398 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURISl'. PDec. i, 1885. 



TOMATO CULTURE IN COLOMBO. 



Agricultural School, 28th October 1885. 



Dear Sir, — The foUoniiig experiments in tomato 

 cultivation have been tried by me at the Agricultural 

 School. My first exj)erinieut was tried in ordinary 

 cimiamon garden soil. Seed was sown in a box filled 

 with soil and manure (cow-dung). Meanw'hile holes 

 two feet apart were dug in the selected ground, the 

 soil therein being enriched by a slight addition of 

 well-fermented farmyard-manure. M'hen the plants 

 in the nursery attained the height of about three 

 inches, they were carefully rooted out and transplanted, 

 two in each hole. When the plants were just begin- 

 ning to put forth dowers, liquid-manure (cow-dung dis- 

 solved in water) was applied to a few of the holes, a 

 topdressing of saltpetre (potassium nitrate) to some 

 more, and the rest were left to feed on the manure 

 first applied. The result of this experiment was, that 

 the plants to which liquid manure was applied yielded 

 a greater produce than those left to feed on tlie manure 

 first applied, whilst those that received saltpetre yield 

 about twice the produce of the liquid manured ones. 

 Besides this, some of the ijlants were topped. These 

 yielded fruits that "were actually much bigger and 

 better shaped than those produced by the others. 



Having been successful in this experiment (per- 

 formed about January last) I proceeded to follow the 

 same course of treatment with some plants grown in 

 Jmie last upon a somew'hat moist soil of a peaty 

 character. These at first, to my great satisfaction, 

 grew more luxuriantly than those on the sandy soil, 

 but suddenly plant after plant began to show symp- 

 toms of declining health which was indeed a very sad 

 sight, because at this time all the plants had young 

 fruits. A tree once attacked never recovered. On 

 examination I found that the sudden change the plants 

 underwent was partially due to the excess of water 

 in the soil, caused by the few heavy showers that fell 

 diu'ing the month. Another probable reason was, that, 

 as the plants increased in size, their roots began pene- 

 trating into the sour soil beneath, thus allowing the 

 injurious matter to complete the rest of the destruct- 

 ive w'ork. The chief lessons to be derived from my 

 experiments are as follows : — 



1st, that tomatoes thrive better on rich sandy soils 

 than otherwise ; '2nd, that an excess of water is higlily 

 injurious ; 3rd, that manure applied in a liqmd state 

 is very desirable ; 4th, that a topdressing of saltpetre 

 makes the plants more productive ; and 5th, that top- 

 ping increases the size of fruits. 



Dur-ing these experiments the plants wera not quite 

 secure from disease. Black spots on the surface of tlie 

 leaves and blisters upon the stem were caused by a 

 minute fungus, which was prevented by the applic- 

 ation of bisulphide of potassium during the early 

 stages of the attack, but w'lien the disease was fully 

 established the plants never recovered.— Yours tnrly, 

 TV. ARTHUR DE SILVA, Agricultural Student. 



CINCHONA BARK HARVESTING. 



SiK, — Can you or any of your correspondents give 

 me information on the following subjects? 



What is the most advantageous length of time 

 (after first shaving) to wait before shaving healthy 5- 

 year old suceirubra trees a second time ? When trees 

 have been covered with inana grass for six months, 

 is it advisable to remove the covering during the 

 wet monsoon weather ? Is it advisable to shave 

 Ledger trees ? does renewed Ledger bark analyse 

 better than original? CINCHONA. 



[A year is the usual time, we believe, to wait 

 between each scraping, but the longer the interval 

 the better. We should think covering would be 

 needless in the wet weather. Renewed Ledger bark 

 is decidedly richer than original. Bee Owen's Ciii- 

 chona Planter's Manual. — Ed.] 



FLIES AND BUGS. 

 Beetle.'!, insects, ronilus. ants, licil-biiys, rats, mice 

 gophers, cbipnnnilts, clciu-id out by "Rough on Rats." 

 \y. i). Smith & Co., Madras, Solo Agents. 



The R.u.vf.vll at Cherrapunji from the 1st of 

 January this year up to the 27th of August has been 

 280-11 inches, as compared with 222-45 inches dur- 

 ing the same period of last year. 



R.iVAGES OF THE YeLLOW RiVEI! AND ReI-AIU 



OF THE B.iNKs.— Says the Japan Weekly Mail : — 

 A correspondent of the North-China Herald 

 sends an account, which reads like a romance, 

 of the methods employed to check the ravages of 

 the Yellow River. It appears that double lines of 

 einbankment are erected, the larger of the two 

 being about a mile from the river on each side, and 

 having a width of 75 feet at the bottom with a 

 height of 10 feet. This barrier, however, has 

 proved quite ineffectual. The river burst over and 

 through it last June twelvemonth, and the work 

 of repairing appears to have been going on at 

 intervals ever since. The method of effecting re- 

 pairs is extraordinary. It is thus described :— 



Earth and kaoliang stalks by the million are added 

 in either end of the broken dyke, the two ends are 

 so made as to approach gi-ad'ually, and when all is 

 finished the appearance is somewhat that of a horse- 

 shoe curve. When the two ends have approached 

 sufficiently near, cablelike ropes are passed back and 

 forth net fashion, upon which are placed mats and 

 stalks and earth, layer upon layer, all pressed down by 

 stone weights lifted by a score of men. When this 

 new formation has reached a sufficient height, about 

 equal to the depth of water swiftly flowing under- 

 neath it, the supports are suddenly removed ; all goes 

 down with a rush and a crash and a splash and a 

 plunge. Sometimes the same thing is effected by 

 means of an old boat heavily loaded, whose bottom has 

 been previously knocked out. In either case this 

 huge plug, so to speak, loaded with workmen as well, 

 is not unfrequently overturned by the force of the 

 water thus suddenly arrested in its wayward com-se, 

 and lives not a few have thus been hurled into a 

 watery giave. At one time thirteen persons perished, 

 and during the -year a hundred or more have been 

 drowned or killed in connection wdth the work on the 

 river. Some of them were hired men from the cotuitry 

 near by, but most of them were soldiers. They are 

 kept at w-ork in dangerous places by means of the lash 

 in unfeeling hands. The officials are not supposed 

 to know of this loss of life. It is never reported, 

 except in the case of some official or icci-i/iiaii who 

 has fallen with his men. For this more dangerous 

 kind of work the men demand extra reward. 

 One way they are paid is as follows. Bach couple 

 of men carrying a heavy load of earth between 

 thein, Chinese fashion, are allowed to have as many 

 cash as they can grab at one snatch as they pass along 

 each time, the loose copper cash being hi an open 

 basket on the ground. If considerable time elapses 

 before the gap is filled, a good roimd sum of money 

 may thus be picked up. The men risk their lives 

 for the grab. Pavment at other times is by the 

 barrow load according to distance, or by the foot. 

 Ten feet square one foot thick pressed down hard 

 rolled and poimded are paid 180 real cash. Very much 

 depends upon the nature and time of the pounding. 

 If done well it will be to the advantage of the Gov- 

 ernment and the flooded districts, but the poor work- 

 man will have less money for his good work. If 

 done hastily the number of square feet will be in- 

 creased; but the bank thus made will not resist water. 

 There is, strauge, to say, a sort of preniiiim upon 

 poor work. Low wages, "poor pay, and many squeezes 

 make it the advantage of the workmen to pile upas 

 much earth as possible before the pounding is com- 

 menced, and then by making the outside very hard 

 and level to raise more quickly tlie high and fine 

 looking mound. If well done, tlic inspecting ofticial 

 is none the wi.scr. Thesub-insipectorH do not report 

 the fraud, being somewhat interested in a s(|ueeze 

 of their own when the work is paid for. The work 

 on the whole appears much better this year than 

 last, and but lor tiie large opening made last year and 

 still open, the Second bank would probably be' effectual 

 in its object. 



