82 THE SCIENCE OF CATCHCROPS 



allowed to graze on coconut estates when the trees 

 are only 2| years old, but this is considered by 

 most experts as far too early. The value of cattle 

 on an estate may be said to be fourfold, because 

 they serve for transport purposes, they manure the 

 land, they fetch a good price, both as animals or 

 as meat, there being always a good local market, 

 and far from injuring or retarding the development 

 of the principal crop they expedite its period of 

 maturity and increase its productivity. 



4 ' The animals will keep down the vegetation and 

 add fertility to the soil," says Mr. Hamel Smith. 

 " At Zamboanga experiments made resulted in the 

 palms bearing at one to one and a half years earlier 

 than when not grazed with cattle. Such fertilising 

 methods applied to an old grove nearly doubled 

 the product of the trees." After demonstrating 

 the tremendous scarcity of cattle and pigs through- 

 out the world in an exhaustive study of cattle as 

 a catchcrop, in which he gives many practical 

 hints to planters and others who contemplate 

 adding cattle-raising to their estate, the author 

 concludes: "I maintain, therefore, that any 

 estate, be it owned by one individual or a company 

 or syndicate thinking of taking up coconut planting 

 on a large scale, should seriously consider the 

 whole question of running, let us call it, a cattle 

 ranch and coconut plantation at one and the same 



time." 



