DISEASES AND THEIR CURE 107 



2. Improvement of the health of the plantation 

 by cultivation, drainage and manuring. 



Although coconut palms are exposed to the usual 

 pests and diseases common in all tropical countries, 

 it is equally true that most of these can be safe- 

 guarded against and their ravages minimised by 

 the exercise of general preventive care, the use of the 

 best fungicides and insecticides available and 

 the adoption of drastic measures whenever the 

 symptoms appear. Moreover, with the enormous 

 expansion of the coconut industry, every question 

 connected with it is being studied and investigated 

 by scientists with greater minuteness than ever ; 

 new remedies and methods are being discovered 

 and fresh views and information disseminated for 

 the benefit of planters and others, to assist them in 

 securing and maintaining healthy,productive estates. 



As the space available does not permit of an 

 exhaustive survey of these subjects, we cannot do 

 better than refer those readers who are desirous of 

 further investigating them to the very informative 

 reports, etc., published by the Government authori- 

 ties in the West Indies, Ceylon, the Philippines 

 and other coconut-growing regions. In addition 

 there are, of course, the special technical works 

 published by scientists who have devoted years to 

 the study of tropical agriculture and the investiga- 

 tion of the various fungi and pests found in tropical 

 countries. 



