COCONUT PLANTER'S MANUAL. 147 



The only way to get it in sufficient quantity is to have a large extent of 

 grazing land attached to the estate. 



Manure Mixture. 

 There is much difference of opinion as to the proper mixture to he used 

 in manuring coconuts. There are some who consider the application of 

 common salt as essential, while others hold that a compost containing Nitro- 

 gen, Phosphoric Acid and Potash meets all the requirements of coconuts. 

 Here, too, there is no unanimity as some advocate an excess of Nitrogen, while 

 others are for Phosphoric Acid and Potash. Fletcher in his " Soils : ' states 

 that " the chemical analysis of a crop is of very little practical value to the 

 man who wishes to know what fertilizer to apply to that crop," Hence an 

 analysis of what is removed by the cx-op is no guide as to what we should 

 return to the soil. Under the circumstances 1 shall venture to give my 

 own personal opinion which is backed by over 30 years' experience in manur- 

 ing and also the results of various experiments. The compost that could bo 

 recommended for the use of any coconut estate is : — 



N P 9 6 K 3 



Fish Manure ... 4 lbs. \>0 "20 — 



Castor ... 4 „ •16 # *U0 — 



Bone Meal ... 6 „ -18 1*32 — 



Sulphate of Potash ... 2 ,, — 1*00 



Total ... 16 lbs. -54 152 1-00 



16 lbs. per palm once in two years. This gives about "50 lbs of Nitro- 

 gen, 1*50 lbs. of Phosphoric Acid and 1*00 lbs. of Potash per palm. 



Though in the opinion of many this mixture contains an excess of 

 Phosphoric Acid, experience has clearly demonstrated that this quantity 

 is essential to give the best results. At the Manning Coconut Trial 

 Ground : — 



in 1922 the plot without Nitrogen yielded 822 Nuts 

 Do do Phosphoric Acid 620 ,, 



Do do Potash 450 ,, 



These results confirm the independent deduction drawn from long ex- 

 perience in manuring. 



Application. 



It is the general practice to buy manures mixed in bulk, but as no solids 



could be mixed mechanically to yield an uniform composition it is always 



safer to buy the manures separately and weigh out the quantity of each 



constituent required for each tree. This has been practised with success 



