Vol. X. No. 242. 



THE AGKICULTUKAL NEWS 



245 



answers revealed a very creditable grasp, on the part of the 

 pupils, of the main principles of general agriculture, as con- 

 tained in the schedule upon which the work had been con- 

 ducted. Particular points of weakness are referred to in the 

 special reports on each paper. The usual ditticulties connected 

 with the correct use of the English language were in evidence. 



On the whole, the work done was satisfactory, and reflects 

 creditably on the teaching which the boys have received. 



[The details of the marks obtained by pupils are omitted 

 here.] 



GENERAL AGRICULTURE. Paper I — (^)nestions 2 and 3 

 were well answered by almost all the boys, but the answers 

 to the first and last were not so good. Insufficient attention 

 was paid to the manner in which plants absorb water, and not 

 enough details of the process were given. In the case of the 

 last question only a few of the boys mentioned that budding 

 and grafting are employed for rejjroducing plants that are not 

 easily grown from seeds or cuttings, while one alone mentioned 

 their use as a preventive of some forms of disease. No one 

 attempted to explain why budded and grafted plants come 

 true to the parent type while seedlings often do not. 



Paper II. — This paper was not as well answered as the 

 first. The answers to question 1 were scrappy and very few 

 boys mentioned the value of pen manure in providing humus. 

 In question 2 the substance implied was carbon and some 

 account of carbon assimilation was expected; in most cases 

 it was only referred to very casually and the mistake was 

 made of considering carbon dioxide as a plant food in itself 

 and not as merely a carrier of carbon. Question 3 was 

 usually well answered, but in question 4 tlie answers showed 

 much confusion; many boys did not mention the presence of 

 the bacteria in the nodules of leguminous plants, though 

 referrinsj; to the nodules themselves. 



TEPHROSIA. CANDIDA AND T. PUBPUREA 



AS GREEN DRESSING CROPS 



IN ST. LUCIA. 



The following intieresting notes on Tephrosia 

 Candida and T. purpurea have been prepared by 

 Mr. A. J. Brooks, Assistant Agricultural Superintendent, 

 St. Lucia: — 



A small quantity of seed of Te.phrona Candida was 

 received from the Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture in 

 November last, under the name of Boja Medelloa, this being 

 the common name by which this plant is known in Ceylon 

 (see Aijricultural News, Vols IX, p. 341; X. p. 91). 



The seeds were sown broadcast on November II, in 

 fairly heavy soil; they germinated well, but the plants grew 

 slowly for the first few weeks; this appears to be a common 

 characteristic of Tephrosias. As the plants advanced in age, 

 the growth greatly increased in rapidity. 



At the time of writing — eight months from the date of 

 sowing — the plants are of an average height of 6 feet, with 

 a 4- to .5-foot lateral spread, the main stem being well fur- 

 nished with lateral branches 2 to 2.', feet long. The root 

 .system is of a spreading habit, the tap root being of an 

 average length of only 6 inches. Many of the lateral roots 

 are, however, 3 to 4 feet in length, and bear a few nodules. 



The crop is still growing strongly, and has not yet shown 

 signs of flowering. It has thoroughly covered the ground 

 with a mass of light, feathery foliage, and in this particular 

 case has effectually kept down every weed, even .Johnson 



grass {Soiyhuni halepense), which is probably the worst weed 

 known to the agricultural world. 



Most authorities state the general height of this plant 

 to be from 3 to 4 feet. The growth of the plants in this 

 trial may, therefore, be regarded as exceptional, but I am 

 inclined to think that this growth would be general in a fairly 

 heavy, but open, soil. 



As the amount of seed received was only sufficient to 

 plant a small plot, it is impossible at present to do more 

 than place on record the growth and characters of the crop. 

 As soon as seed is obtained, trials will be made to ascertain 

 the behaviour of the plant in cacao and lime plantations, and 

 its ratooning powers and yields of green and dry humus. 



Seeds of T. purpurea (see Afp-icultwal Xeivs, Vols. 

 VIII, p. 405; IX, p. 281, and X, p. 75), known in Ceylon as 

 Kavalai, and Pila, were also received from the Commissioner 

 of Agriculture, for trial. A small quantity of soil in which 

 this Tephrosia had previously been grown was also received, 

 and a little mixed with the seeds when sown in the field in 

 February. Like that of T. Candida, the seed was slow in 

 germinating, but after the first few weeks the growth became 

 rapid; this, curiously enough, appeared to greatly increase as 

 the plants commenced to flower. 



Flowering l)egan three months after sowing; the 

 flowers were purple and white, and very small. At this stage, 

 the plants were from 2 to 2i feet in height, with a lateral 

 spread of 3 feet. The tap roots in this case were almost 

 twice as long as those of T. Candida, being of an average length 

 of 1 foot. The root system was much branched, and produ- 

 ced rather fewer nodules than the roots of T. Candida; this 

 was probably because of the short time taken from germina- 

 tion to the flowering stage, as compared with the similar 

 period of the former. 



From various reports from India and Ceylon it would 

 appear that the growth of this crop was normal; the height 

 is given as 1 to 3 feet. It is, however, stated in Vol. VIII, 

 p. 405, of the Ayricultural Xeivs, following an article in 

 L' Agrtmomie Tropicale, that this plant when fully grown is 

 9 to II feet high. It is possible that T. purpurea has 

 been confused with T. Candida. 



Seed is being harvested, and in the near future, trials 

 similar to those proposed for T. cundida^ will be conducted, 

 and the results published. 



From the present results, it is readily seen that both 

 these plants are valuable additions to our green manuring 

 crops in the West Indies. 



In forwarding these notes, Mr. J. C. Moore, Agri- 

 cultural Superintendent, St. Lucia, states that T. Can- 

 dida appears to be the most promising cover crop as 

 a green dressing for cacao and limes that he has yet 

 seen, but that it remains to be put to a practical test, 

 under estate conditions. 



Bulletin No. 3 of the Indian Forest Service describes an 

 investigation made for the purpo.se of ascertaining if there is 

 any ditt'erence of strength l)etween naturally grown and 

 plantation timber, in the case of teak. The samples employed 

 were chosen so as to be similar as regards their content of 

 moisture, and the experiments were performed with blocks of 

 each kind having the .same dimensions. The results showed 

 that plantation teak is as strong as that naturally grown, 

 except under transverse strain, and even here, the diflerence 

 is negligible in practice. 



