from one and a half to two and a half months to 

 reach, and seeds from untapped trees cannot be obtained, 

 then, it is thought, the extra percentage of germination result- 

 ing from the seeds being coated with beeswax would more 

 than repay the extra expen.se entailed by this system of 

 Jreatnient. 



PERCENTAGE OF SEED GERMINATION OBTAINED FROM 

 TAPPED AND UNTAPPED TREES. 



No. of box. 1 2 3 i 5 6 



No. of seeds in box 180 180 180 180 180 180 



No. of weeks the seeds werel 3 g ^ g 9 10 



in box / 



No. of plants obtained; bees-\ ^q^ jq^ 9^ g2 100 86 



wax / 



No. of plants obtained; par-l g., -j -^ gg gj gg 



affin j 



Percentage of seed germina-\ gg ^jq 52 45 55 47 



tion; beeswax J 



Percentage of seed germina-1 3^ ^q ^j 37 34 32 



tion; paraffin / 



Percentage of seed germina-\ 33 .23 34 20 20 24 



tion; untreated J 



In no case was there apparent a large falling off in 

 germinating power from the third to the tenth week. 



AGRICULTURAL MATTERS IN 

 ST. VINCENT. 



In the opening address by His Honour the Adminis- 

 trator at the February .session of the I,egi.xlative Council of 

 St. Vincent, held on the 9th of ihe month, several refer- 

 ences were made to subjects connected with agriculture that 

 it is well to mention here. 



In regard to anthrax. His Honour stated that it was 

 particularly gratifying to be able to record an entire abate- 

 ment of this disease among stock, and that he had no 

 hesitation in declaring the Colony to be so free from anthrax 

 as to render the exportation of stock therefrom no longer 

 of danger to neighbouring colonies. For a period of ten 

 months, that is .since April 1911, only one case of anthrax 

 had been found among stock dying from natural causes; this 

 occurred as far back as .July 1911, so that for seven months 

 no single case of deatli has taken place among stock from 

 anthrax. Human anthrax has not occurred in the Colony 

 for nine years. These circumstances, particularly in view of 

 the means that exist in the Colony to prevent and counter- 

 act the disease, including an Act providing for compulsory 

 vaccination in case of emergency (see Af/ricnltural AVcs, 

 Vol. XI, p. 153), are causing St. Mncent to seek to induce the 

 neighbouring colonies to accept stock from the island under 

 more reasonable and less prohibitive conditions, than exi.st 

 at present. 



Among the matters for which the expenditure under the 

 estimates has provided is the institution of a scholarship and 

 an exhibition at the Grammar School. 



Reference is made in the address to the successful adver- 

 tising campaign that has been conducted by the Committee of^ 

 Management of the Arrowroot Growers' and Exporters' 

 Association. In mentioning the last annual report of this 

 association, which was reviewed in the Agricultural News, 

 Vol. .\I, p. 89, the Administrator congratulates the commit- 

 tee, with particular mention of the secretary, on the progress 

 that has been made. Request has been received that the 

 Arrowroot (New Market Fund) Ordinance of 1910 (see 

 Agricultural Neirs, Vol. X, p. 9), which expires automati- 

 cally in December 1912, shall be renewed; and certainty is 

 expressed that such renewal will receive the favourable con- 

 sideration of the Council, subject to the .sanction of the 

 Secretary of State for the Colonies. 



The last matter in the address that is connected more 

 directly with agriculture is a reference to the recent visit to 

 the island of Mr. .J. W. McConnel, Vice-Chairman of 

 the Fine Spinners' and Doulilers' Association in Manche,s- 

 ter. It is stated that the useful information that had 

 been received at first hand, in consequence of this visit, 

 should do much, notwithstanding the recent experience of 

 unfavourable conditions for the crop, to encourage cottoa 

 planters to continue its production, and ensure perseveraneft 

 in the careful methods of cotton cultivation and seed selection^ 

 that are carried out in St. Vincent in order to maintain th*. 

 high quality of the product. 



Information given in the Semi- Annual Report of 

 Messrs. Schimmel k Co., dated April 1912, shows that the 

 production of camphor in Formosa during 1910 was 

 6,494,375 ft., and that the value of the exports during the. 

 same period was £503,552; in the preceding year the similar 

 figures were 4,705,157 R. and £446,902. It is stated 

 further that an estimate has been made to the effect that th* 

 camphor forests of Formosa will be exhausted in forty-five 

 years' time, but that since 1901 the Japanese Government 

 has caused fifteen million trees to be planted. 



