November i, 1882.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



38s 



IGUANA OIL. 



(to the EDITOB op the " AUSTEALASIAN.") 



Sir, — Iguana oil is goorl for the growth of hair. I 

 may iuforra you that on our station, Murrumbill, North 

 Queenslaiul, tlie sliearfrs aud boundary riders usu it 

 occasionally, about twice a week, for the cure of scurf, 

 which is prevalent in our district, and it has also the 

 effect of making the hair thick and glossy. The way 

 they niakf the oil is to take the fat from the iguana, 

 and render it down in an earthenware jar, and perfume 

 it with oil of lemon. I fihall be glad to know through 

 your columns how your correspondent gets on, as I return 

 home on the 3rd of January. 



B. Murray Naughton. 



Murrumbill, North Queensland. 



DESTKOYING TREE STUMPS. 



Sir,— Knowing the difficulties met with by selectors in 

 clearing their land of stumps for cultivation, I append 

 the following, which I take from the Family Reader of 

 January 26, 1878, No. 358, for insertion. 



Dee. 4. A Well-Wisher of Selectors. 



" A very simple process is employed in America for 

 freeing woodland newly brought into cultivation from the 

 stumps of trees. A hole some 2in. in diameter and 18in. 

 deep is bored in the stump about autumn, filled with 

 a concentrated solution of saltpetre, and closed with a 

 plug. In the following spring a pint or so of petroleum 

 is poured into the same hole, and set on fire. During 

 the course of the wnnter the saltpetre solution has pene- 

 trated every portion of the stump, so that not only this, but 

 also the roots, are thoroughly biu'nt out. The ash is left 

 in situ, and forms a valuable manure." I imagine, failing 

 petroleum, kerosene would act in the same manner. 



[Although this recipe has been given several times, we 

 accede to our correspondent's request, in the hope that 

 the plan may prove useful to readers who may not have 

 seen it before. We shall bo glad to hear from those who 

 have tried it the results of their experiences with our 

 gum trees ; the trees principally thus dealt with in America 

 are likely to be firs. — Ed. Au&trtdaiian.^ 



IGUANAS AS VERMIN DESTROYERS. 



Sir, — In some of your recent issues I have seen inquiries 

 made as to the possibility of finding a market for iguana 

 oil. This leads me to suppose that some persons are 

 killing them wholesale, or are prepared to do so in the 

 event of a market for the oil being forthcoming. Now it 

 has been proved that iguanas, during the summer montlis, 

 destroy countless numbers of young r.abbits in the burrows. 

 It is only the other day that a gentleman, whose station 

 is overrun with the vermin, expressed an opinion that 

 during the hot weather the increase of rabbits in sandy 

 country was almost checked by the r.aids made on their 

 young by the iguanas, and that for six months in the year 

 one iguana would kill as many rabbits as two men would 

 employed in digging them out. In the face of such a 

 statement from a reliable source, it is to be deplored that 

 iguanas should be generally killed wherever seen. I have 

 given strict instructions to my men never to interfere with 

 them, and hope that by now drawing attention to the sub- 

 ject thi'ough your wide-circulating columns, I may induce 

 others interested to do likewise. 



Spinnifex. 



[Iguanas are also destroyers of snakes ; their value in that 

 capacity alone should preserve them from injurj' by 

 man. — Ed. "Australasian. "] 



THE LAYERING OF SHRUBS. 



Layering is the simplest of all methods of propag.ating, 

 and one which the amatuer who wishes to multiply his 

 shrubs, and is without the facilities afforded by a pro- 

 pagating house, most frequently resorts to. Indeed there 

 are some shrubs that can with difficulty be propagated in 

 any other manner; the Dutchman's Pipe {Arislolochia), 

 for example, is treated in this maimer in the nurseries, 

 and the ch;\rming little G.arland Flower (Daphne C'lieorum), 



so diflScult to grow from cuttings, roots readily when 

 layered. As stated last month, there are some varieties 

 of the Grape that can only be propagated in this manner, 

 and the usual method of layering the vine was illustrated 

 on page 292. 



Tliis method is easy with those shrubs that form branches 

 so near the ground as to allow them to be bent down 

 sufficiently to admit of the burying of a portion a few 

 inches below the surface. After the layer is made, care 

 must be taken that the soil does not become dry. A 

 few flat stones placed on the surface will prevent this. 

 Where it is desirable to layer a shrub, the branches of 

 which are too high for the purpose, a flower-pot may 

 be cut in two, lengthwise, using an old saw ; then, if 

 need-be, eularge the drainage hole, aud place the pot 

 around the branch, wiring the two halves together. The 

 pot is then filled with good soil, and, if necessary, p't_ - 

 ported by a stake. Of course the earth must be kept 

 constantly moist. It is well to " ring" or remove a por- 

 tion of bark from the stem. — American Agriculturist. 



CHEAP EXTRACT OF VANILLA. 



C. A. McG., Jeanerette, La. — Will you please be kind 

 enough to give formula for making extract of vanilla from 

 tonka beans, and oblige ? 



Answer. — Extract of vanilla cannot be made from tonka 

 beans, but an imitation vanilla extract, which we suppose 

 is what you mean, may be made as follows : — 



Tonka beans 7 ounces. 



Brown sugar 2 „ 



AVater 24 „ 



iUcohol, 95 per cent 40 „ 



Caramel q. s. to color. 



Out the beans up fine and mix them with the sugar, bruise 

 in au iron mortar together ; then add one pound of pure 

 white sand. When thoroughly incorporated, traufer to a 

 percolator, and after mixing the alcohol and water pour 

 it gradually on. An extract that will give better satisfaction, 

 .and that ought to be cheap enough at the present price 

 of vanilla beans, may be made of the following ingredients, 

 treated in the same manner as the former: — 



Vanilla beans IJ ounces. 



Tonka beans 4 „ 



Brown sugar 2 „ 



Water 24 „ 



Alcohol, 95 per cent 40 „ 



Coloring q. s. 



— Oil and Drnrj yews. 



SAWDUST FOR BEDDING. 



to the editor of the " jodrnal of foeestet." 

 Sir, — In reply to "Subscriber's" letter in last month's 

 Journal of Forestry (p. 824), regarding sawdust as a substitute 

 for straw for bedcling, I beg to state my experience. We 

 have used it for a number of ytars at Taymouth as bedding 

 for the dairy-cows, the horses at home farm and young 

 horses in loose boxes, and never found that it injured 

 the animals in the least. AVe use the dust of all kinds 

 of wood (fir among the rest) sawn at the estate sawmill, 

 ■and prefer it dry. The wet bedding onli/ is removed from 

 the stables, and byres daily, and mixeil in the dung-pit. 

 It ab orbs a large quantity of liquid manure. AVe have 

 used Ibis manure for root crops and for top-dressing pasture 

 lands, and always found it produced good crops. Care, 

 howe-er, must be taken to remove as little dry sawdust 

 from the stalls as possible unless there is enough liquid 

 manu e in the pit to soak it thoroughly. 



Wm. Dc>fN. 

 Mains of Kenmore, Aberfeldy, N.B. 



USE OF CARBOLIC ACID IN FORESTRY 

 AND NURSERY GARDENS. 

 Sin, — AA''ith refeience to the notice in the .Journal nf 

 Forestry for iUarch, 1882, I think it well to call attention 

 to the " fact that the employment of carbolic acid — as it 

 might naturally be supposed — is in a high degree detri- 

 mental to the growth of seeds. 



The experiments which I made last autumn, purposely 

 in a room of low temperature, gave the results reeordej 



