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THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST., 



[November i, 1884. 



A FEW WORDS ABOUT TEA IN THE 

 UNITED STATES. 



BY IGNORAMUS. 



Perhaps the question of tea culture may he considered ex- 

 hausted iu our region (near Summerville, S. 0.), wheu we 

 see the failure of the government tea farm, which, for 

 awhile, promised such favorable results. Any one now visit- 

 ing the neglected grounds would sigh over the miserable 

 condition of the plants, hundreds dead and as many more 

 leafless and dying. The farm is deserted, as I believe the 

 government refuses further aid to the scheme. 



Let me now mention a few facts with regard to tea 

 culture, which cannot be gainsaid. 



Six years ago we obtained from the Agricultural Depart- 

 ment, at Washington, some small, delicate tea plants, which 

 were carefully planted in the poor, sandy soil of our Pine- 

 land garden. For awhile we were rather hopeless as to 

 their surviving, many of them looked yellow-leaved and 

 sickly; but gradually they assimilated themselves to the 

 uncongenial soil, and put out both buds and flowers. Now, 

 after five years of growth, we have strong, dark, shining- 

 leaved bushes, perfectly healthy, having withstood untouched 

 the terrible killing frosts of the past winter, which have 

 ruined our orange trees and oleanders, and even affected 

 our roses. 



We believe the secret of the culture of the tea plant 

 is, that where it is planted, there it must remain, un- 

 disturbed. We never dig around our bushes, the soil being 

 so light and sandy, generally removing the weeds by hand, 

 or with a very light hoe. 



A neighbour who had his tea plants long before we got 

 ours, has handsome, spreading bushes growing in the same 

 sandy land as ours ; some seeds from his plants have by 

 accident fallen among the debris along the high road, and 

 have grown into nice plants, which can now be seen there, 

 showing how perfectly easy is their culture. If the above 

 account proves interesting, I shall have great pleasure in 

 giving further information as to tea raised from seed saved 

 trom our own bushes. 



[There have been singular mistakes made from the first 

 in regard to tea culture in the South. Some twenty-five 

 years agu the government thought it would like to know 

 whether the Chinese tea would grow in the South, and 

 they sent an agent to China to get seeds. At that very 

 time, hundreds of tea trees were growing in the South, 

 producing seeds, and nurserymen were raising plants for 

 their trade both from these seeds and from cuttings. Any 

 nurseryman could have told the government that the tea 

 plant would grow very well in the South, and on a year's 

 notice could have furnished, under contract, as many plants 

 as desired for distribution. But the seed came, plants 

 raised, and distributed everywhere, and that was about the 

 last of it. 



During the last few years the government again tried 

 its hand. Again it did not appeal to nurserymen or tree 

 growers of experience, aud again we have the result in 

 the announcement that it " can't be done." 



Now, this is all nonsense. The tea plant has been grown 

 successfully, and is still growing successfully iu many parts 

 of the South. Tea has been made from the leaves as 

 good aud as cheap as the Chinese ever made. Let the 

 government give but a bounty — protection, if you like to 

 call it — for a few years for private enterprise, and we 

 will guarantee the success of the Chinese tea plant as a 

 tea product iu America. We do not need hundreds of 

 acres for experiments. Give premiums for an acre, or 

 half an acre, and for teas of various qualities from the 

 leaves, and give guarantees that these premiums shall con- 

 tinue from year to year, till experience is improved on, 

 and there will be no more reason found against the per- 

 manent success of the enterprise, than there was against 

 beet root sugar culture in France. That would never have 

 been a success but for the protection Napoleon gave it. 

 — Ed. G. M.] — Gardeners' Month///. 



FORESTRY EXHIBITION AT EDINBURGH. 

 (Continued from page 359.) 



■I m '\\\ — Owing to the varied character of its climate 

 Japau possesses a singularly rich flora, as will readily 

 ■ ecu in the numerous and somewhat interesting nature 

 its exhibits. Iu the north flourish vastforcsts of Oak a 



Pine; in the south the Cycas, Tree Ferns, the Banana, 

 the Lamboo, Lignoma, and Myrtle, delight theeye with 

 their grace of form and wealth of colour. The landscapes 

 are a so rich y diversified by clusters of Hydrangeas, 

 Camellias, aud Azaleas, which here attain a luxuriance and 

 beauty almost unknown iu Europe. Amongst the trees 

 which clothe the mountains are the Chestnut, Maple, Beech, 

 Elm, Lime, Elder, and Cypress. Japan also possesses 

 amongst its varied collection of ornamental Conifers several 

 of great value as timber trees, and which have been critically 

 studied and figured in recent volumes of the Gardeners' 

 Chronicle. Amongst these may be specially noted Retino- 

 spora obtusa, a splendid slab of which is exhibited, which 

 clearly shows the great size this tree attains in its native 

 country, the wood of which might, at a casual glance, be 

 readily mistaken for that of the California!! Redwood, 

 than which, however, it is of superior quality, being ex- 

 tensively used in ship building, for the erection of houses, 

 and for turnery. Other varieties of the same wood are 

 also shown, but these seem of inferior quality aud destitute 

 ot the rich colour so characteristic of the normal form. 

 The Japan Cedar (Cryptomeria japonica)— a tree much 

 prized in this country for its ornamental appearance and 

 general suitability for our climate— must, from the sections 

 of wood here shown, attain a goodly size in its native 

 country. This tree attains to a height of 130 feet and is 

 much used in Japan for bordering the high road. Various' 

 slabs of the more ornmental timbers are also on view, 

 such as the Bird Cherry. Maple, Juniper, Yew, and Camphor- 

 wood, the latter remarkable not only for its fragrant perfume 

 but for its beautiful graining as well. Of what we have 

 styled ornamental woods there is exhibited an exceedingly 

 neat trophy, showing in combination nearly 100 specimens 

 of such as are valuable either for quality, beauty of graining, 

 or colour. Amongst the various forms of Oak found iu 

 Japan, several of which are evergreen, none are of any 

 particular value as regards quality of timber, though for 

 ordinary purposes they are much iu request. From the 

 bark of one species of Oak cork is obtained, while others 

 are valuable for their edible fruit or for the dyes obtained 

 The Camphor tree (Laurus camphor;, found iu most of the 

 forests, occasionally attains to huge dimensions. One, visited 

 by Ksempfer, in the island of Kiusiu, is supposed to be 

 upwards of 1,000 years old. The Lacquer or Varnish tree 

 (Rhus verniflua) furnishes the gum with which the Japanese 

 heighten the brilliancy of their papier mdcht articles The 

 ^\ ax tree (Rhus succedanea) yields seeds from which wax 

 tor candles is obtained by compression. It thrives best 

 on barren and stony ground, ripens in its eighteenth year, 

 and atterwards declines. 



Another valuable tree is the paper Mulberry (Broussonetia 

 papynfera), whose bark supplies the paper of which the 

 Japanese make such extensive use. Several specimens of 

 clothing made from one of the climbing plants are also 

 exhibited-, as well as Willow ba=ket-work, woods for engraving 

 purposes, and a miscellaneous collection of useful articles 

 ingeniously made by the natives from Bamboo splints An 

 interesting collection of butterflies, dragon-flies and beetles 

 is to be seen, as also specimens of the ordinary silkworm, 

 the culture and rearing of which is an extensive Japanese 

 industry. Specimens of silk procured from the different 

 varieties of the worm— some of which are fed on the Mulberry 

 leaves, and others on those of the Oak— are also exhibited 

 To those interested in the manufacture of charcoal an 

 examination of the models of kilns will be highly instructive 

 One of these is made of stone, iu which Oak and the 

 better classes of wood are carbonised, aud the other, which 

 nearly approaches out own method of kiln-burning, is used 

 chiefly for the rougher woods. The former method, from 

 the quantity of charcoal produced— 300 lb. from about 

 1,0001b. of wood— is well worthy of imitation by those 

 who have the supplying of this commodity for estate pur- 

 poses. An interesting collection of about 100 dried spec- 

 imens of the leaves of .Hit. rent varieties of Maples is con- 

 spicuously arranged in frames made of different woods, and 

 give to the observer a fair idea of the numbers of this 

 interesting family now under cultivation in Japan. 



A tree-transplanting machine of good design, various 

 wood-working tools, wooden water-pipes ingeniously con,- 

 structed, and a timber-pond, are all exhibits of a practical 

 nature. These ponds exist in large numbers in Japan, and 

 are in construction somewhat similar to those used on til 



