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tan fnoptCAL AGmcuLfvmsr* 



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who suys that the best farmers burn the most, and 

 he rests his opinion on the testimony of several 

 practical men. AmoDu'st others things he mentions a 

 fioki that hail l«fcen broken up from its natural state 

 just fifty years ago; it was then pared ajid burned 

 and so started for the first crop of turnips, which 

 supported the other crops of the course. The same 

 process has since been seven times repeated ; no 

 manure of any kind had ever been appUed, and yet 

 the crops in each succeeding rotation had shown no 

 signs of decreasing. The soil which lies on the lime- 

 stone foundation is very thin, but not more so than 

 when first broken up. ' "We have quoted this because 

 it is so much in accordance with our own practice 

 in paring and burning, for, alter spreading the ashes 

 resulting from burning, we have never had occasion 

 to apply manure of any kind for a number of years 

 when the soil burned has been of a strong loam or 

 clay nature. In again quoting Dr. Voelcker in respect 

 of the mode of burning, he says :— '• A certain degree 

 of heat is necessary to induce a proper chemical 

 action ; but, as demonstrated by my former experi- 

 ments, an excessive heat should be carefully avoided, 

 inasmuch as it has the effect of rendering burnt clay 

 again less soluble. It is no doubt for this rea.son 

 that practical men recommend stifle burning, * for 

 this pr^-veuts the heat of the heaps of burning soil 

 becoming too intense, consequently stifle-burnt clay is 

 always very porous, crumbles readily to powder, and is 

 moie easily soluble than clay burnt at a higher tem- 

 terature." In accounting for the advantages of paring 

 and burning, the changes in the organic matters of 

 the soil must not be overlooked. Soils which are 

 regularly pared and burned often contain much vege- 

 table an organic matter, and afford therein fuel for 

 burning a considerable quantity of the soil itself. It must 

 be understood that the destruction by fire of the 

 organic remains in heavy soils, far from doing any 

 harm, is the most available and economical way of 

 preventing their undue accumulation. The fire, we 

 would observe, also destroys insects, their eggs and 

 larvai, as well as the seeds of weeds, bits of under- 

 ground stems which, like those of many species of 

 grasses, are apt to grow again, and which theiefore 

 cannot be disposed of so effectually as by burning ; 

 in short, nothing cleans laud so cheaply and effectually 

 as paring and burning.f We must now observe that 

 the excess of undecomposed vegetable matters are 

 found to be injurious to vegetation. Peaty soils furnish 

 familier examples of this. In conclussion it must be 

 understood that the destruction of vegetable matter 

 in soils adapted for paring and burning is not attended 

 with any evil consequences. Inert vegetable matter 

 is changed by burning into highly effective mineral 

 food for crops. Burning improves materially the 

 mechanical condition of the strong soils by rendering 

 them more porous and more ea.sily cultivated. The 

 ashes produced by paring and burning are especially 

 useful to green crops, because they contain a large 

 portion of phosphates and also potash, constituents 

 which are known to promote in a high degree 

 luxuriant growth. — Indian GarJe/ier. 



TROPICAL FRUITS.J 



Amongst objects of productive industry receiving 

 attention at presant in our Colonial possessions, 

 tropical fruits are at once the newest and most 

 uiteresting of idl. Many of these fruita are practically 

 unknown in England in a fresh state, and hence 

 before tropical fruits are largely consumed here, it is 

 necessary to diffuse knowledge respecting them, and 

 to render tbem as familiar to English home people 

 as they are to their Colonial friends. 



'^ Smouldering : pieces of wood, weeds and rubbish 

 slowly burning under a covering of clay. If the tire 

 is too brisk, there will be danger of the clay 

 hardening into the consistence of brick. — En 



t Where fire cannot be applied, a dusting of quick 

 lime will be bi-ueficial. — JOn. 



I Abstract of a I'aper read at a Conference held at 



the Colonial and Indian Exhibition on Tuesday, July 26. 



^r. W, T. Tbweltoa Pyer, IMl.S,, O.M.G.; iu t]je dbair. 



At the present Exhibition, owing to the suggestion 

 of the Council of the Koyal Horticultural Society, 

 fresh fruits are shown from nearly every part of the 

 British Empir" Thanks to the Colonial Market 

 established in eouucction with the Exhibition, Oranges 

 Lemou';, and Grapes are shown from the Australian 

 Coloi;.! ; Oranges of several kinds from Natal, fresh 

 Coconuts from the West Coast of Africa, Pine- 

 apples from Antigua, Bananas from Jamaica, Nase- 

 berries (Achras supota.), Avocado Pears, Papaws, 

 Bread-fruit and limes from British Guiana ; Melons 

 from Barbados, Prickly Pears and Dates from British 

 India, and most luscious Pine apples from Singapore. 

 Although not exclusively a tropical fruit, the Orange 

 is found and fiourishes throughout the eastern and 

 western Tropics. Taking this fruit as an example, it 

 is remarkable what a large increase has t%ken place 

 in the consumption of this fruit in the United King- 

 dom during the last fifteen years. In 1870 the 

 number of Oranges imported into the United King- 

 dom was 80,000,000. In 1885 this number had in- 

 creased to 500,000,000, or at the rate of fourteen per 

 head of population. Dates are consumed to the 

 extent of 5000 tons per annum, while Coconuts 

 are imported by the shipload. 



Being the nearest to England, as well as the most 

 productive in the way of tropical fruits, the West 

 Indian Islands naturally supply, and should supply, 

 the English market more readily than any other. 

 At the present day in the West Indian Islands the 

 value of the fruit exported is nearly £400,000 per 

 annum. 



In Jamaica alone fruit is annually exported to the 

 value of over a quarter of a million sterling — consisting 

 chiefly of Bananas, Oranges, Pine-apples, and Coco- 

 nuts. The Bahamas export chiefly Pine-apples, both 

 fresh and canned, to the value of £50,000 per annum . 

 Trinidad grows and exports chiefly Coconuts. British 

 Honduras, connected by a mail route with New 

 Orleans, exports Bananas, Coconuts, and Plantains 

 to the value of £15,000 per annum. Montserrat is 

 chiefly interested in Limes, and exports Limes and 

 lime-juice to the annual value of £11,000. Dominiac 

 exports Limes, Tamarinds, concentrated lime juice to 

 the value of £40,000; while flat and sugary Antigua 

 exports only Pine-apples, but those, though small, of 

 very superior quality. From their geographical posi- 

 tion it is only natural to suppose that a large pro- 

 portion of the fruit of the West Indian islands 

 finds its way to the United States and Canada, 

 where there are nearly fifty millions of people, with 

 all of whom fruit enters largely into their daily food. 

 The Banana (Musa sapientum) is the cheap fruit 

 at present cultivated in the West Indies, and this 

 fruit is the one which in the future will be more 

 largely offered in the English market than any other. 

 There are numerous varieties of this fruit imder 

 cultivation, the Martinique Banana is found the most 

 profitable to grow for export, although a smaller 

 fruit, known as the Fig Banana, is more luscious and 

 more highly esteemetl locally as a dessert fruit. 

 Jamaica exports Bananas to the value of nearly 

 £200,000 per anum, and is capable of growing fully 

 three times the quantity now exported without any 

 diminution in the larger staples. 



The Pine-apple (Ananas saliva) is no doubt indi- 

 genous in Jamaica, where an inferior kind, known 

 as the ''Cowboy macca," is still found wild. The 

 Pine-apple is incorporated in the arms of Jamaica, 

 and certainly nowhere, except perhaps at Pernambuco, 

 can Pine-apples of such size and delicacy be grown as 

 in some parts of this island. Antigua is noted for 

 its Pine-apples, the pitch-lake Pine of Trindad has at 

 least a local reputation, but the Bahamas export more 

 Pine-apples in the fresh and cured state than any 

 other part of the world. The chief supply of Pine- 

 apples for the English market at present comes from 

 Madeira, the Canary Islands and the Azores. Should 

 the interesting experiments now being carried on by 

 Messrs. Scutton & Sons, who have fitted up one of 

 their ships with a refrigerating chamber, be successful, 

 we shall before long have large supplies of Pine-apples 



direct froiji tbu lYegt lodies; awiat^vexy mcderate eost^ 



