September i, iS? 4 .] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



169 



CEYLON PRODUCE AND ITS ENEMIES. 



Wo have received from the Government of Madras 

 a very valuable paper containing full statistics of the 

 coffee and tea cultivation in that Presidency for the 

 year 1S83. It commences with the following 



Resolution— dated 17th May 188-1, No. 1681. 



The accompanying statements of coffee and tea cultiv- 

 ation for the calendar year 1883 are submitted to Govern, 

 ment for transmission to the Government of India. 



2. The resident of Travancore states that the returns 

 of coffee cultivation for the estates of Pathmanapuram, 

 Sheucottah, Neyathankari and Kotankarai and Kotan- 

 karay have not been received though repeatedly called 

 for. Xo statistics have been furnished for the tea 

 estate of Thovalay also. The resident has been re- 

 quested to supply the omission, and to explain the de- 

 crease of 50 acres in the area under mature plants 

 against Velavenkode and a corresponding increase in 

 the area taken up for planting but not yet planted as 

 compared with the figures entered for 1882. Supple- 

 mental statements will be submitted on receipt of the 

 information called for from the resident. 



We cannot afford space to take over the whole of 

 the suggestive figures, but we may mention the chief 

 of them. We fiDd under " Coffee" that the Nilgiris 

 have 459 plantations with an average elevation of 

 3,000 to 6,000 ft. : these contain 19,786 acres of 

 mature, and 3,111 acres of immature plants yielding 

 7,0S5,391 lb., or at the rate of 358 lb. per acre of 

 mature plants. The increase, it is stated is due to 

 several estates in Southeast Wynaad and on the Xilgiri 

 plateau having been newly brought to account. Under 

 Madura we see that in 3,355 plantations there 

 are only 3,601 acres of mature plants. This is 

 accounted for by the fact that all patches of native 

 coffee are included, however small. Opposite Arriba- 

 Bamudram is the note : " Eight plantations have been 

 left waste owing to the failure of crops la^t year." 

 Against the Wynaad the note is :— " The collector 

 Bays that he cannot explain the large increase in the 

 yield as compared with lt-82, but believes that the 

 managers of the estates are unwilling to give accurate 

 information." For ICasaragod, Sjuth Kanara, the 

 cost of cultivation was only R8 (per acre), 

 and the remark on this is : " The collector says the 

 low cost is due to the desultory cultivation on the 

 plains, which is not carried on systematically." In 

 Changauacherry, Travancore there are 24 acres of 

 immature plants, and the reason given is that 250 

 acres had died out : 100 acres had been plauted with 

 cinchona. For Thovalay the elevations differed from 

 those reported the previous year, but the Resident 

 bad furnished no exp!anntiou. 



U nder the statement illustrative of the state of 

 tea cultivation we see that in Vizagapatam there 

 was only IS acre of immature plants, but 40 

 more acres had been taken up for planting. 

 In Madura with an elevation of 7,000 feet the 

 acreage is 2'25 of old and 1 of young plants, giv- 

 ing a total yield of 200 lb., or at the rate of 89 lb. 

 to the (mature) acre. The Nilgiris of course show 

 the largest figures for acreage and yield. From 78 

 plantations, 3,000 to 7,000 feet, containing 3,322 

 acres mature, and 1,450 acres immature plauti, the 

 total yield was 510.2S0 lb., or at the rate of 154 lb. 

 per (mature) acre : the cost of manufacture per lb. 

 in the province being put at 1J to 4 annas! We 

 22 



may mention that the yield of tea is placed under the 

 two headings, Black and Green, and the note is :— " The 

 returns from planters do not in some cases specify 

 the yield of tea under black and green. In such 

 cases the yield is included in the total." Evidently 

 the supposition^ that black and green teas are pro- 

 duced from different varieties of plants. In Malabar 

 62 acres (mature) gave 1,860 lb. or 30 lb. per acre. 

 Travancore possesses 26 plantations^ontaining 137 

 acres old and 443 5 acres young plants (and 425 

 more have been taken up for planting), giving 

 17, '50 lb. tea, or 1601b. per (mature) acre : the cost 

 of manufacture being 5 annas per lb. 



With regard to pests injurious to our planting 

 interests here, we were amused to find iu the North' 

 China Herald, of all papers in the world, the follow- 

 ing most interesting account of the green fly : — 



Yesterday I observed the branches of a young plum 

 tree in possession of the green fly. Most of the leaves 

 fully occupied were reflexed backwards, so that the mid- 

 rib of the leaf was the highest portion of it, thus form- 

 ing a remarkable umbrella under which the heaviest rain 

 would net penetrate. Several leaves I cut off ard threw 

 into a large bowl halt filled with water. The inhabited 

 portion of the leaf showed a strange antipathy to the water, 

 refusing to touch it when the water was on a consider- 

 ably higher level. A leaf was immersed and every green 

 fly was immediately covered with a shining, glisteniDg 

 canopy such as I have seen on the water spider when 

 under the water. When the leaf was drawn out the in. 

 sects were as dry as beforo they went in. When a large 

 drop of water was poured into the hollow leaf over the 

 insects, it was immediately covered over with a mealy 

 substance, which stood out over the mid-rib like a spar- 

 row's egg, refusing absolutely to touch the sides of the 

 leaf ; on touching' it with the tip of my knife, the dU9ty 

 water immediately stuck to it and would not go back, 

 while the insects remained as dry as if no water had ever 

 been near their abode. A large number of populous leaves 

 were left iit the bowl all night, and are in it still fully 

 more than 2 1 hours, the insects being still as dry as 

 when they huug on the tree. A very few, which had 

 dropped off the leaf, were dead or benumbed a short time 

 ago, but the rest are apparently resolved never to drown. 

 The greenfly is covered all uver with a mealy snb^tance 

 after the fashion of the flower called the •• dusty miller." 

 This dusty substance seems to be its safeguard against 

 damp, and a most remarkable safeguard it is, a little sac 

 of air being formed as soon as water touches it, making 

 the glistening shelter which saves the insect fiom drown- 

 ing. While under water, th insect moves its feet freely, 

 but rarey raises its head from off the leaf in which its 

 teeth are inserted. 



It is a bad look-out for cacao and tea, if our 

 little enemy is really as tenacious of life as the above 

 asserts. On an unknown insect pest we cull the 

 following from the proceedings of the Horticultural 

 Society of India : — 



From Messrs. Begg, Duulop & Co. : — 



"We send you a bottle containing some diseased tea 

 leaves and shoots, which we have received from our 

 Manager at Koomber, Cachar, and which we shall be 

 much obliged by your having carefully examined, with a 

 view to ascertaining what the blight is that appears on 

 them. Our Manager says he has enclosed in the bottle 

 what he thinks may turn out to be the eggs of the 

 insect, and should this be the case, he hopes something 

 may be suggested by which to check the pest. 



" Should you not succeed in tracing the insect, we are 

 requested to send the bottle home, so kindly send it 

 back to us after inspection." 



The Deputy Secretary railed on Mr. "Wood-Mason of 

 the Indian Museum with the specimens, who kindly pro- 

 mised to give the matter his early attention. Mr. Wood- 

 Mason's letter on the subject is as follows: — 



" Three or four of the leaves and the piece of the 



