310 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



October 6, 1917. 



JAMAICA: REPORT ON THE DEPARTMENT 

 OF AGRICOLTURE, lUHi-n. 



The part of this report which deals with insect pests has 

 been reviewed already in the last two issues of the Agricul- 

 tural Neias. The present article will deal with other matters of 

 interest brought forward in other portions of the Jamaica 

 Report. 



The chief feature affecting the agricultural interests of 

 the colony during the period reported on was the hurricane 

 in August 1916. This practically destroyed the banana crop, 

 as well as causing considerable damage to coco-nuts, canes, 

 and cacao. It will be remembered that a similar disaster 

 befell the banana crop in 191.5. These two successive blows 

 to Jamaica's chief industry have occasioned serious losses and 

 hardships to a large section of the community. On the 

 other hand, owing to war conditions, other products have 

 brought improved prices, so that the total value of exports 

 for the year showed an increase of £600,000 over that of 

 the previous year. 



The largest crop of .sugar since 1884 was produced this 

 year— over 28,000 tons, valued at over £500,000— which, 

 together with some 18,000 puncheons of rum, valued at 

 £3.50,000, raised the value of the products of the sugar 

 industry to more than five times that recorded for the year 

 before the war. 



Mr. Cousins makes misleading remarks concerning the 

 efficiency of Moreland sugar factory, stating that a return 

 of 1 ton of sugar has been obtained from 8§ tons of cane. 

 This figure may possibly have been obtained over a very 

 limited period; the average amount of cane taken at this 

 factory to make 1 ton of sugar during last season was 10 

 tons: a good modern factory should liave taken an 

 average of 81 tons, with canes of the quality dealt with 

 at Moreland : these figures more accurately measure the 

 factory's efficiency. The owners of this factory probably 

 fail to share Mr. Cousin's self complacency. It should 

 be unnecessary to point out that the quantity of cane 

 taken to make a ton of sugar is a very imperfect indi- 

 cation of factory efficiency, the real criterion is the amount 

 of sucrose in the cane. In this connexion reference may 

 be made to the West Indian bulletin Vol. XVI, p. 102: and 

 the Agricxdtwal Neu-s, Vol. XVI, p. 11. 



The rehabilitation of the sugar industry in Jamaica 

 must produce a beneficial influence on the agricultural and 

 commercial prosperity of the island, but although the banana 

 industry has met with such misfortunes for the present, it 

 will doubtless still long continue to be one of the island's 

 chief sources of wealth, even though the export of bananas 

 this year fell to one-fifth of the normal. 



As we go to press information is recorded of another 

 disastrous hurricane striking Jamaica on September 24; full 

 particulars of the damage done are not yet to hand. 



Fortunately, a reduction in the number of plants affected 

 by the Panama disease of bananas is reported. Measures are 

 being taken to control the attacks of the banana borer which 

 is causing some anxiety. 



Another .source of revenue has proved very profitable, for 

 a time at least, that is logwood; a total value of £800,000 

 having been credited to logwood products for the year. 

 Large quantities of logwood extract are being made and 

 exported. 



Although th? hurricane of 1916 did some damage to 

 coco-nut plantations, the export of coco-nuts for the year 

 maintained the same high level as that of the previous 

 year, viz., 27,000,000 nuts, with an improvement in value 

 of 75 per cent. The world's market for coco-nuts appears to 

 be widening, so that the future prospects of that industry are 

 bright. 



The exports of coffee show a small increase over those of 

 1915 in quantity, and in value an increase of £25,000. 

 Unfortunately, owinji to the recent embargo on importation of 

 coffee into the United Kingdom, the growers of the well- 

 known Blue Mountain variety have been seriously inconven- 

 ienced by being debarred from their chief market. 



With regard to cacao, owing to damage done by the 

 hurricane to the plantations, the export fell somewhat in 

 quantity, but, as prices were good, the value of the year's 

 export was put as £167,000. 



Another promising agricultural interest in Jamaica ia 

 sisal cultivation. Some of the dry lands in the south of the 

 island seem admirably adapted to this purpose. In 1915 

 about 45 acres were planted in sisal and in henequen at 

 Lititz, an experiment station in the dry district. The plants 

 have grown satisfactorily, but it became evident that the orig- 

 inal spacing — 12 feet X 6 feet — was unnecessarily wide. The 

 present plan is to plant 7 feet x 6 feet thus getting many more 

 plants to the acre, and much reducing the cost of cleaning. 

 Both sisal and henequen are doing well at Lititz, though 

 sisal seems to be the more suitable for the particular situation. 

 There are plants now available for establishing 300 acres, 

 and it is hoped to double this stock during the coming year. 

 It appears very probable that a profitable industry in sisal 

 fibre may soon be established 



The work of the Government Stock Farm at Hope 

 presents many points of interest. In the first place it ia 

 noticed that on the farm, as is generally the custom on stock- 

 farms in Jamaica, the pods of the guango {Pithecolobium 

 Saman), known in other islands as the Jamaica Shade Tree or 

 Saman, are largely employed as stock food. No less than 

 40 tons of these pods were in storage at Hope for use in the 

 coming year. Stock farmers in the other West Indian islands 

 might well take example in this matter from the Jamaicans, 

 who make use of the pods or fruit of several other local trees 

 to furnish part of the rations of their stock. They also use 

 the leaves and twigs of several species of trees as green 

 forage, especially in times of drought 



The results of the first stages in the evolution of the 

 cross between the Zebu and the Jersey as a tropical milch 

 cow are now in evidence. It appears that the Zebu-.Jersey is 

 superior to the pure Jersey in size, vigour, hardiness, and 

 productive capacity; the cows of this strain in the Station 

 herd are proving first class dairy stock. 



The benefit to the stock arising from effective control of 

 ticks, which is secured by the regular use of a dipping tank, 

 in which the whole herd is dipped, on an average, every three 

 weeks, has been very marked, although it cannot be said that 

 ticks have been eradicated. It is computed that a useful 

 tank, capable of dealing with from 200 to 400 head of cattle, 

 can be erected in Jamaica for about £35, and that the cost 

 of the materials u.sed in preparing the dip — arsenite of soda 

 and paranaph — works out to 3rf. per head of stock per annum^ 



The report of the working of the Farm School at Hope 

 shows that the authorities are to be congratulated on good 



