MAItCB t, 1887.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



615 



prices obtained for Uva coflfee have not only been 

 equal to, but sometimes exceeded those obtained for 

 coffee from the other districts. It is matter for satis- 

 faction that the market for this product has improved 

 so much lately. 



Leaf-disease Bug, &c. — It is satisfactory to note 

 the past year has been one of comparative freedom 

 from leaf disease, which seems to have run its course 

 and while this is matter for thankfulness, your Com- 

 mittee cannot but view with concern the appearance 

 of green bug, and it is with sincere regret and ap- 

 prehension that your Committee have to report its 

 general appearance in the district, and they would 

 strongly urge every member of the Association to 

 do all in his power to check this pest and would 

 point out that wliile it is only here and there in small 

 patches is the time for energetic action. Your Com- 

 mittee sincerely hope that our genial climate, good 

 soil and vigorous coffee may render the attacks of 

 this pest abortive. 



Cinchona. — Your Committee are glad to be able to 

 report a considerable improvement in the condition 

 of this product in the district. There is a marked 

 decrease in canker, and Uva has proved itself to be 

 probably better suited to the growth of this product 

 than any other part of the island. It is to be hoped 

 that the low prices at present ruling for bark wiU 

 shortly improve.- Some important information was 

 elicited from a series of questions issued to members 

 re-harvesting bark ; a proposal to send a Commissioner 

 to Java was also discussed but was not carried out. 

 A request was made by the Dimbula Association to 

 collect statistics of cinchona, with the probable yieid 

 for some years, but owing to the difhculty of getting 

 reliable information on this subject this request was 

 not acceded to. 



Tea. — The growth of tea in these districts is mat- 

 ter for sincere congratulation, and there is no longer 

 any doubt but that our estates are eminently suited to 

 the growth of this product, while sales from the district 

 in the London and local markets have been most en- 

 couraging. 



Cocoa and Oabdamoms. — These products have both 

 proved a success in our district more particularly in 

 Moneragalla, and are showing excellent results. 



THE TEA ENTERPRISE. 



an 18 months' PRUNING, EECOMMENDED FOR CEYLON T^A 

 — THE GREEN TEA TRADE WITH CENTRAL ASIA, PRO- 

 BABLE CAUSE OF ITS DECLINE — LOCAL CONSUMP- 

 TION OF TEA IN INDIA, AND THE CHANCES OP 

 GREATLY EXTENDING IT. 



Yatiyantota. 



Dear Sir, — Having made more than one careful ex- 

 periment I am now convinced that tea bushes in Cey- 

 lon will go on yielding lat'ge flushes tor eighteen months 

 (and even longer) without pruning if alight topping 

 (that is cutting away crowsfeet, and any straggling 

 shoots) be given in the meantime and this latter oper- 

 ation scarcely interfere witli, the jl"sh. 



It is absurd, therefore, to go on punishing our bushes 

 unnecessarily by a heavy yearly pruning, especially when 

 that is done at the expense of quality, and possibly 

 the premature exhaustion of the plants for this con- 

 stant cutting away all old wood, and forcing the roots 

 to throw up a continual supply of new wood as well 

 as young leaves must be very trying to the bushes in 

 a forcing climate like Ceylon where the bushes have 

 literally no rest. 



The following is the system of pruning I would re- 

 commend Ceylon planters to adopt viz., prune half 

 the estate in June and the remaining half in Nov- 

 ember ; these halves would then be alternately pruned 

 in November and June : for instance that pruned in 

 June 1886 would be pruned again in November 1887, 

 and the tea pruned in Novemner 1886 would run to 

 June 1888, thus the seasons for pruning would not be 

 changed though each half would have a run of 18 months 

 from pruning to pruning. 



No set time can be given for the intermediate top- 

 ping, as that would depend greatly on the style of pluck- 

 ing, soil and other circumstances and the Superintend- 



ent must use his own judgment as to the best time 

 for giving this, which might be 8, 10, or 12 months 

 after the pruning. Some patches where the soil was good, 

 and plucking had been carefully performed might pro- 

 bably be left to run the full 18 months without topping 

 with advantage, both as regards quality and quantity 

 of leaf. True the experiments mentioned above were 

 carried on at an elevation of only 600 feet and the 

 plan might not, therefore, suit all elevation in Ceylon, 

 but anyone doubting if it would suit his own parti-' 

 cular totum could easily see for himself by lightly top- 

 ping a piece of tea he was about to prune, and then 

 wash the flush for the next six months. 



The advantages to be gained by such a system of 

 pruning apart from the health of the bushes are many 

 and obvious : — 



1st. — The quantity of new and inferior leaf would 

 be much less in proportion to the good leaf. 



2nd. — This leaf^'could be so evenly mixed with the 

 good that no one' break of tea would contain enough 

 to materially interfere with the strength and quality 

 of the tea, and hardly a break need be sent away without 

 some new leaf in it ; hence a uniform quality could be 

 thoroughly maintained. 



3rd. — The time for pruning being divided would en- 

 able us to estimate the labour force required with greater 

 certainty, and avoid any ffreat rush of leaf or any slack 

 time. In short such a system of pruning would almost 

 anwer the purpose I had in view in recommending a 

 portion of our leaf being turned into green tea. 



Apropofi of this and your foot-note to my letter 

 of the 19th June regarding the decline of the green 

 tea-trade with Central Asia, as I was one of the first 

 who had a finger in the pie, I may be able to throw 

 some light on this subject that will interest you and 

 your readers, and, perhaps, be of use to those more 

 directly concerned . 



My own candid opinion is that the planters of Nor- 

 thern India have no one hut themselves to blame for 

 the decline of this very remunerative trade, in fact 

 it was a clear case of " killing the goose," etc., etc. 



We were on our la.st legs finding it almost impossible 

 to sell black tea for cost of production (owing partly 

 to the depression of trade and partly to our isolated 

 position and heavy transport as compared with Assam 

 and other more favoured tea district and still more to 

 the cold climate, and consequent small yield per acre) 

 when some wealthy Calcutta merchants made their ap- 

 pearance, and not only offered to buy up all our teas 

 on the spot, but also gave us better prices than we 

 could get for our black teas after hundreds of miles 

 of transport, and lead-lined boxes had been added to 

 the cost of production. But these welcome customers 

 required us to make nothing but green tea, colour 

 it well with soap-stone and pack in sacks which they 

 themselves supplied. 



Now when it is considered that this tea (packed in 

 a manner in which Ceylon planters would hesitate to 

 despatch parchment coffee) had to be conveyed over a 

 long and tedious journey of upwards of 2,000 miles on 

 the backs of camels, and was probably months before 

 it reached its final distinction somewhere in the domi- 

 nions of the Shah of Persia, I believe, it may well 

 be imagined in what condition it reached the consumer's 

 hands. But what was this to us ; the Afghans would 

 have nothing to say to our lead boxes, they were buy- 

 ing the tea with their eyes open and we ran no risk 

 in making green tea as stamped agreements were drawn 

 up at the begining of the season for the whole year's 

 outturn. After samples had been sealed and price agreed 

 upon, and so if they eventually lost heavily on their 

 purchases that was their look out. You may call it 

 short-sighted policy on our part, but the fact was we 

 saw a way out of present difficulties and in the mean- 

 time the market for black tea might improve, at least 

 that was my own opinion, and I don't suppose a dozen 

 planters expected the trade to last more than two or 

 three years, though as it went on year after year and the 

 demand seemed to increase it really seemed as if we 

 had established a permanent trade with Central Asia. 

 Perhaps the people rather liked the musty flavour our 

 teas must have had acquired by the time that reached 

 them, never having tasted tea that was not musty 



