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working, they should be arranged so as to stand about fifteen feet apart. 

 Planted this distance apart 193 plants will go to an acre. The 

 plantation must be kept as free from weeds as possible, and more 

 especially while the plants are young. When older, with a good 

 spread of leaves, weeds will prove less troublesome. Bananas will 

 commence to yield fruit in from nine to eighteen months after they 

 are planted, according to the size and vigor of the plants. A stem 

 bears only one bunch, and as soon as the fruit is removed this should 

 be cut away, being of no further use. As the plants gain in strength 

 the number of stems will increase. These stems are formed by 

 suckers which spring from the roots, and a strong plant will have 

 them in all stages of development, from the one with its full grown 

 bunch of fruit to another a few inches above the ground. When 

 used in the locality where grown, or for a near market, the bunches 

 should be cut as the fruit shows signs of ripeness. If required for 

 sending long distances, or export, it will be necessary to cut the 

 bunches at an earlier stage. The bunches ripen readily in dark 

 rooms or cellars, or when covered with sand or soil. In addition to 

 cutting away the old fruiting stems, it will be advisable to thin out 

 some of the suckers when too numerous, removing the more weakly 

 ones. As the Banana is a very exhausting crop, frequent dressings of 

 manure are necessary to keep the land in good heart. With good 

 management a plantation will give good returns for seven or eight 

 years. The Chinese or Cavendish Banana is somewhat more hardy 

 than the other kinds, and may be grown successfully with less heat. 

 It has also the recommendation of being more dwarf in habit, as it 

 rarely exceeds six feet in height, and is consequently less liable to 

 injury from high winds. 



PROPAGATION AMD PLANTING. 



Bananas are propagated by the removal of suckers or young shoots 

 that spring from the roots of the old plants. In taking them off as 

 many roots as possible should be removed with them. Care should 

 be taken in planting, that the holes are sufficiently large to allow the 

 roots to be regularly spread in a horizontal position. Deep planting 

 must also be avoided and it will be sufficient to place the roots two 

 or three inches below the surface. When the roots are arranged in 

 their places they should be covered with finely pulverized earth, and 

 this must be firmed by pressure with the foot of the planter. 



BAOBAB. 



HISTORY AND USES. 



Baobab is the native name of the fruit of Adansonia digitata, an 

 evergreen tree belonging to the natural order Sterculiacese. It is indigenous 

 to a large portion of Western Africa, and is said to be the largest fruit 

 tree in the world, though its height is not proportionate to the size of the 



