Feb, I, i«86.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



525 



inches for each of the four. With a mean temper- 

 ature of about Gl" for the whole year, the climate 

 ig about all that could be desired for heilth 

 while good lor luxuriant ve:^etatiou as gre6n and 

 Kolden flushed tea, up to 0,000 feet proves. We 

 ought from the experience of 18S5 to know the 

 best time to prune tea, as the process has been 

 going on over all the months of the last half of 

 the year, the fields first pruned being in full 

 bearing again before the prunings from those last 

 dealt with have been buried. Here, as in India, 

 it might bo supposed that November would be the 

 best month for using the knife. But the difficulty 

 here, within 7' of the ecjuator, is, that tea pruned 

 early in November lias a coating of tender flush 

 on to endure the north-east winds of December. 

 When the rubbing of moss ol3f the stems, making 

 good-sized longitudinal holes and burying prunings, 

 weeds and rotten timber are addf>d to pruning, 

 a good deal of time is occupied. But, of course, 

 the holing and burying next time will be lighter 

 work. Apart ti-om the winds of December having 

 affected some of our young buds and flush on 

 recently pruned tea, our only trouble at present 

 is about very minute black bugs which appear on 

 some of our flush, a dozen small specks or so on 

 a yomig leaf, here and there. We are assured 

 that there is little to fear from this minute insect, 

 which seems to dififer from the destructive coffee 

 bug, and this is reassuring, for, under a power- 

 ful microscope, the creatures look in shape like 

 turtles and in coat like flying foxes, while each 

 has his proboscis inserted in the substance of the 

 leaf. The affected leaves are, however, few and far 

 between. — A couple days ago, I measured the stem 

 of one of our tine seed-bearing tea trees. It was 

 round and well formed — siugle and not a junction 

 of stems— and a Uttle above the ground its circum- 

 ference was 26 inches. The tree, for such it is, 

 is nine years old. 



HvDEANGEAs AS Law.m Shkcbs. — The hydrangeas 

 planted out may not be altogether a scarce plant in 

 gardens, but it is scarcer than it should be, for few 

 flowering shrubs last so long in bloom or are so 

 effective when in. that condition. It may not perhaps 

 be suitable for exposed positions in the northern 

 counties, as it cannot be said to be quite hardy ; but, 

 seeing that it lives for many years in sheltered 

 coraers in the neighbourhood of London, it is clear 

 that it is hardier than many imagine. Here in 

 Somerset it has endured 2(i' of frost in a position 

 fully exposed to the north-e-ist wind, and has not 

 bicu seriously injured. We have plants of it struck 

 from cuttings fifteen years ago, that are now 12 yds. 

 in circumftreiioe, witli more than two hundred heads 

 of flowers upon thum. and many of the heads are 

 so large that they would not go into a gallon measure. 

 I should add, however, that our soil seems to suit 

 them better thau some others m.%y do. It is a sandy 

 loam, and moderately deep, resting ou the red sand- 

 stone. The plants to which I allude are standing on 

 grass, and have plenty of room on all sides in which 

 to develop themselves. They commence to fliwi^r in 

 August, and invariably last in good condition until 

 the end of Novemher. In one part of the pleasure 

 giounds the flowers come quite bin*, while the others 

 retain their normal pink colour. Our pl.ants give us 

 no trouble in the way of tultivatioo. The old flower 

 heads are cut off as soon as they fade, which is all 

 the attention they require. I jnay aid that the 

 flower heads are larger in a moderately damp summer 

 thw in a dry one, lik." the past. This shows that 

 the roots like a fair amount of moisture while in 

 active growth, and those wlio may wish to have 

 specimens of hydrangeas in the best conditiou may 

 make a note of this fact.— Taitston. — Field, 



StLK OoTTOS-TREE. — From a miss of oorrespindenoe 

 relating t. > vvirit".e silk-ottoii-trae (E'-iodendron anfrao- 

 t-iosum) commonly known as Sififnsr<f'i<f^iifn\i in 

 Oanarese, we learn that the tree is most atjuiidaut 

 in oertiin Taluks of the Tumkiir, Mysore, Shimoja, 

 and Hiss.in districts, and in the forasts of Shimoja 

 and Hissan. The reports of ?Ie^,'ri. I,)vorv aud Ci-ahim 

 Anderson are of special interest. In cultivation, the 

 tree is extensively used as a supp>rt to the hetel-vine, 

 a purpose for which its rapid growth and niked under 

 stems render it well suited. Mr. Dickinson, the 

 conserv-ttor of forests in t'oorg, is of opinion that 

 the moister cliiuite of South Canara is better adapt- 

 ed to its requirements than any part of Mysore. 

 The tree can be readily propagated from pods or 

 stakecuttiugs, which is an important matter in 

 facilitatiui? the quicker development of fruit-bearing 

 plants. f'L<tpoK- is ready for harvesting in the begin- 

 ning of summer or in the mouths of February and 

 March. After separating and well clearing, 22 lb. 

 of k-(ipoIc were divided for despatch to the valuatorB 

 at London and Rotterdam. The reports submitted 

 from the latter are favorable as regards quality and 

 condition of tbf samples submitted for valuation ; 

 but the prices offered are so low that the expediency 

 of taking any further steps to advance this industry 

 is extremely doubtful. Where kapok is plentiful in 

 the forests, it might pay to collect aud export it, 

 but certainly not in any limited area of cultivation , 

 The Lmdon market does not require kapok, but 

 they are anxious to obtain a few similar materialfi 

 at low prices. — Indian Affriciiltural Gazette. 



Cinchona Cultiv.ktion in- India. — We regret 

 to find that our friend Mr. Gammie of the Sikkim 

 Gardens was unable to keep his promise to visit 

 Ceylon on his way home or out, during a recent 

 trip to the old country. Mr. Gammie however 

 paid a visit to the Nilgiris, and we venture to 

 extract the following interesting information from 

 a letter he has sent to us : — 



" On my way out I made a flying visit to the 

 Nilgiri plantations. The Government plantations of 

 Dodabetta and Neddivattum are very fine indeed. 

 Better, indeed, could scarcely be desired. Ossing- 

 ton was also looking magnificent under Mr. Row- 

 son's excellent management. The Madras Govern- 

 ment made a great mistake, I think, in not 

 retaining his services. He had collected over 

 100,000 lb. of dry bark by the stripping process, 

 when I was there, and intended colIeetiHg over 

 20,000 lb. mote by the same plan. The stripping 

 plan is certainty a gi'eat success in that part of 

 the world, and I can't understand anyone there 

 preferring the shaving process to it. I also saw 

 several most promising young C. offichialis plant- 

 ations. I only wish cinchonas would grow in 

 Sikkim half as well as they do in the Nilgiris. 

 We go on in the usual way, and will do so, I 

 suppose, to the end of the chapter. 'Uprooting' 

 is the only plan we can make pay. Wc have a lot 

 of very promising— 1. e. for us— young hybrids and 

 Ledgers. Our experience to date is that Ledgeriana 

 follows as a second crop better than any other 

 variety, but another year or two's experience is 

 necessary before that point can be decided with 

 any certiainty. I am glad to hear that tea is do- 

 ing so well ' with you. Having been away for the 

 summer I don't know much about this tea season's 

 working on our hills, but believe it will be about 

 an average, and almost every tea garden of any 

 age, in the hills, will show a fair profit on the 

 season's outturn. I have not yet had time to read 

 over the correspondence in the 7'. A. on the pro- 

 spects of quinine manufacture in India, to which 

 you directed my attention. But I may at. once say 

 thiit I have no faith in the success of any Com- 

 pany that is likely to be started for thai purpose 

 in .Southern India," 



