185 



appear to be ground for thinking- that it may prove suitable for 

 cultivation under the tanks. 



A closely allied species, H. flavcscens, is more widely distributed 

 in Ceylon than H. coronariiini, but its value as a source of paper 

 has not yet been ascertained. Some dried stems are to be sent 

 home for trial and also root-stocks from which green stems may 

 be obtained on the spot for manufacture. 



R. N. L. 



PLANTING SWEET POTATOES FROM SPROUTED 

 TUBERS AND VINES. 



The curator of the Botanic Station, Montserrat, has sent in the 

 results of an experiment carried out to test the value of sweet 

 potato cuttings taken from sprouted tubers as compared with cut- 

 tings taken from the vines in the ordinary way. It may be men- 

 tioned that similar experiments were conducted in Cuba some few 

 years ago and reported on in the Agricultural News, Vol. VII, 

 p. 120, where it will be found that the plots planted with slips re- 

 turned a crop three and a half times as great as those planted with 

 cuttings. In this experiment the gain of 350 per cent, fully repaid 

 the extra expense and trouble involved. 



In the recent Montserrat trials there has been no such phenom- 

 enal difference noticed, though the figures show there was, in 

 the case of some varieties, (|uite a considerable increase in yield 

 from the tuber cuttings compared with the vine cuttings. It is 

 interesting to observe that no difference in vigor was noticed in 

 the rows planted with the two kinds of material. 



The following are a few of the yields which seem to be the 

 most striking: Red Bourbon (ordinary vines) 114 lbs., (tuber 

 cuttings) 145 lbs.; White Gilkes (ordinary vines) 83 lbs., (tuber 

 cuttings) 111 lbs. In no case did the tuber cuttings give a lower 

 yield than the ordinary vines, but it is not established that the 

 average increase is sufficiently large to warrant the systematic 

 planting of tuber cuttings instead of ordinary vines. At the same 

 time, the matter is worth serious consideration in the case of one 

 or two special varieties. 



It should be stated that as regards the size of the plots utilized 

 in the experiments, the length of the row was 81 feet, the rows 

 were 4 feet apart and the plants 2 feet. Each plot was therefore 

 approximately 1/134 acre in area. — Agricultural News. 



