306 



THE AGKICULTURAL NEWS. 



October 6, 1906. 



£15 per acre in the irrigated districts and £10 on the 

 north-side plantations. To this must be added the 

 cost of obtaining suckers from Jamaica. These could 

 be purchased at about £1 per 100 suckers. This, with 

 transport charges, would bring up the cost, on the 

 estimate of .?40, to about !if«GO per acre. Below will be 

 found an estimate of the receipts, from w hich it will be 

 seen that the first year's income will practically pay 

 for the establishment of the plantation. The probable 

 annual expenditure for upkeep after the first year will 

 be about S36. The profit during the second and 

 subsequent years may therefore be placed at from §^25 

 to $30 per acre. 



The statement published on p. 308 shows that 

 during the six months already mentioned the maximum 

 price of 35c. per 9-hand bunch will be paid to the 

 Surinam growers : daring the other months 20c. The 

 price for 8-hand bunches will be 23c. and 18c., 

 respectively. After the first two years the prices will 

 be somewhat lower. 



In regard to the prices paid for bananas by the 

 United Fruit Company in Jamaica, it should be 

 mentioned that many of the growers are under contract 

 to supply fruit all the year round at the following rates 

 per 100 bunches; January, £6: February, £7 lOs.; 

 March, £10: April and May, £12 10s,: June, £11 10s.: 

 July, £7 lOs.; August, £5 lOs.; October and November, 

 £6 5s. ; December, £5 10s. Penalties are enforced in 

 the event of failure to supply the stipulated quantities. 

 Most of these contracts expire this year, and as the 

 ruling open market price for the last two years has been 

 considerably lower, contracts are not likely to be 

 renewed at the above-mentioned figures. These prices 

 are for full or 'straight' bunches (i.e., of 9 hands and 

 over). An 8-hand bunch counts as three-quarters, 

 a 7-hand as one-half, and a (j-hand bunch as one-fourth. 



The Jamaica grower referred to above estimates 

 that the average number of trees planted to the acre 

 is 300. The number of saleable bunches yielded by 

 th'^se depends very much on the fertility of the land. 

 On good land an average of 270 bunches should be 

 obtained, of which GO per cent, (or 162) should be of 

 9 hands and upwards, 25 per cent, (or 67) of 8-hand 

 bunches, and about 40 7-hand bunches. After the 

 first year it is estimated that an acre should yield 

 400 bunches as long as the land remains good (the 

 grade proportions being the same as in the first year). 

 Calculating these returns in accordance with the 

 Jamaica system alreadj' outlined, the yield would 

 be equivalent to 232 ' straight ' bunches in the first 

 year and 345 in subsequent years. 



Assuming tfiat a contract, similar to that made 

 by the Surinam (Government, could be made by British 

 Guiana, the Argosy gives an estimate of the probable 

 revenue from banana cultivation as follows : first year, 

 S5996 : second year, $89'10 ; subsequent years, .'?86'22. 

 In m.aking this calculation, ' no credit has been taken 

 for the production of a larger proportion of bunches in 

 the months of highest prices, which is the aim of all 

 growers of bananas under a contract such as this. lb 

 has been assumed that throughout the year the same 

 number of buuches would be cut every month.' 



It will be understood that the foregoing remarks 

 apply to the cultivation of the Gros Michel banana 

 the variety gro^\ n in Jamaica. 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



Seedling Canes in Mauritius. 



In the Anmuxl Report on the Station Agronomique 

 in Mauritius for 1905, the following reference is made 

 to the raising of seedling canes : — 



As in preceding years, the station continued to raise 

 seedling canes, and from 1,800 to 1,900 young plants have 

 been planted out. 



A certain number of cuttings of the previously selected 

 cuttings have been distributed. The varieties distributed 

 have already been cultivated at the station and cut as plant 

 canes, and have been allowed to ratoon where they had 

 given good results ; they are worthy of trial on other estates, 

 and under other cultural and climatic conditions. It is only 

 after these further trials, for the above-mentioned reasons, 

 that we can propagate them and extend their cultivation. 



We may mention that persons desiring to obtaui these 

 varieties have only to communicate with the station, which 

 will fultil orders as far as the supply at its disposal will admit. 



It might be metitioned that seedlings were 

 successfully raised in Mauritius shortly after the 

 discovery of fertile seed in Java and Barbados, a large 

 number of which were distributed to estates. These 

 seedlings gave such good results that managers 

 frequently started seedling nurseries of their own, 

 with the result that much confusion in nomenclature 

 followed. 



Although many of the seedlings have proved to 

 be worthless, and others have shown great variability, 

 a considerable number have been produced, which show, 

 not only a greater saccharine content than the older 

 varieties, but also a greater resistance to disease. In 

 consequence, they have given a larger yield of sugar 

 per acre than most of the older varieties. 



