69 



packing as possible, preferably in the early morning when quite fresh, 

 but not when drenched with rain. They should qo1 be allowed to 

 remain exposed to sun or wind for some hours before they are sent, 

 off, as ii is sometimes the case, to the obvious disadvantage of the 

 seller. Defective or decaying samples should on no account be 

 admitted into the packages ; the uniformity so strongly recommended 

 as regards fruits should be maintained, and it will be found that the 

 reputation gained is a satisfactory reward for the extra care.— 

 Board of Agriculture. I. Whitehall Place, London. S.W., Dec, 1903. 



612 FIGHTING "BLACK POD" ON CACAO ESTATES. 



In the year 1898, the Caen,, pod rot, known as " Black pod " or 

 black Cacao, was very prevalent on Cacao estates. 



The attention of the Botanical Department was called to the fact, 

 and an investigation showed that the pods were blackened or destroyed 

 by a fungus determined as Phytopjithora omnivora. Among the 

 remedial measures advised were the burning or burying of all empty 

 pods from the -- breaking places " — (i.e.) from the places where the pods 

 are broken open and the beans extracted. Formerly these were 

 allowed to rot on the ground with the result that healthy trees 

 were soon infected and from the trees near the " breaking places'' 

 little Cacao was obtained. The Agricultural Instructors report that 

 throughout the Colony attention is being paid to this matter, and 

 that the system of burying the broken and diseased pods is gradually 

 coming into use. To demonstrate the infectious character of the 

 disease to unbelievers, it has been necessary in some cases to perform 

 infection experiments on the lands of the cultivator. Where this has 

 been done it has been readily recognised that our recommendations 

 are of importance and the system of burying the pods has been 

 adopted. In several cases, on large estates the system has been 

 voluntarily adopted by the proprietors with the greatest benefit, and 

 quite recently the Department was thanked for its efforts by a 

 proprietor of a large estate who declared that our recommendations 

 had saved him 20 to 25 per cent, of his crop in the early parts of the 

 year, 1904. Such results are eminently satisfactory and we would 

 earnestly urge those who as yet have not adopted burying pods, to 

 try the process, which we are now quite sure will repay the grower 

 ten times over for the money expended on the work. "Example 

 is better than precept." We have recently seen the effect of example 

 on the Government Estate at Diego Martin, where the practice it is 

 now regularly carried out by the peasant after a sight of an 

 inoculation experiment proving the infective character of the 

 disease. 



For the benefit of those who have not yet adopted the method 

 it may again be briefly described. 



In all cases where pods are broken on the field, the empty pods 

 should be buried within twenty-four hours after " breaking," in 

 trenches made from twelve to eighteen inches deep. In these trenches 

 pods should be piled and covered up with earth to a depth of 

 at least 4 inches. It is also well to go through the field at frequent 



