396 



THE AGRICDLTURAL NEWS, 



December 7, 1912. 



GLEANINGS. 



The Gren£.da Government Gazette of September 16, 

 1912, publishes an order declaring the love vine (Cuscuta sp.) 

 to be a noxious weed under the Xoxious Weeds Ordinance, 

 1912 This is in consequence of a resolution passed by the 

 Legislative Council on August 30, 1912, signifying its 

 consent to such action. 



The total export of bananas from Costa Kica during 

 1911 was 9,309,586, bunches, as against 9,097,285 bunches 

 in the pre vie as year. The total area under bananas at the 

 end of 1911 was about G5,000 acres, and new plantations 

 amounting to about 2,500 acres were made during the year. 

 (From Diplomatic and Consular Reports, No. 4919 Annual 

 .Series.) 



In Colonial Reports — Annual, No. 719, it is stated that 

 the area of cacao under cultivation in Ashanti is increasing 

 phenomenally. In order to encourage the natives to bring 

 in better fermented cacao, merchants are beginning to grade 

 their purchases of the urticle, and it is thought that this 

 practice may produce a decided improvement in the quality 

 of cacao exported from Ashanti. 



Much benefit has accrued to the cotton crop in St. Kitts 

 through the rains received in October. The Agricultural 

 (Superintendent states that the returns promise to be good and 

 that the quality of the lint .seems excellent. During the 

 month mentioned the cotton worm showed much activity, but 

 the use of large quantities of the mixture of Paris green and 

 lime prevented any damage from being done. 



An abstract of a paper given in the Journal of the Chemi- 

 cal Society for September 1912 deals with work showing that: 

 'certain bacteria are able to appropriate certain definite consti- 

 tuents of the piotein molecule, especially that part which con- 

 tains a carbohydrate radicle, leaving the remainder but little 

 acted on until the more desirable portion is largely exhausted.' 

 Carbohydrates are therefore enabled to exert a sparing action 

 in regard to the consumption of proteids by bacteria. 



According to Diplomatic and Consular Reports, No. 

 4916 Annual Series, the sugar-cane crop of Madeira in 1911 

 was again greater than that of any preceding year. Sugar 

 was niunufactured from 40,000 tons of cane, and 1,200 tons 

 of the product was consumed locally and 2,000 tons exported 

 to Lisbon and Oporto. The total cane crop was estimated 

 at 72,000 tons, of a value of about £240,000. A decreasing 

 amount of the cane is used for making cane brandy. 



It is stated by the Agricultural Instructor in Tortola 

 that at the end of October the cotton crop was in a very- 

 backward state; while as regards limes, a small crop of fruit 

 was coming in. The growth of sugar-canes had been very 

 good since the receipt of the rains. Mestings for peasants 

 were held during the month at East End and West End, and 

 at the ?]xperimeiit Station. It was hoped shortly to hold 

 other meetings at Virgin Gorda, Anegada and Jost van Dykes. 



It is stated in the Leeward Islands Gazette for Novem- 

 ber 7, 1912, that His Excellency the Governor has beea 

 informed by the Secretary of State for the Colony of the 

 approval of Ordinance No. 2 of 1912, Dominica. The pur- 

 pose of this Ordinance is to amend the Dominica Forests 

 Limited, Acquisition of Land Ordinance, 1910, and to 

 transfer, extend and continue the powers conferred by this 

 Act on the Company called Dominica Forests and Sawmills 

 Limited. 



A note in the Bulletin of tlie Imperial Institute for 

 October 1912 states that a patent has been taken out recently 

 for the extraction of candelilla wax: a description of it occurs 

 in the Journal of the Society of Chemical Industry, 1912, 

 No. 31, p. 346. In the process, the plant is boiled with 

 gasoline, benzine or naphtha in the presence of fuller's earth, 

 and after clarification the solvent is evaporated. The last 

 reference in the Agricultural JVews to the wax was on page 

 345 of this vtflume. 



During October, the cotton cultivation in many parts of 

 Nevis suffered somewhat severely from cotton worms, and 

 much of the time of the Agricultural Instructor was taken up 

 in advising energetic measures against the pest. The amount 

 of damage was increased by the fact that many of the holder.'s 

 had not taken measures to ensure the possession of a sufficient 

 amount of Paris green required in the emergency. The rains 

 had caused the crop to make fairly rapid progress, and picking 

 had commenced in some districts. 



A Bill has been brought l>efore the United States Legis- 

 lature which, inter alia, imposes an import duty of |-c. per lb., 

 on coco-nut oil, and palm kernel oil, which have hitherto been 

 duty free. This is intended to allow the crushing of copra in 

 the United States, and would probably stop the importation, 

 of coco-nut oil, and eventually that of palm oil. The importa- 

 tion of palm oil has grown enormously lately, and no doubt 

 has invited attention. More than half has been sent from 

 this country [England]. The duty is likely to att'ect Ceylon 

 and other colonies. (The Colonial Office Journal, July 1912.) 



A resume of the proceedings at the Eighth International 

 Congress of Applied Chemistry, in Nature for October 17, 

 1912, mention.? a paper in which it is stated that the element 

 manganese, present only in minute quantities in plants, 

 is found to occur in laccase, which is an enzyme (fi»st 

 extracted from the lacquer tree) capable of bringing about, 

 assimilation of the nitrogen of the air. As small additions of 

 manganese and of some of the other less common elements 

 have been found to increase crop production to a considerable 

 extent, it is likely that there will arise a new class of manures, 

 called catalytic manures, capable of modifying the fertility of 

 the soil in a favourable way without providing directly plant 

 food. 



