148 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 



[August i, 1884, 



that of C. officinalis by 17,000. In the case of these vari- 

 eties also the dry weather in December hindered the plant- 

 ing out, so that at the end of the year the greater por- 

 tion of the plants intended for that purpose remained in 

 the beds. About 80,000 trees of the inferior varieties, or 

 those that for some other reason had to be removed, were 

 rooted out. The plants raised from the consignment of 

 seed received from Hr. Schuhkraft in 1881 were not yet 

 in a fit condition for planting out. They have not yet 

 developed sufficiently for a definite idea to be "formed of 

 the varieties to which they belong. From the Nilgiris seed 

 was received of the " hybrid " — now generally called O. 

 robusta. From the Director of the Botanic Garden in Jam- 

 aica also seed was received of a variety of calisaya and 

 of a hybrid of a good quality from the cinchona gardens 

 there. Propagation by grafts was continued, and the num- 

 ber of successful grafts has increased greatly since the 

 services of G. Toekamp Lammers, the gardener sent from 

 the Netherlands, have been available. A very large pro- 

 pagating-house, erected solely for the making of grafts, 

 was built in the first half of the year at Tjinjiroean, and 

 was ready and at the service of the gardener in July. To 

 the latter was also entrusted the making of experiments 

 with grafts in the open air, but results obtained by him 

 in this manner have been small as yet. Of eighty-eight 

 inoculations placed on thirty young succirubras in May, 

 only ten, on six very young trees, succeeded well, and these 

 are now growing vigorously. On older stems, those over 

 two years old, the inoculations did not succeed. As ferule 

 g.afting had succeeded in the propagating-houses, it was 

 also tried in the open air. Of about one hundred of these 

 grafts only eight succeeded, whilst in the propagating- 

 houses on an average 75 per cent are successful. Crown 

 grafting, tried in various ways, gave very poor results, both 

 on young and old stems. The excessive bleeding of the 

 truncated succirubras, which in some cases lasted more 

 than two months, hindered the union of the two wounded 

 surfaces. The experiments, in some degree modified, are 

 being continued. Grafting is of the greatest importance to 

 the Government enterprise, that a plantation may be ob- 

 tained consisting solely of grafts of the Ledgeriana indi- 

 viduals richest in quinine. In a short time moreover au 

 abundant supply of seed of the best quality may be ex- 

 pected. It is not advisable for private persons however to 

 lay out their estates in this manner alone. Grafting costs 

 besides too much time and care, and progress is too slow. 

 The Government cinchona enterprise, with a nursery area 

 of about 1,000 square Rhenish feet and with a skilled 



f personnel, is only in a position to produce 36,000 success- 

 ul grafts per annum. A good crop of Ledgeriana seed, 

 to which about 1,600 of the young grafts contributed, gave 

 the opportunity of meeting the demands of private per- 

 sons for seed of this variety. A large quantity of succi- 

 rubra seed was also distributed, whilst the applications for 

 seed of C. officinalis were few. 



3. — Extension ; Upkeep. — On the establishment of Ken- 

 deng Patoeha twelve more bouws of jungle were opened, 

 whilst at Tirtasari all the forest previously felled has been 

 cleared for planting. The necessary space was also ob- 

 tained by the uprooting of calisaya plants. Careful up- 

 keep — the keeping clean and draining of the gardens — ■ 

 was pursued, as far as the necessary forces permitted. 

 The growth of trees on places that have been planted for 

 the second time is irregalar. Some of these fields are ex- 

 ceedingly healthy, quite as good as those opened in virgin 

 soil, while others look sickly and need constant supplying. 

 The measurements mentioned in previous annual reports 

 ■were resumed in the same month of 1882. The crown 

 circumference was however no longer measured, as these 

 trees have been pruned, and the figure obtained therefore 

 would not correspond with the previous one. In the Ledg- 

 eriana plantation at Tjibeureum the mean height was 

 now 3'14 meter, the mean stem circumference 022 meter. 

 The greatest height was 3'70 meter, the greatest stem 

 circumference 0'27 meter. The grafts at Tirtasari, which 

 are now three years old, had a mean height of 2'12 meter, 

 with a mean stem circumference of 019 meter. The 

 greatest height here was 2'78 meter, the greatest stem 

 circumference 0'225 meter. Among the cuttings of the 

 same age the mean height was 1'76 meter, the mean stem 

 circumference 0'145 meter, whilst the maxima were : height 

 275 meter and stem circumference 0'205. The Helopeltis 



Antonii again did much damage. Notwithstanding the 

 greatest care, the graft plantation at Tirtasari had to 

 endure a severe attack, but by the end of the year the 

 trees had to a large extent recovered. On the establish- 

 ment of Kendeng-Patoeha, where the Helopeltis has not 

 yet shown itself, another insect of the order of the Hemi- 

 ptera, a small, light green colored insect, has lately ap- 

 peared in large numbers and is beginning to injure the 

 officinalis plants in the same manner as the Helvpeltis does. 

 Hitherto it has not been proved that this hemipter lays 

 its eggs in the cinchona plant as does the Helopeltis, and 

 young, immature insects have not yet been met with. The 

 disease in 0. officinalis, from -which the top dies off, and 

 which was spoken of in the previous year's report, again 

 made its appearance, but in much less measure than in 

 1881, so that it caused little damage. 



4. — Harvesting of Cinchona.— The crop of 1882 amounted 

 to 126,595 kilogr., of which 125,215 kil. were destined for 

 sale in Europe, and 1,380 kil. for the medical service in 

 [Netherlands] India. The quantity would have been greater, 

 had it not been that during a portion of the year too few 

 laborers were available. Gardens which needed thinning 

 had on this account to be left without pruning. The 

 drying of this large quantity was sometimes very difficult, 

 on account of the continuous rainy weather. The drying- 

 room at Nagrak did good service, but will have to be en- 

 larged in 1883. The drying furnace at Tjinjiroean is nearly 

 completed, and next year ono will have to be built at 

 Rioen-Goenoeng as well. The transport of the packed 

 bales did not proceed a6 rapidly as could have been wished, 

 on account of a lack of means of transport, so that, at 

 the end of the year, about 350 bales more had to be 

 dispatched to Tjicao. An improvement hi this matter 

 can only be expected when the railway is opened to 

 Baudong. The cinchona bark of the 1881 crop was sold 

 at Amsterdam on 23rd May. The following prices per half 

 kilogram were obtained: — 



C. 



C. 



C. 



C. 



c. 



0. 



c. 



The average price of the whole consignment was /1'54 5 

 per half kilo, A consignment of 2,3715 kil. succirubra 

 bark, which was originally intended for the preparation of 

 quinetum, was afterwards also sent to the Netherlands 

 for sale, and was sold at Amsterdam on 11th October. The 

 prices per half kilo varied from fO'15 to /2'20. The 

 average price of the whole consignment was /l'66 s per 

 half kilo. The whole crop of 1881 realized a total of 

 /242,607-20, or /218,441'75 nett, During the auction in 

 May the price of sulphate of quinine was /170 per kilo, 

 with a downward tendency. A portion of the original 

 Ledgeriana plantation, which was shaved for the first 

 time in 1879, waftonce more subjected to this operation. 

 The renewed bar]?, which was now three years old, had 

 acquired the very high quinine yield of 9'26 per cent, 

 whilst the yield of the shavings of the original bark was 

 only 7'8 per cent. The plantations of the original trees, 

 8| bouw more or less, had once more to be pruned and 

 some trees removed. In this manner 9,073 kilos were 

 obtained, or 1,067'5 kilo per bouw. By the pruning of the 

 young Ledgeriana plantations also a considerable quantity 

 of bark was obtained, which, possessing as it does an 

 average of more than 2 per cent of quinine, is suited 

 for the preparation of quinine sulphate. The grafts at 

 the Tirtasari plantation also contributed to the harvest, 

 by the bark of the pruned branches. A large quantity 

 of succirubra stem bark, 1st sort, was obtained solely by 

 the partial stripping of the steins. The shaving of these 

 old succirubras was found not to be advantageous, as 

 the tree being left uncovered the bark renewed in in- 

 sufficient quantity. As a rule a light covering for the 

 shaved trees is necessary in the case of all varieties, to 

 hasten the renewal of the bark and increase its quantity. 

 5. — Staff; Ejyienses. — The staff was augmented during 1882 

 by a gardener, G. Toekamp Lammers, who begun his work 

 at Tjinjiroean in May. The grafting and bedding of 

 plants at that establishment is committed entirely to him. 

 The fixed native staff at the end of December consisted 



