498 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [January i, i? 



un'ler examination contains at that particular mo- 

 ment. It is a well established fact that the same 

 variety of plants, whether raised upon different kinds 

 of soil or upon the same soil of a vai-ying degree of 

 richness, may contain a widely ditferiug ahsolute 

 amount of the same kind of organic '• volatile " and 

 org-auic '' fixed " constituents. 



It appears that about :i,000 lb. of perfectly dry Pine 

 timber are produced with a consumption of only 2^- 

 Ib. of potash and 1 lb. of phosphoric acid per acre 

 per annum ; with Ber-ch trees the (piatititics required 

 are rather larf^er. The growth of trees and shrubs, 

 therefore, plainly less exhaustive to the soil than 

 ordinary garden culture. 'J'he demand on the soil 

 becomes, moreover, considerably greater if all the 

 fallen leaves arc removed. — J. J. 'W.^Ganhners^ 

 Chroiiicfe. 



CARRAWAY SEED. 

 VTii have received from Messrs. Praschkauer & 

 Co.. of 12, Savagegardens. London, a diagram 



illus- 



trative of tlie fluctuations in the price of can-away 

 seed from 1^75 to ISSl inclusive, which show a 

 maxiraura of iOs. a cwt. in 1877. down to '^:is. in 1882, 

 the closing ]>rice at the end 1.^84 being 33s. It would 

 appear from statistics furni-hed that the supplies are 

 very short, and that something like scarcity is anticip- 

 ated. Holirmd is the ju'incipal producer, and a 

 succession of low prices luis caused a considerable 

 reduction of acreage. It is suggested that, as the 

 crop can be successfully grown in the sovitheru 

 counties of England, its c:; tended cultivation is 

 desorviug of attention. It requires two years to 

 come to maturity, and can be sown with some other 

 crops, such as Vjeaus and i)eas. 



AVe are quite of Messrs. Praschkauer's opinion, that 

 any crop that offers a fair prospect of remunerative 

 growth deserves careful attention at the present time. 

 It is said that carraway seed can be grown on strong 

 land, so it might be taken iu place of wheat. The 

 following details given by ^lessrs. Praschkauer as to 

 cultivation in Holland may therefore prove useful and 

 interesting: — 



Iu Holland the carraway seed is sown mostly for 

 its seed-crop only; in other parts, principally in 

 Germany, it istreated more like a fodder-plaut, which, 

 with its exquisite properties and it delicious aroma. 

 forms a valuable green food, to be either grazed otf 

 or made into hay, the second cut being allowed to 

 run to seed ; in this respect it is similar to clover. 

 Most of the Engli>li farmers will be familiar with 

 tlie various preparations of cattle-spice, which they 

 u.se either to sweeten musty hay, damaged grains, or 

 other food for cattle not palatable enough by itself. 

 In all these preparatinis ground carraway forms a 

 chief ingredient, and it stands to reason that it would 

 bo just as well to grow the seed sprinkh-d amongst 

 votber pasture seeds, in the meadows. This is done 

 iery extensivtly on stock farms in Germany. There 

 ts also the additional advantage that it would sweeten 

 he hay, particularly that drawn from silos, which is 

 more or less liable to lose its aroma through its long 

 confinement. 



AVe may mention that in Holland the mode of 

 cultivation deviates from that of similar grains only 

 in so far that iu the first year it is .«soni(times sown 

 together with mustard seed, sometimes wjtli peas or 

 beans. In those parts of Clermany where the agri- 

 cultural sy.stem is nearer like the English, there arc 

 two modes of cultivation as a rule. AA'e will first men- 

 tion that thetiuantity of seed required is 1^ lb. per acre. 



Fiist St/ii/C)ii. — Wow barley or other cereals in drills, 

 then crossways, also in drills carraway seed, best in 

 March or April, then hoe the barley only, and take 

 no notice of the carraway seed, which, when the 

 barley is ripe, is only about 1 in. to 2 in. above the 

 ground. AVhen tlie barley is cut hoe the carraway, 

 and remove thn p'ants that have sprung up irregularly, 

 so as to give full scojie to the plants in the regular 

 drills. In the late summer cut the carraways. making 

 an excellent hay of it, or turn your sheep on the 



field to graze off the plant. The latter is best where 

 applicable, as the sheep loosen the soil, and by 

 leaving behind their manure give to the plant fresh 

 vigour. The plant then gradually makes way again, 

 winters thruugh, and produces a crop of seed next 

 June or July. Before that, in spring, liberal hoeing 

 is requisite, so as to keep the ground clean. 



After the seed is cut in July, the stems are left 

 as plants, and produce then another crop iu the 

 following year. 



Sfcond Sp-<tim. — Use land that ia going to be in fallow 

 according to the usual system of rotation; ulaut 

 carraway seedlings (young shoots) on this laml, which, 

 will produce a crop of seed next year without iu any 

 way interfering with the rest the ground required , 

 for instance from a cereal crop. — Field. 



PHORMIUM TENAX:N. ZEALAND FLAX. 



This liliaceous plant is indigenous to New Zealand, 

 and may frequently be seen in this country, where 

 it is cultivated for ornamental purposes. To call it 

 flax is a misnomer, but it contains a fibre which 

 endures a great strain, and is valuable as a rope- 

 making material. In its native habitat it is found 

 almost everywhere — thickly clustered In huge swamps, 

 sometimes on hillsides, but more commonly scattered 

 in the vicinity of streams, and it is iu the richest 

 soil that it attains its most luxuriant growth, fre- 

 quently reaching a height of 6 feet and upwards 

 In its natural condition it is a most serviceable plaut. " 

 and may be described as the twine of the country, 

 being used for a variety of purposes — from tying up, 

 a horse or repairing a fence to replacing a broken 

 girth or a missing saddle strap. From the earliest 

 days of European settlement, the Maoris have been 

 accustomed to trade in the fibre, which they extract 

 by a wasteful and laborious manual process, and use 

 for makiug ornamental mats. 



How to utilise the fibre on a large scale for in- 

 dustrial purposes, is a problem that has long engaged 

 the attention of scientific men; and large sums have 

 been expended in experiments with a view to its 

 solution. Having closely studied the question — both 

 in England and in New Zealand — my experience may 

 perhaps be deemed of interest to Colonists and other.s. 



In 187-4 a series of careful and patient experiments 

 on leaves which were grown iu this country or brought 

 from a distance resulted iu an ingenious invention 

 known as Andrews' patent, hy which the fibre was 

 eflicieutly cleansed by a hammering process without 

 its strength being impaired, and the gummy or 

 resinous matter removed by jets of water which played 

 uuder pressure during the operation. It was confidently 

 believed that the fibre which resulted from this pro- 

 cess would prove suitable for textile fabrics, and some 

 bolts of excellent canvas were produced at Dundee 

 and Belfast. The manufacturers found, however, that 

 to work it up on a large scale would necessitate con- 

 siderable modifications in the jute and flax machinery, 

 and this they were not prepared to face unless it 

 could be iucoutestably shown that a regular supply 

 of material ecjual to sample could be guaranteed. 



AVith a view to ascertaining this point I consented 

 to visit New Zealnnd, au<l traversed the principal 

 phormium-growing districts in both islands, from 

 Invercargill to Auckland. I found that a rough-and- 

 ready process of preparing the fibre by the use of 

 revolving beaters and scutchers was extensively in 

 operation, and large quantities were being shipped 

 to the Lonilon market. As a result of my investig- 

 ations I emphatically pronounced against the cotn- 

 mencement of operations in New Z»*aland on several 

 grovmds. Firstly, the leaf, as jtro;'urable in the Colony, 

 was (if varying sizo antl tenacity, owing to the action 

 of high winds and of fires, and it was all but hope- 

 less to count on a uniform crop. In this res(>rct it 

 was found to differ materially from the home-grown 

 or imported specimens wdiich had beeu used for 

 experimental purposes, anil, consequently, the machin- 

 ery dealt less efficiently with the natural \o\i. 

 Secondly, the Phoi-mum ienax was most abundant 



