AGRlCUIvTURAI, SERVICES IN MOROCCO 1 56 7 



dition to this, experiments are being made on the growing of cotton, Riga 

 flax, ramie, castor oil etc. Special attention has also been given to the 

 building np of nursery collections which already include a fairly large 

 number of varieties of fruit, forest and ornamental trees : Algerian olives 

 eating grapes, hybrid vines from the Montpellier School, apricots, peaches, 

 plums, apples, pears, walnuts, bananas, willows and screen-plants, etc. 

 obtained from South France, Algeria, Tunis and Spain. 



The Mequinez garden covers an area of 50 acres and was started in 

 October 1914 ; on July ist the same year the Marakesh station, 75 acres 

 in extent, was placed at the disposal of the Agricultural Board. These 

 two stations are given over to the production on a large scale of better 

 varieties of fruit and woodbearing trees, of local or foreign origin. It 

 has been possible to distribute a certain number of plants to the natives, 

 who are the first to recognise the value of the extension of tree growing. 

 Both gardens, also carry out experiments with commercial plants used 

 in native industries (textile plants, essential oil plants etc.) 



Two Experimental Farms are being set up, one, situated at the Fez 

 gates, is i 250 acres in extent ; the other, about 7 ^ miles from Mazagan, 

 covers 3 000 acres. They will begin by working along the lines of the 

 present agricultural campaign, and will be able to deal with the larger 

 agricultural problems which will present thenselves in connection with 

 future colonisation and which would be outside the scope of the stations 

 at Rabat, Mequinez and Marakesh. The work will include cereal selec- 

 tion for increase in yield and greater resistance to disease, the study of 

 forage and commercial plants, questions connected with the working of 

 the soil, utilisation of water, employment of machines, improvement of 

 live stock employment and education of the labourer. Such problems 

 as these can only be efficiently dealt with where sufficient land is avail- 

 able and where the work is carried out methodically and steadily under 

 the conditions and with the resources that are available on an ordinar}^ 

 farm. 



Meteorology. — A knowledge of the climatic characteristics of the 

 country is of capital importance and the value of methodically register- 

 ed observations has been recognised by the Department of Agriculture, 

 which has already established 45 meteorological stations in Morocco, 

 while another dozen are now being set up. The observations already 

 made have been worked out at Rabat and issued in the official Bulletin, 

 and they indicate the most important features of the climatology of this 

 region. 



The network of stations will be completed as soon as circumstances 

 permit and will ultimately include : 



i) a central station at Rabat, fully equipped with the best appa- 

 ratus ; 



2) a well-equipped station in each natural district, supervised by 

 the Inspector of Agriculture ; 



3) smaller stations provided with a certain number of instruments; 



