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THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[June 1, 1885. 



Setchuen, whilst the Phragmites abounds near all fresh- 

 water courses. The trees cultivated in the province of 

 Setchuen (which is considered to be the most beautiful 

 and richest of. the empire) and which need man's care 

 to propagate them, are the same as those found in all 

 Southern China ; Mandarin Pear, Peach, Plum with red 

 flesh, Dryandra Stillingia, immense Ficus lucida (near 

 the pagodas), and above all, a numerous assortment of 

 splendid Bamboos, which the inhabitants make use of 

 in a vast number of ways. Besides the ordinary Tea, 

 spread throughout ore half of China, in the mountains 

 of Moupine and Setchuen, a second species, called "White 

 Tea," is cultivated ; it is a shrub much grown, with 

 slightly hairy leaves and of an elongated form. 



The herbaceous flora of Moupine, and of the large 

 mountains of Western China is proportiouately less rich 

 than the arborescent vegetation, but it is always more 

 interesting there than in the norih of the empire, where 

 monotony is the striking characteristic of the vegetable 

 kingdom. And if the northern flora comprehends a certain 

 number of European genera and species, it is not so 

 ill Eastern Thibet, where these last are only represented 

 by accidental introductions. I should say that it is only 

 r few years ago that the culture of Maize, Potatoes, and 

 European Cabbages was introduced into these mountains, 

 and without which it would only be possible for a small 

 number of hunters to live. Another observation of inter- 

 est is that when the old forests are destroyed by 

 fire for the purposes of agriculture, the denuded land 

 gives spontaneous birth to other vegetation, to a great 

 quantity of Siuapis with oily seeds, from which the 

 natives obtain two or three good harvests without any 

 labour. As this species of Siuapis (which is largely 

 cultivated by the Chinese throughout the empire) is not 

 seen growing in the woods, one asks with astonishment, 

 Whence and how has it orginated ? 



I should lengthen my letter without measure if I under- 

 took to review the herbaceous plants of Moupine — those, 

 more easy to prepare than the woody plants, are con- 

 sequently better represented in my herbarium. I conduce 

 by adding that in the valleys of Eastern Thibet I have 

 counted fifty species of Ferns, and that in the high 

 prairies of that region I have commonly found a large 

 Rhubarb with palmate leaves, whilst the species with 

 entire leaves is the only one that grows on the hills of 

 Northern CLiua and of Mongolia. The roots of these two 

 medicinal plants are hunted after with avidity by the 

 m uuitaineers, and constitutes an object of active commerce 

 all over the empire. — Aemand David, iuFranchet's " Plants.' 

 DavidianEB." — Gardeners' Chronicle. 



NITRATE OF SODA AS MANURE. 

 The committee of the Saltpetre Producers' Association 

 oil the West Coast of South America (Comite Salitrero, 

 at Iquiqu'3, Chili) offers £1,000 in prizes for essays 

 on the use of nitrate of soda as manure. Of this 

 amount — 



I. A prize of £500 will be awarded for the best popular 

 essay, showing the importance of nitrate of soda as a 

 manure, and the best mode of its employment. 



The essay, in its theoretical part, is to treat of the 

 effect of nitrate of soda on vegetation, as compared with 

 other manures containing nitrogen, and should exhibit 

 the present state of knowledge on this point. In its 

 practical pait the essay is to give directions for the 

 use of nitrate of soda iu the various conditions of plant 

 cult ire. Reference's and quotation-, and purely scientific 

 explanations, if necessary, are to appear as notes. The 

 essay may be written in English, German (italic charac- 

 ters), or French. The writing must be distinct, ami on 

 one side of the paper on'y. It is desired that the 

 #ienuth of the essay may not exceed six sheets of printed 

 octavo. Each manuscript is to be signed with a motto; 

 the name and address of the author is to be given in 

 a^sea'ed envelope bearing the motto outside. The essays 

 are 10 be sent on or before October 1, 1885, to any 

 of the undermentioned judges. 



II. A prize of £500 will be awarded for the best 

 essay treating of the same subjects on the basis of 

 n,w experimental researches made by the author himself. 

 Xhu eusaye must fulfil the conditions already mentioned. 



They may be sent to any of the judges on or before 

 January 1, 1877. The committee of judges consists of 

 the following agricultural chemists : — 



Germany.— Professor Paul Wagner, Director of the 

 Agricultural Station at Darmstadt. 



England.— R. Warrington, Esq., Agricultural Laboratory, 

 Rothamstead, St. Albans, Herts. 



United States of America. — Vacant. 



France.— Professor L. Grandeau, Director of the Agricul- 

 tural Station, and Dean of the Faculty of Natural 

 Philosophy at Nancy. 



Belgium.— Professor Petermann, Director of the Royal 

 Agricultural Station at Getuoloux. 



Holland. — Professor Adolf Mayer, Director of the Agri- 

 cultural Station of the State at Wegeningen. 



Russia. — Professor L. Thorns, Director of the Agricul- 

 tural Station at the Polytechnical Institution at Riga. 



If none of the essays received should thoroughly 

 satisfy the committee of judges, they are authorised to 

 award inferior prizes of not less than £150 each. Any 

 essay for which a prize is awarded becomes the absolute 

 property of the Saltpetre Producers' Association at 

 Iquique, which also reserves to itself the right of trans- 

 lation into other languages. (Signed) Professor Paul 

 Wag neb, Darmstadt, for the Comite Solitrero, at Iquique. 

 — Gardeners' Chronicle. 





A NEW NATAL INDUSTRY. 



Coffee was not a success but a sad failure iu Natal. 

 But it seems that the culture of tea promises to bo 

 more successful, judging from the following which 

 appears in the Colonies and India: — 



Sir,— During my late visit to Natal I was much 

 interested by a new product for South Africa — i.e. 

 Tea — the cultivation of which is being carried on some- 

 what extensively by Mr. J. L. Hulett, in the Umvoti 

 district, Natal. This is no mere garden cultnre, for Mr. 

 Hulett remarks that he compares his crop with an 

 estimated yield per acre in India, where 640 lb. per 

 acre is given as the yield in the tenth year. "My 

 picking area has been this past season as follows: — 

 About half an acre seven years old (imported hybrid plants), 

 ih acres 1st year, 1881 ; 27 acres last year, 1882. Accord- 

 ing to the above estimate I should have manufactured : 



i acre ... ... ... 240 lb. 



4| acres at 160 lb. per acre ... 720 „ 

 27 acres at 40 lb. per acre ... 1,080 ,, 



or, total .„ 2,040 lb. 



Instead of which my yield for the season will reach 

 9,000 lb. of marketable tea." The foregoing remarks 

 apply to the year 1S83. When I left Natal (end of June, 

 this year), Mr. Hulett had then over 70 acres of tea 

 uuder cultivation. 



The culture of land is not under any circumstance 

 over 51. per acre per annum : this includes weeding, 

 manuring, priming, tools, &c, which, allowing 800 lb. 

 of tea per acre (when five years old), will give l^d. 

 per lb. for the annual growth of the tea. The cost of 

 picking conies to 2%d. per lb. of made tea ; cost of roll- 

 ing and drying, 2}<1 This gives 6d. per lb. total cost 

 of growing and manufacturing, exclusive of interest on 

 capital outlay. Mr. Hulett further remarks: — "Had I 

 possessed a rolling mill and drying furnace the cost 

 would have been considerably lessened — say. picking and 

 making, to 3i/. per lb., or iid. in all. My opinion is 

 that an enterprise is before the colony well adapted to 

 the requirements of those possessing small capital, say 

 from 500/. upwards: especially is this the case when ten 

 or twelve ca" grow for a central factory." "Indeed," 

 says Mr. Hulett, "I am quite prepared to purchase this 

 leaf in the green state and give 3</. per lb. for the 

 same direct from the tree until export becomes a 

 necessity." The colony possesses thousands of acres that 

 may yield an average of 800 lb. per acre, and Mr. 

 Hulett is more and more convinced that tea growing 

 in Natal is certain to succeed, and that it will provo 

 a mine of wealth to the colony far beyoud any gold 

 mines that may be opened out inland. He kindly handed 

 me some samples marked Pekoe 12 3. and I obtained 

 a sample of rough tea from his local ageut in Durban 



