476 



THE TROPICAL AdF^ICULTlTRIST. [January i, 1886. 



bearing qualities of the vine into full perfection. In 

 187^ an Italian priest put a few acres into cultivation 

 as ji \'iucyar(l, and had splentliii results. He made an 

 excellent wine, some of which he Bold, "but," adds 

 Mr. Yarborough, '-ho left the di.strict shortly after- 

 wards, and his vineyard became completely neglected, 

 and has now, I believe, disappeared. In other places 

 I know of the Isabella vine growing perfectly wild, 

 the branches trailing over the grass, and bearing the 

 finest bunches of grapes in great quantities. Three of 

 these vines, in their wild state, gave 1-^ ton of grapes, 

 saleable in Auckland at least 3d. per lb. A German, 

 near the Kohu Kobu, has now jdanted a few acres 

 of vineyard, which look exceedingly tlourishing. and, as 

 he understands his business, he will no doubt do well. 

 Last year he made a lai-ge quantity of wine from the 

 Isabella grape, and isold a portion of it at a fair price. 

 The remainder is being kept for a few years." Con- 

 cerning the cultivation of other plants I\lr. Yarborough 

 gives some interesting information, which holds out 

 most hopeful prospects to the right class of settlers. 

 As lemons, oranges, date palms, citrons, figs, olives, 

 loquats, bananas, Oape gooseberries, mulberries, pea- 

 nuts, tobacco, guavas, maize, ginger, vine, castor oil, 

 Manilla hemp, peaches, plums, &c., grow more or less 

 in wild profusion, it is reasonable to suppose that they 

 are capable of a high cultivation. Lemons are com- 

 mon ; a few orange trees planted by early settlers 

 are luxuriant in their foliage and fruit, and thousands 

 are now being planted ; date palms gi-ow readily : 

 bananas require warm and .sheltered spots to do well, 

 but all the other plants or trees mentioned appear 

 to enjoy the climate and soil. It is a curious fact 

 that wherever a patch of brush or fern land has been 

 burnt off for sowing, there the Cape gooseberry may 

 be found during the course of the following few years 

 bearing in quantities. (^>uinces do remarkably well, and 

 bear in a wild state, while "j ;'le, pear, and other trees 

 common to both England and the Colonies, are ex- 

 cellent bearers in the district. Strawberries and cherries 

 are produced in abundance, but gooseberries and cur- 

 rants are hard to rear; melons of all sects, and all 

 vegetables commonly placed under glass in England, 

 are easily reared. .Some portions of the district are 

 better adapted than others for orchard and fruit pro- 

 duce, but it is not difhcult to select land of which 

 at least parts are eminently suited, owing to their 

 sheltered position and northern aspect, for the cult- 

 ure of the more delicate descriptions of fruits. Peach 

 trees grow wild in great numbers, and the fruit is 

 produced in such abundance that the pigs frow fat on 

 them in autumn. In some places you may almost 

 walk ankle deep in peaches; they are not the luscious 

 fruit which is obtained from greenhouses in England, 

 but are \'ery palatable, and make excellent preserve, 

 or may be dried and sold to advantage. The peach 

 tree, properly cultixated and attended to, produces 

 a fruit very little, if at all, inferior to the tlessert 

 peach in England, while the quince in its wild state 

 gives enormous crops of cxcelh'ut fruit. — ISiiropeun Mail. 



-♦- 



CUSCUTA CKEEPEB. 



Woods and Forests Board, 



ISth January 1S85, 

 Tlie Hoiioratilr the Culdiiial Secretary, 



Sir,— I have the honof to enclose copy of a report 

 from the Acting Director of Woods and Forest.?, 

 on the "cuscilta" creeper, and ou the steps taken 

 )u view of its destruction — which was read and con- 

 sidered at ji meeting of the Woods and Forests 

 ,t-'.oard held on the U'tii instant, 

 . The l5oard requested Mr. Scott to use his best 

 endeavours to destroy the "cu.scuta" as fast as he 

 can oh Crown Lands, taking if necessary some 

 additional men to help the present members of the 

 staff so as to secure their more rapid destruction. 

 Aiul, whereas, according to Mr. Scott's report, the 

 proprietors of " Atnm'' and " Har-le-Huc," winch now j 

 i'orni one anil the .same estate, are the only propri- 

 etors who seem to have t.aken steps for its destruction i 

 on private property. The Board further suggests that 

 His Exceileucy the Covernor be pleased to consider ' 



I whether it would not be desirable to enact an 

 I Ordinance directing private proprietors to destroy the 

 "cuseuta"' creeper on their property, and in case of 

 defaidt by them so to do— witliiu a reasonable 

 delay— authorizing the officers of the AVoods and 

 Forests Dep.artraent to enter their property, except 

 private dwelling-houses, and to destroy the creepers 

 at the proprietor's expense. 



I have the honor to sumit these recommendations 

 for His Excellency's favourable consideration. 



I have, &c., 

 V. Naz, 

 Chairman, 

 Enclosure 

 A/J? I2th January 1885. 



The Chairman of the Woods and Forests Board. 

 As you requested, I beg^to submit for the inform- 

 ation of the Board a report on the Cuseuta creeper. 

 This parasitical creeper belongs to the Convolvulus 

 family {Vonvolvidacea-) and is known by the common 

 name of Dodder. There are seven or eight different 

 species, but as I have not as yet examined the flower 

 I am unable to say at present what species we have 

 in Mauritius, and I have been informed that there 

 is more than one. There are three or four different 

 species indigenous to Europe and the temperate 

 parts of Asia. It is also found in Kussia where 

 it does great damage to the Flax crop. 



It is difhcult to say in what way it was introduc- 

 ed into INIauritius, but most likely with foreign seeds. 

 I have not foinid, I believe it was seen at Quartier 

 Miiitaire in 1882, and the rapidity of its growth 

 accounts for its now being so abundant. It has been 

 found in the Districts of Moka, Plaiues Wiihems 

 and Grand Port. 



Here is an extract which throws soine light on 

 the method by wlrich the Cuseuta first becomes 

 attached to the plant on which it grows. " The 

 see germinates in the soil in the usual way, and 

 by the long spiral like germ makes one or two tight 

 c o ils around its future support, and during the time 

 these coils are progressing the foster parent is in- 

 creasing in size. The compressing of the former 

 around the latter becomes tightened, thus causing 

 the bark of the foster-parent to become more delicate, 

 while the parasite is preparing a series of serai 

 roots to penetrate it. It having done this, its pos- 

 ition is firmly established. Its own natural root dies 

 away and thenceforward its true parasitic growth is 

 astonishingly rapid." 



It will thus be seen the great difbculty there is 

 in exterminating it, for, should even half an inch 

 of the stem be left on the br.anch of a tree it will 

 again grow and increase; therefore the only plan to 

 adopt is to cut down the branches and burn or 

 bury the whole. 



No trees have as yet been seen killed by it, but 

 I saw ou the Reserves of Iliver Moka some Framboises 

 Jlarronues which appeared to have been killed by it. 

 It has been proved that it has been S])read to a 

 great extent by the Indians carrying it from one 

 locality and throwing it on to trees in another, under 

 the false iilea that it was the "Liaiiesans fiu"/Cas- 

 sytha filiformis) which they use eb a medicine iu 

 certain casci. 



There arc at present three forest keepers einp'nyed 

 In clearing It out where it is most abundant. It is 

 intended to send six other keepers to assist in e\- 

 terminaliug it. 



The only Estates that arc clearing it from private 

 forests .as yet are "Alma" and " B:tr-le-Duc," and 

 I should suggest that a Forest keeper 'oe si;nt tcl 

 work alorg with the men sent for the jnirpose of 

 clearing it away. WiLf.iAM Siott, 



.Voting Directtor. Woods & Forests. 

 I would add that the Cuseuta is not without its 

 medicinal qualities, and the juice of the fresh plant 

 is prescribed iu sub-inflammatory comjilaints, and the 

 powder of the dried pl.ant is stri'wi'd on fresh wouuds, 

 the healing of which it is said to promote. — W. S. 

 The above i\Iinutc was referred to ijie Law Comnv't- 

 tee. — Jianiilins .Ucrointitc Recotd. 



