Vol. IV. No. 93. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



3i7 



BRITISH GUIANA: ANNUAL REPORT OF 

 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE, 1904-5. 



A statement is given of the principal subjects whicli 

 occupied tlie attention of tlie board at its four general 

 meetings. Short accounts are also given of the work done 

 by the various committees. 



The board imported the following animals during the 

 year : one shorthorn bull, two Berkshire boars, and two 

 Shropshire rams. 



The Sugar-cane E.xperiments Committee obtained and 

 published returns of the areas under cultivation of varieties 

 ■of canes other than Bourbon. These showed that 12,942 

 acres were in cultivation with new varieties for the 

 crjp of 1905, and a total area of 14,71.3 acres in canes 

 other than Bourbon. 



The report on the results of the experiments in the 

 crop-year 190-1-5 indicated that the locally raised canes 

 Nos. D. 625, D. 1-15, and D. 109 were of high value as sugar 

 producers in British Gu'ana, while the following introduced 

 varieties were also of much promise : B. 208, B. 147, and 

 Sealy Seedling. 



The Subsidiary Products Committee has advised with 

 regard to experiments with products other than sugar. 

 Experiments have been carried on with twenty varieties of 

 imported rice, as also with cotton, bananas, cacao, etc. 



JAMAICA: ANNUAL REPORT OF BOARD 

 OF AGRICULTURE AND DEPARTMENT OF 

 PUBLIC GARDENS AND PLANTATIONS, 190i-3. 



Board of Agricidturt'. — The board has directed the 

 experiments in progress at the Hope Experiment Station 

 and the local agricultural experiments. It has considered 

 and advised on the educational work in agriculture for 

 students at the government laboratory ; and for elementary 

 school teachers, training college students, apprentices and 

 industrial school boys at Hope C4ardens. It has arranged 

 for the work of !Mr. Teversliam, the lecturer of the Imperial 

 Department, and of the Travelling Instructors, Messrs. Crad- 

 wick and W. J. Thompson. 



t Agricultural Experiment Worlc. —This section of the 

 report deals with the work done at the Hope Experiment 

 ►Station, local mauurial experiments, and the work of the 

 sugar experiment station. 



There are at the station collections of a large number 

 of varieties of the following : bananas and plantains, 

 cassava, tannias, citrus plants, pine-apples, sugar-cane, sweet 

 potatos, etc. 



An experiment was laid out for the purpose of 

 ascertaining the best conditions for cacao in regard to shade, 

 ■distance of planting, etc. The work of raising hybrid pine- 

 apples was continued ; 5(50 plants of Cayenne-Ripley and 

 Ripley-Cayenne are in small pots. Seedling sugar-canes are 

 ■ also reported to be making progress. 



Local manurial experiments were carried on with sugar, 

 bananas, and cotton, on estates situated in different parts of 

 the island. 



Agricultural Eilurational Work. — This part of the 

 report deals first with the work of the Lecturer of the Imperial 

 Dejiartment of Agriculture. Satisfactory progre.ss is reported 

 in introducing the teaching of agricultuial principles into 

 elementary schools. 



The training of industrial school boys, garden ajipren- 

 tices, laboratory students, training college students, and 

 elementary school teachers has been continued. 



The training of agricultural students at the government 

 laboratory has been carried on as in previous years. 



With regard to the Travelling Instructors, it is stated 

 that Mr. C'radwick, in the course of his duties, conducted the 

 judging in connexion with the prize-holding scheme of the 

 Agricultural Society, assisted teachers in the establishment 

 of school gardens, and addressed meetings of the local 

 agricultural societies. 



Mr. Thompson carried out work on .similar lines in the 

 parishes near Kingston. 



PARA RUBBER AS SHADE FOR CACAO. 



A valuable report, recently is.sued by the Royal 

 Botanic Gardens of Ceylon on Para rubber, discus.ses 

 the suitability of this tree for shade purposes. It 

 has been freely planted throughout tea plantations 

 at a distance of from 10 to 15 feet apart. The effect 

 on many plantations has been to rob the tea of its 

 plant food and cause the latter to present a weak and 

 straggling appearance. It is predicted that, on this 

 account, large areas of tea will soon have to be 

 abandoned. 



The effect of interplanted rubber in cacao planta- 

 tions is discussed in this Circular (Vol. Ill, No. ()) as 

 follows : — 



The greater part of the cacao in Ceylon is usually 

 interplanted with trees of species of Erijthrina for protection 

 against wind and for .shade purposes. The mature cacao 

 trees on most places are usually from 10, 15, to 20 feet 

 apart, and their roots do not closely ramify through the soil 

 as in the case of tea planted 3 to 4 feet apart. The amount 

 of soil on good cacao estates which is free from cacao roots is 

 often remarkable, as any one may see by digging trenches or 

 holes in such land. We have therefore in cacao a product 

 which can be grown to advantage under the shade of other 

 trees and a soil on such estates which will allow the roots 

 of trees other than cacao to develop without doing much 

 damage to the cacao. 



The Para rubber tree grows to a considerable height 

 and is capable of offering shade and protection from wind in 

 a manner similar to the Dadaps {Ei'i/tliriiia lithosperma) so 

 commonly used. Furthermore, the leafless phase, through 

 which the mature Para trees annually pass, allows the light 

 to penetrate to the cacao trees during the hot dry months of 

 February and !March and thus helps to keep the cacao 

 fungus in check. The fall of leaf every year greatly adds 

 to the amount of organic matter which is acknowledged to 

 be in great demand by the cacao. 



It is therefore obvious that cacao under rubber will, if 

 the latter is not planted too close, last much longer than tea 

 under the same product, and with careful judgement the two 

 products may be profitably grown for many years to come. 

 In all such cases it need hardly be stated that the shade trees 

 other than the rubber should be almost or entirely removed, 

 as otherwise the dense shade will oft'er far too suitable 

 conditions for the development of the cacao fungus, a parasite 

 ■which requires constant attention. 



