THE CUBA REVIEW 15 



ordered the purchase of floral tributes for his funeral at his former home and pro- 

 vided for the changing of the name of Tacon street to that of Roosevelt street. 



On the afternoon of his burial, memorial services were held in the National 

 Theatre and were attended by representatives of the Cuban Government and foreign 

 diplomatic corps. The theatre was not large enough to accommodate the crowd which 

 wished to attend. In this connection it is interesting to note that memorial services 

 for President McKinley were held in the former National Theatre on this same site 

 after his assassination, and now his successor in the presidential chair has been 

 similarly honored. 



HOW TO MAKE CACAO GROWING A SUCCESS IN 

 EASTERN CUBA 



By Alvin Fox, Horticulturist on Tropical Plants. 



I have found in my experience that the main requirements of success in the grow- 

 ing of cacao in Eastern Cuba is that it must be vigorous, disease resistant, prolific, 

 and producing beans of good quality. In selecting seeds the following precautions 

 should therefore be taken: 



1. The tree or trees from which the seeds are selected should be surrounded by 

 no other cacao trees, except those of the same variety and they should fill the require- 

 ments as set forth above. If a tree is surrounded by other trees, the flowers should 

 be hand pollinated and covered with cheesecloth to exclude pollen. 2. Selections 

 should not as a rule be made from trees growing under unmatured conditions, such as 

 in back yards or close to barns where the abundance of plant food may be the entire 

 cause of vigor and prolifkness. 3. Selection should not be made from trees on the 

 strength of one season's crop, but only after it has been proven that the vigor and 

 prolificness are inherent qualities not caused by external influence. 



PROPAGATION AND GRAFTING 



Cacao is propagated almost entirely from seed, and until a few years ago, it was 

 thought that it could be propagated in no other way. The seeds are sometimes taken 

 from the best pods of the most vigorous or prolific trees, but often no such selection 

 is made, and it is difficult to find a plantation in the Province de Oriente, Cuba, in 

 which all the types, varieties and intermediate strains are not grown side by side. On 

 account of this promiscuous planting, it is very difficult to secure seeds today of good 

 type. 



GRAFTING 



A cut is then made in one side of the seedlings with a sharp knife, removing a 

 thin slice of wood, with the adhering bark, from three to five inches long. A similar 

 cut is made on a branch of the tree of the same size as the seedlings and the two cut 

 surfaces placed together so that the bark of one touches the bark of the other; on one 

 side at least, if they are not exactly the same size. They are then tied together with 

 soft twine or raffia, and also tied to a stake in such a manner that the wind cannot 

 swing them back and forth and thereby prevent them from growing together. 



There are several methods of budding and grafting, some of which I explain 

 below. 



The only tool needed is a thin bladed knife, sharp as a razor, with which to cut the 

 bud and some soft yarn raffia or tape with which to wrap the bud after it is inserted. 

 It is especially necessary to be careful in cutting the bud so that it is smooth and 

 straight. A ragged bud torn off or cut with a dull knife w T ill not unite. 



