FIELD CROPS. 143 



formalin solution from 20 to 30 minutes before planting, and Bpraying the furrows 

 with this same solution after planting. 



( Observations on the taro mot- rut disease were continued this year i E. S. R., 15, p. 

 133). The treated plat, which produced taro almost entirely free from disease the 

 year before, was again planted to this crop without further treatment, and the plants 

 obtained appeared healthier than those on untreated plats near by. A variety test 

 with tomatoes was begun, but is as yet incomplete. Many of the varieties produced 

 a rank growth of vine without setting fruit. An analysis of the soil on which the 

 tomatoes were grown showed that it contained 0.58 per cent of potash, 1 per cent of 

 lime, 4.55 per cent of magnesium, 0.75 per cent of phosphoric acid, and 0.38 per cent 

 of nitrogen. 



The forage conditions of Hawaii are described and the dairy industry is briefly 

 reviewed. In general the grasses are few on the ranges, being largely confined to 

 Bermuda grass from the coast to an elevation of 4,000 ft., and to hilo grass ( Paspalum 

 conjugatum) above that altitude. One of the native grasses, Heteropogon contorlus, 

 once abundant on the leeward coasts to about 1,000 ft. altitude, has been practically 

 destroyed by overstocking. Culture tests with alfalfa have shown that this nop 

 grows well up to an altitude of about 3,000 ft. and that it can be grown without irri- 

 gation at the higher elevations where the rainfall is more abundant. 



The extent to which Hawaiian cattle are infected with the liver fluke is pointed 

 out. It is reported that 990 cattle out of 3,376 slaughtered for the Honolulu market 

 during the last 6 months of 1902 were infected with liver fluke, and that 247 out of 

 487 calves examined during that period also showed infection. The life history of 

 the liver fluke is given and the symptoms it produces in infected cattle described. 

 Infection with this internal parasite is much worse in the windward districts and 

 upper mountain pastures than in the drier portions of the islands. 



The culture of tobacco, vanilla, sisal, peppers, castor beans, pineapples, cotton, 

 sugar cane, and coffee in the islands is discussed, and lines of experimental work 

 suggested. A successful experiment in curing and fermenting vanilla pods for the 

 production of commercial vanilla was made at the station in 1903, and as the vanilla 

 bean grows well throughout the islands the production of vanilla on an extended 

 scale is considered feasible. Several of the best varieties of cotton have been grown 

 at the station, and individual cotton plants known to be 15 to 20 years old are 

 reported as existing in the islands. 



The entomological work done in the islands is reviewed and the necessity for 

 investigations along certain lines pointed out. The principal insect enemies men- 

 tioned are the cane borer [Sphenophorus obscurus); the leaf hopper (Perkinsiella 

 8acchaHdda), a recent pest in sugar-cane plantations; the so-called "melon fly;" 

 plant lice, threatening the corn crop of the Kula district; cutworms; a scale insect 

 {Mytilaspis pinnseformis) on citrus trees; the Japanese "rose" beetle (Adoretus 

 umbrosis) and the "Olinda bug" (Aramigus fulleri), destructive to fruits and trees; 

 the peach scale (Diaspis amygdali | ; and the "torpedo fly" ( Siphanla acuta i, injurious 

 to the mango. Besides the common mosquito, the Cuban yellow-fever species 

 ( si v >/( tmyia fasciata and S. Scutellaria) are reported as occurring in the islands. 



Annual report of the Porto Rico Agricultural Experiment Station for 1903, 

 F. D. Gardner ( f T . S. Dept. Ayr., Office of Experiment Stations Rpt. 1903, pp. 419~468,pls. 

 6). — Progress in the improvement and equipment of the station, together with the 

 results of experimental work, is reported. The scope of the investigations is out- 

 lined and the rainfall for 1899 to 1903, inclusive, at 4 different points in the island is 

 recorded. 



Of different leguminous crops tested at the station, velvet beans have given the best 

 results. Alfalfa, cowpeas, soy beans, and beggar weed have not so far produced a 

 satisfactory growth. The sword bean made a good growth, but it grew slower and 

 for a much longer period than the velvet bean. 



