Vol. V. No. 121. 



THE AGRICULTUKAL NEWS. 



391 



A week later the same firm reported as follows : — 



The demand continued for all the offerings of odd bags, 

 resulting in sales at prices showing Ic. to 3c. advance 

 •over those current tlie previous week. The market closed 

 very firm with Factors indifferent sellers of fine at 30c., fully 

 fine 32c., extra fine 3.5c. "' 



There being no accumulation of stock, the offerings are 

 limited to the daily r9ceipts. Besides about seven planters' 

 crop lots were sold at prices ranging from 3.3c. to .5.5c. This 

 demand makes Factors very firm and inclined to make no 

 concessions, but rather to advance prices. 



The buying was largely for the northern mills and 

 France. 



BARBADOS COTTON INDUSTRY. 



In the Annual Re^jort on Barbados for the year 

 1905-6 the following reference is made to the satisfac- 

 tory progress made by the cotton industry : — 



It is estimated that in 1905, 2,000 acres were under this 

 crop, and the quantity of cotton exported was 344,232 ft. 

 Th^ prices obtained varied from I2hd. to ITd. per lb., and 

 were remunerative. So .satisfactory has the industry proved 

 since it was started four years ago, that it is estimated that 

 5,000 acres will be planted in cotton during the coming 

 season. Where care has been taken with the cultivation, the 

 net return has amounted to £10 and over per acre. 



At the beginning of last November, the cotton factory, 

 which belonged to the Government and which was worked 

 under a committee of the Agricultural Society appointed to 

 assist the Imperial Department of Agriculture in the 

 establishment of subsidiary industries, was transferred to the 

 Barbados Co-operative Cotton Factory, Ltd., for £600 first- 

 mortgage debenture bonds, bearing interest at the rate of 

 6 per cent, per annum, the bonds to be redeemed within twenty- 

 one years. The new company charged |d per ft. for gining 

 and baling the lint. Owing to the increase in the cotton 

 industry, the company has recently increased its capital by 

 the issue of additional shares, and is at present erecting a new 

 factory of twenty-four gins, so as to be in a position to gin 

 all the cotton sent to the factory within a reasonable time. 



BROOM CORN IN MONT3ERRAT. 



Reporting on the experimental cultivation of 

 broom corn at the Montserrat Botanic Station, the 

 Curator states that from the J-acre plot, planted in 

 June last, 300 ft. of dried heads were reaped in 

 September. Mr. Robsons adds: — 



The yield of dried brush is a little higher than last year, 

 though the brush is, in some respects, not so satisfactory. 

 On account of the plants not having been thinned out so 

 severely as last year, they were more crowded and the heads 

 smaller. 



The larger area cultivated has enabled us to ascertain 

 the possible difficulties that would have to be met if broom 

 corn were grown on estates. If the heads are thrown down 

 in heaps before the seeds are cleaned off, the latter 

 quickly ' heat,' and the brush becomes yellow and of less 

 value. 



One of the principal difficulties would be the large 

 amount of accommodation that would be needed to 

 dry the brush from a large area, as this should be 

 dried under cover and yet where there is a free circulation 

 of air. 



THE CULTIVATION OF BROOM CORN. 



The following information in regard to the cultiva- 

 tion of broom corn is abstracted from a paper in the 

 West Indian Bulletin, Vol. VII, pp. 221-5 : — 



Broom corn (Androprx/rm Sorghum, var. lechnicics) has 

 been grown succes.sfully in Antigua, Jlont.serrat, and British 

 Guiana, and it is possible that these experiments may lead 

 to the establishment of a small industry. Canada offers 

 a market for the dried brush, while brooms and hand-brushes 

 can be sold at a profit locally. 



Varieties. — Broom corn differs from other varieties of 

 sorghum in the greater length, strength, and straightness of 

 the fine stems which carry the florets and seeds. The 

 highest price is commanded by long, straight, tough stems, 

 which are bright green when dry. The IJwarf variety of 

 broom corn produces a shcnt brush. This is somewhat 

 diflicult to harvest. The Evergreen variety is good all round. 

 The ^[ohawk variety is earlier, but the yield is smaller. 



Cultivation. — Broom corn is cultivated in the same way 

 as the well-known Guinea corn. The soil must be well 

 drained, and in a good state of tilth. From 6 ft. to S ft. of 

 seed are required for an acre. The seed .should be sown in 

 rows, 3 to 3i- feet apart. The seedlings should be thinned 

 so as to stand three or four to a foot. The quality of the 

 brush depends greatly on the proper distances between the 

 plants, and these distances can be fixed only by trial. 

 Germination and early growth being slow, weeds grow 

 rapidly ; they can be removed from between the rows with 

 a Planet .Junior plough. 



Bending. — Some panicles in the field will bend to one 

 side under the weight of seed. These must be found out 

 before they are ripe, and the stalk bent right down so that 

 the weight of the seed will tend to keep the stems straight 

 as they harden. 



Cutting. — If the highest price for brush is wanted, the 

 stalks are all cut just after flowering, before the seeds have 

 hardened. The dry brush is then green. If the seeds are 

 required for sowing or feeding stock, the brush will have 

 deteriorated in colour and strength by the delay. In cutting, 

 a stalk of 6 to 8 inches must be left on each panicle. The 

 unripe brush must not be put into big heaps before drying or 

 it will heat and become discoloured. 



Drying. — Immature brush is cleaned with a saw-tooth 

 scraper and dried on racks in the shade. The seed is 

 removed from mature brush by a coarse comb or a toothed 

 .seeder, and it can be dried in the sun or the .shade. 



Grading. — All crooked or broken brush should be dis- 

 carded. The straight brush .should be sorted into different 

 lengths and these into different colours. If possible all in 

 one bale should be of the same length. 



Dwarf brush is the finest fibre and has a stalk of 

 4 to 5 inches. It will fetch in Montreal 25c. per ft. 



Another grade has stalks of 5 to 6 inches, fine fibres, and is 

 worth 7c. per ft. The coarsest grade has 7-inch .stalks, heavy 

 fibres, and is 18 to 30 inches long; its price is about 5c. per ft. 



Baling. — Bales are of about 300 ft. and can be made in 

 a cotton press. They may be 4 feet long, 2-1- feet wide, and 

 2 feet deep. The butts are outside with the heads overlap- 

 ping. They may be tied with fence wire. 



r«eA7.— In the United States, up to 500 ft. to 800 ft. of 

 brush per acre, worth $40 to .?200 per ton. In Australia, 

 900 ft. to 1,300 ft. of clean brush and 25 to 30 bushels of 

 seed per acre. The brush is worth ^^90 to .'J200 per ton, 

 and the seed -$1 per 4-bushel bag. 



Reference may be made to previous articles in the Agri- 

 cultural News (Vol. IV, p. 208, and Vol. V,p. 267) dealing with 

 the experimental cultivation of broom corn in the West Indies. 



