21 



which are practically as sound as they were at first and no coagu- 

 lant was used. 



WHICH IS THE BEST SPECIES TO GROW ? 

 Para is first and the rest nowhere with most planters, 

 especially in Ceylon. The Castilloa at Peradeniya are not impos- 

 ing trees for their age, and Mr. Wright's experience of this variety 

 does not seem very favourable. The trees milk fairly well, but 

 are apt to die within the year. Another keen planter, with 

 Castilloa growing at 1,000 feet found it almost impossible to get 

 the latex to coagulate. In S. India, however, these difificulties do 

 not occur. It takes a very large amount of ill-treatment to even 

 affect the health of a Castilloa at 3,500 feet and the latex 

 coagulates without special difficulty. Generally speaking the 

 Castilloa prefers a drier climate than that which Para revels in, 

 and also does better at a fair distance above sea-level. Ceara is 

 being tried here and there, planters being encouraged by the 

 copious flow of milk from the old trees which survive from plant- 

 ings of twenty years ago and more. These certainly produce 

 excellent rubber nearly if not quite equal to Para in appearance 

 when carefully prepared, and the tree grows on very poor soil and 

 at a considerable elevation. It also does not demand a heavy 

 rainfall, though like all rubbers it thrives best with a good allow- 

 ance of moisture. Ficus elastica is certainly not a tree to plant 

 amongst coffee or near anything valuable, if one may judge from 

 the Peradeniya trees. These completely occupy a large area with 

 their roots, and are now showing signs of decay. As, however, I 

 understand they are getting on for 50 years old, there would be 

 time to extract a fortune out of them if they contained it ; some 

 quicker-yielding trees,however,are preferable. Funtumia trees grow 

 well in S. India at 3,000 feet or so ; at Peradeniya it is found that 

 they are so eaten by caterpillars that nothing can be done with 

 them. I would certainly give the award, as a general thing, to 

 Para. It is as far as I have seen, decidely the hardiest of all. It 

 resists ill treatment wonderfully and is practically unaffected, as 

 far as I can see, by excess of rain or severe drought ; whilst it is 

 a useful shade for coffee for a good term of years. In South India 

 I have given measurements of growth at 3,500 feet and I may 

 mention that I have plants 6 feet high from seed planted at stake, 

 amongst coffee, in 1904. Taking the opinion that " it does not 

 pay to tap trees at over 3,000 feet," what does this mean ? We 

 must remember that the nature of the forest tapping, where trees 

 are scattered and where, we are told, trees of 2 feet girth would not 

 be noticed as worth tapping and only the widely scattered giants, 

 giving 5lb. or more rubber, are selected. At over 3,000 feet these 

 giants would be comparatively rare and take much finding, but 

 plantation conditions would make all the difference. At 3,500 

 feet the trees on a plantation would be at just the same distance 

 apart as at 1,000 feet or 2,000 feet. They would perhaps require 

 another year to make equal growth, but this would not prevent 

 their paying handsomely. 



