COCONUT PLANTER'S MANUAL. 113 



Kainil ha., an additional value, however, as a safeguard against 

 insect pests and fungus. A liberal dressing of Kainit applied to ger- 

 minating nnts or young coconut plants which are attacked by while ants, 

 for instance, is often an effectual cure. For this purpose it should be 

 applied at the rate of not less than half a pound per plant. 



How to Apply Manure. 

 When it s remendoed that the coconut tree absorbs food by means 

 of its roots and that the absorbent roots are the youngest portions, 

 there will be no difficulty in understanding the best method of applying 

 manure. The object of the application is to bring the manure into con- 

 tact with as many of the young feeding roots as possible. These roots 

 extend practically equally in all directions round the stem, and cover 

 a larger and larger area as the tree grows older. When the tree is just 

 planted, or in its first year, the roots extended only a little wav, and if 

 manure is applied it need only be put in^a circle measuring about cue 

 foot or eighteen inches in width round the plant. As the tree increases 

 in size its roots reach farther and farther out fiom the tree, and the 

 circle must be, increase!. 1 in size year by year. After two or three years 

 the- oldest portions of root near the stem become thick, woody, and non- 

 absorbent, and when that stage is reached the manure need not be 

 applied close to the stem. The application should then begin about one 

 foot from the stem and continue in a circular Land as far out as the 

 roots art found to penetrate. Later on it will be noticed that the roots 

 from one row of trees have extended so far that they are intermingled 

 with those from the next row, and that therefore the whole planted area 

 is penetrated by roots, and when this occurs, it is obvious that the. 

 manure must be applieu over the whole planted area and not merely 

 round each tree. This it best done by broadcasting the mixture between 

 the rows so that it fails evenly over the whole space, but not within 

 two feet of the stems. If the direction is changed at each manuring, 

 first up and down the rows and next time across them, the whole area 

 will be evenly fertilised, the roots will grow symmetrically and the tree. 

 will be strong and healthy. 



After the manure has been broadcasted it must be dug into the 

 soil with mammotie, fork or plough. It need :,ot be deeply buried. If 

 the whole surface is gone over with a mammotie or fork the manure Will 

 be quite sufficiently covered. 



It will iio v v be seen that the common plan of applying manure in 

 a circular trench around each tree is open to many objections. It pro- 

 vides for only verypoor distribution of the manure, {or it only brings 

 it into contact with a very limited number of roots, many of which are 

 not feeding roots; in cutting the trenching, a great number of the oldest 



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