10 AGRICULTURE IN THE TROPICS [PT. I 



up during February and March, but those which rise above 

 5000 feet land above that elevation being kept in its natural 

 condition of forest remain running during that period. 



Not only does clearing expose the soil to the sun, but also 

 to the wind, which does not blow in the forest, and which has a 

 drying effect. Shelter belts of trees have had to be planted 

 through the tea and other crops throughout many planting 

 districts, to check the sweeping of the wind over the fields. 



[The climate of southern tropical Brazil is so different from that of 

 corresponding latitudes in the north, e.g. Calcutta, that its agriculture 

 partakes to some extent of the character of that of the temperate zone. At 

 Eio de Janeiro, for example (22 50' S.), the mean temperatures of the various 

 months range from 66 to 78. The mean maximum is about 86, minimum 

 62 (cf. Calcutta). There is well-distributed rain throughout the year, so that 

 the place on the whole perhaps looks, though it does not feel, just as " tropical " 

 as even Singapore or Java. The temperature in the sun is comparatively low, 

 reaching about 133 at the maximum. The country inland is a plateau, with 

 an elevation of 20002500 feet. Here the climate is 610 cooler ; the rain 

 is chiefly in the summer, and many temperate-zone cultivations, even such as 

 apples or strawberries, can be successfully carried on, whilst cattle-raising is 

 a very large industry.] 



