488 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



[December i, 1882. 



Gregory told us that, which information at the time 

 we took rather unkindly. It is supposed His Excel- 

 lency's opinion was that we were not much more 

 practically intelligent than those Irish planters who 

 let in the blight so shockingly upon their taters. 

 There are estates on which long-continued, careful and 

 regular cultivation is found to pay, In the villages, 

 much of the once good old coffee yet lingers, jield- 

 ing a miserable return for its cumbrous occupation of 

 such advantageous ground as surrounds the hamlets. 

 Few, if any, new products will thrive sufficiently fast 

 if planted under shade on stiff trampled-dowu ground 

 and destined to try a struggle for food against the 

 contesting surface roots of old and powerful trees. 

 A half of the existing coffee is so far recoverable, but 

 the balance must be replaced and supplied. For village 

 cultivation, coffee as yet is the most suitable tree, 

 from its natural habits, its long-tried powers of life 

 and proved value of its product. Successful example 

 is the best precept, and by Government alone against 

 the present despondency can a practicable and per- 

 manent system of cultivation be introduced and speedily 

 spread among the people who are not slow to learn or 

 imitate a success. 



All openly planted products, on unterraced hills 

 or on uudrained, untilled lands, must sooner or later, 

 from thii experiences learned in coffee-planting, prove 

 amenable to like unpropitious conditions. Early ex- 

 periment and close observation will discover many 

 necessary improvements, and, it in practice the cost 

 cannot be accepted, at least the warning to look out for 

 consequences has been timely effected. 



The present flourish of green leaf and new wood 

 to those who have it, if sustained, bespeaks the 

 blessing of another crop, but the eventualities of the 

 dry season from December to May and later on the 

 burden of crop following, will as in late years bear 

 hard upon the reserve of strength, now so small and eo 

 seldom added to, to soil or tree. 



Parasites of all societies, however useful in the 

 great balance of power, gifted to reproductive creation, 

 with the turn of the scale in their favor, are with 

 limitations generally obnoxious and inclined to exceed 

 their orders. Hemeleia is of this breed and its at- 

 tacks must be hostile to the health of tree and leaf. 

 The fleeting changes in the leaf are the outward 

 tokens of the condition of the tree, and the fall of the 

 leaf, while a natural incident distracts attention from 

 the circumstance that premature as well as matured 

 leaves fall by adventitious agencies this is best 

 observable on trees which are known to be enfeebled. 

 The exigencies of cultivation shew that trees with 

 early retillage will not drop their leaves so rapidly, 

 as those beyond the point where retillage has been 

 put in abeyance. From trees under regular cultiva- 

 tion a great fall of leaf, although it may not be 

 immediately of serious import, jet tells of slackening 

 root action. A loss of young wood by atrophy often 

 accompanies an enfeebled state of the tree, resulting 

 from delayed re-cultivation. The heavy fall of leaf 

 about crop time it is admitted is so far natural, but 

 it is not all a necessity, for retillage and manure 

 applied two or three mouths before crop very much 

 reduces the loss of foliage aud the shock generally 

 given to the trees at that period. 



Notwithstanding an occasional fig-up, the present one 

 being the longest on record and generally complained 

 of, the coffee yearly retrogrades. The sensitive leaf 

 and young branch, being the periodical evolvement of 

 the existing power of the tree, it may be reasonably as- 

 sumed that its appointed time and strength is in some, 

 if not in full, proportion to the enfeebled condition 

 of its origin, and its own reduced power when under 

 fnngal attack. Leaves, strong and dark green, will 

 remain attached for montlis, especially on plants, with 

 their elaborating surfaces much destroyed and affected. 



thus giving but a maimed help to the tree. This 

 reduced assistance from one leaf, multiplied by the 

 many affected, reasons of considerable mischief done 

 to the tree. 



Last year's continued wet, following upon the effects 

 of crop, benumbed the roots, kept the ground soaked 

 and cold, thoroughly blighting numbers of trees and 

 denuding them of leaf and twig, making recovery 

 very slow. The little crop this year is in the warmer 

 localities, on tilled, light and stoney or open land. 



Cutting back of the roots to increase fertility is a 

 practice in advanced arboriculture necessary occas- 

 ionally with old trees. It nscessitates a deal of col- 

 lateral expense to be a snccetsful operation. Digging 

 among the roots and stirring in mould and manures, 

 yearly if possible is preferable, and this is generally 

 accompanied with a considerable cutting of the roots. 

 A light cutting off f;ir-stretching roots .is very bene- 

 lieial ; the rootlets are increased and renewed and 

 their combined action is the mainspring of tree-life. 

 When cultivation is applied to backward fruit and 

 coffee trees, the fruit, besides increase of quantity, 

 increases in size aud quality. Yearly manure halved 

 bi-annually applied is found to save fruit, branch 

 and leaf from withering, especially on light land. 

 Continued experiment, it is to be hoped, will show 

 it to be profitable as well. For upon that question, 

 will it ? hangs the expenditure to be made and the 

 system to be adopted in the cultivation of any pro- 

 duct. The stirring of the soil necessary in the applic- 

 ation of a bulky manure and the recovering of any 

 exposed roots in advent of the dry weather, prevents 

 any serious attack of the disease, but no tree but 

 one dead need be expected to be completely or con- 

 stantly free from the yellow spot, but as in dom- 

 estic economy, an occasional hunt, and a periodical 

 comb down reduces to bearable limits the discomforts 

 of parasitical abundance, in like manner does cultiva- 

 tion given to the coffee tree act towards the fatal fungus, 

 but so far as the two coffees are concerned the yellow 

 fungus is a new and attractive addition to the beauties 

 in creation. 



Strong trees in the open, often together in patches, 

 must from analogy have their roots in good feeding 

 and well subdraincd ground. These and such trees as 

 are kept in good condition by culture, also those 

 which are in genial shade and good soil, just so 

 long as the favoring conditions exist, are not much 

 troubled by disease, nor do their leaves fall so often 

 suddenly as happens from trees less propitiously 

 situated. 



Contact of diseased trees or attempted inoculation 

 and other like means fail satisfactorily to put leaf- 

 disease upon vigorously growing irees ; yet the jellow 

 spot will be found to come apparently without cause 

 in time. Even there however, cause may yet be 

 found. Soil, which, being naturally light, made more 

 so by periodical forking, and being charged with an 

 yearly accumulating mould, from manure applied, 

 causes a rapid growtli of rootlets to the surface. The 

 earth being mounded around the tree to cover the 

 manure, is easily drained of superficial moisture, and 

 farther dried by the action of the rootlets will in 

 continued dry weather induce a severe attack of dis- 

 ease ; yet this does not tangibly affect the flower or 

 crop, provided the drought is not too loug c intinued. 



Dryness at the ront, aided often by an earth bound 

 condition there, is tha leading agency reacting on the 

 leaves which induces leaf-disease. The opposite ex- 

 treme of stagnated v\ et and a stiff soil has a like effect, 

 but except in the last two years — though previously 

 to a limited extent on flats — wet has had less 

 influence. There are years which are wetter than 

 others, the difference not being such as to attract 

 general attention. Then the native coffee under thick 

 shade, in hollows and on flats, drop their leaves in 



