312 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



October 6, 1905. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



Letters and matter for publication, as well 

 as all specimens for naming, should be addressed 

 to the Commissioner, Imperial Department of 

 Agriculture, Barbados. 



All applications for copies of the 'Agri- 

 cultural News' should be addressed to the 

 Agents, and not to the Department. 



Local Agents: Messrs. Bowen & Sons, Bridge- 

 town, Barbados. Limdon Agents: Messrs. Dulau & 

 Co., 37, Soho Square, W., and The West India Com- 

 mittee, 15, Seething Lane, E.G. A complete list of 

 Agents will be fo\ind on page 3 of the cover. 



The Agricultural News: Price Id. per number, 

 post free Ik/. Annual subscription payable to Agents, 

 2s. 2d. Post free, 3s. Zd. 



Arrowing of Sugar-canes in Louisiana. 



It will pr'ibably be familiar to readers of the 

 Agricultural Neivs that in Louisiana, with its frost- 

 curtailed growing season, the sugar-cane had not, until 

 last year, iaeen known to arrow. With the introduction 

 of ]")emerara seedling canes, however, this has been 

 changed. 



In the Agricultural N<vs, Vol. V, p. (i7, it was 

 mentioned that Demerara seedling Xo. 74 had arrowed 

 in 190.5, indicating that this cane, being an early ripener, 

 had managed to form flowers before the frost checked 

 its growth. But, further, it appears that this cane has 

 also succeeded in maturing seed. As mentioned on 

 p. 307 of this issue. Dr. Blouin, the Assistant Director 

 of the Louisiana Sugar Experiment Station, has, after 

 numerous trials, obtained fertile seed from the sugar- 

 cane. It is hoped that it will now be possible to raise 

 new and improved seedling canes in Louisiana. 



gigrirultiiral l^eiu;; 



Vol. v. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 6, 1906. No. 116. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



The editorial in this issue contains figures relating 

 to the expenses and probable receipts in connexion 

 with the cultivation of bananas. 



Interesting notes appear on pp. 306 and 307 in 

 regard to the raising of seedling sugar-canes in 

 Mauritius and Louisiana. 



It is proposed to establish a banana industry in 

 Surinam. The terms of a contract entered into between 

 the Government of Dutch Guiana and the United 

 Fruit Company regarding the purchase of bananas will 

 be found on p. 30.S. 



In view of the crippled condition of the Cuban 

 tobacco industry, it is suggested that every effort 

 should be made to extend the tobacco industry in 

 Jamaica. 



A brief report on the prospects of the cotton crop 

 in St. Vincent appears on p. 310. Reference is also 

 made to the suggestion that Sea Island cotton might 

 be cultivated in Grenada. 



Efforts are being made to test the suitability of 

 the ' virgen ' rubber of Colombia in the West Indies. 

 An account of this tree is published on p. 311. 



Interest attaches to the results of analy.ses, pub- 

 lished on p. 315, of limes and lemons from Dominic.i. 

 The composition of the spineless lime is compared with 

 that of the ordinary Dominica lime, while results are 

 also given of analyses of two kinds of lemons grown at 

 the Botanic Station. 



Sugar-cane Seedlings in Java. 



In lS9t, Dr. J. H. Wakker, then Director of the 

 East Java Sugar Experiment Station, found that the 

 Cheribon cane bears infertile pollen at the time when 

 the ovary is normal, and may, therefore, be considered 

 a 'female ' cane: while other varieties produced abundant 

 quantities of fertile pollen. 



A description of the method of planting by which 

 natural cross- fertilization is obtained will be found in 

 the Agricultural News (Vol. I, p. 14(j). 



This method of planting alternate rows of ' male ' 

 and ' female ' canes has been closely followed in Java, 

 and numerous seedlings have been obtained, which have 

 given encouraging results. 



The Jaarverslag for 1905 from the Proefstation 

 Oost-Java shows that in 1905 over 16,000 sugar-cane 

 seedlings were raised. The parentage of 7,170 of 

 these was known on both sides, for they were pro- 

 duced by the method above mentioned : 7,460 other cane 

 seedlings were obtained from seed collected from the 

 best seedling varieties, the seed-bearing parent only 

 being known with certainty. In all, therefore, some- 

 thing was known of the pedigree of 14,630 out of the 

 16,000 young seedling plants. The season was very 

 propitious, and this large production of young cane 

 seedlings appears to be a record and is to be favour- 

 ably contrasted with the production of 580 young 

 plants in 1904, when the season was not so suitable. 



Panama Hat Industry. 



The importance of the Panama hat industry to 

 the republic of Ecuador is apparent from the following 

 figures, extracted from the Consular Report for the 

 years 1899-1905, showing the value of the exports for 

 the last six years: 1900, £32,748; 1901, £37,956; 

 1902, £()8,010: 1903, £70,107: 1904, £88,670: 1905, 

 £125,512. 



It will be seen that in the period under review 

 the exports have increased enormously in value ; the 

 quantity has likewise inci'eased. It is stated that the 



