167 



impossible to find a healthy specimen absolutely leafless even 

 during the hottest and driest part of the year; most of the trees 

 produce a few leaves every month in the year, but reserve their 

 periods of maximum foliar production for the months of February, 

 March, and September, considerations to be kept in mind when 

 dealing with the periodicity of the flowers and manurial operations. 

 The periodicity in the root growth of cocoa trees in Ceylon is but 

 little understood ; the rootlets are formed during every month 

 in the year, but during April-June and again in October- 

 November there appears to be increased activity in this part of the 

 plant. The general observations made on this part of the subject 

 point to a periodicity of root activity in association with that of 

 the foliage. 



FLOWER PERIODICITY IN 1903. 



An investigation has been made on the periodicity of flower 

 production with a view of determining its relationship to that of 

 the fruits and rainfall. Forty-two trees were under observation 

 each day in the years 1903, 1904 and 1905. The flowers were 

 plucked after they had opened, so that the physiology of the plant 

 would be disturbed as little as possible. It may be asserted that 

 the removal of these newly-opened flowers would probably lead to 

 a more prolific appearance of flowers at a subsequent date, but 

 when one considers that an average tree produces only about sixty 

 to eighty mature fruits in the whole year, the procedure adopted 

 cannot be expected to greatly alter the flower periodicity in 

 question. Not more than 0'2 to 0*4 per cent, of the flowers produced 

 on a cocoa estate planted 12X12 feet and yielding 3 cwt. of cured 

 cocoa per acre, per year, develop into mature fruits ; they are easily 

 detached when in full bloom or after withering. The number of 

 flowers produced in the year 1903 varied from 178 on tree number 

 5,725 to 33,534 on tree number 5,782. The average number of 

 flowers produced, per tree, for 1 903 was 5,666, equal to if million 

 per acre. In order to show the variability, the following figures 

 are quoted for six selected trees : — 



TABLE SHOWING THE FLOWER PERIODICITY OF SIX SELECTED CACAO TREES 



DURING 1903. 



Tree Tree Tree Tree Tree Tree 



No. 71. No. 5,786. No. 5,782. No. 5,768 No. 5,798. No. 5,43 \ 



January ... 67 65 165 113 127 43 



February ... 388 245 353 34 U 7 



March ... 1,992 372 4,269 479 704 91 



April ... 1,292 438 4,578 334 1,428 33 



May ... 2,978 2,439 7,050 1,507 7,605 641 



June ... 1,576 756 L53I 150 495 144 



July ... 1,950 1,829 3,509 272 476 123 



August ... 1,391 442 2,148 214 193 97 



September 1,285 423 3,778 595 308 60 



October ... 1,246 755 3,376 445 89 36 



November 1,192 496 1,639 232 63 15 



December 998 944 1.138 276 52 26 



Total ... 16,355 9,204 33,534 4,651 n,457 L3i6 



