4 o PARA RUBBER. 



and 21 cocoa and rubber trees respectively per acre. The 

 vacant land between both kinds of trees could be utilised during 

 the first few years for the growing of catch-crops. As cocoa 

 does not come into bearing until it is three or four years old, 

 those planted nearest the Heveas would probably not produce 

 many crops before being starved out by the more rapidly grow- 

 ing rubber trees. 



Given suitable soil and climatic conditions, cocoa is not a 

 difficult plant to cultivate, nor is expensive machinery absolutely 

 necessary for the preparation of the crop for market. The 

 demand for cocoa continues to expand. The world's consump- 

 tion of cocoa for the years 1898 and 1906 was estimated at 

 about 70,000 tons and 140,000 tons respectively, or an increase 

 of i oo per cent, in eight years. 



Coffee can also be satisfactorily cultivated as a between-crop 

 with rubber, and it is already largely grown as such in Java, 

 Ceylon, India, and the Malay Peninsula. The Liberian species 

 is best suited to the low country, while the Arabian species grows 

 best in the hills. They require to be planted at 10 by 10 feet 

 apart, and 6 by 6 feet apart respectively. 



In Ceylon and India tea is being extensively grown in con- 

 junction with rubber. 



There are several crops which can be grown as catch-crops 

 with rubber. Some of the most promising are ground-nuts, 

 tobacco, chillies, and maize. Cotton could also be grown until 

 the rubber trees shade the ground too much. 



Ground-nuts are specially recommended in view of their 

 fertilising properties. In the United States a yield of from 1,500 

 to 3,000 Ibs. of nuts per acre is obtained. In Tropical Africa 

 this yield is rarely obtained, although the nuts produced in the 

 latter country are more valuable, as they contain a greater per- 

 centage of oil. There is always a constant demand for this class 

 of oil-seed in the European markets, and good shelled nuts 

 realise on an average 12. los. per ton. The plants make ex- 

 cellent forage for cattle, as they contain about i per cent, of 

 nitrogen, or they may be dug in the ground as a fertiliser. The 

 extraction of oil does not require expensive machinery, and the 

 residue, which contains 7.5 per cent, of nitrogen, furnishes a 

 valuable cattle food or manure. African unshelled and shelled 

 ground-nuts yield 32 and 50 per cent, of oil respectively. Oil 



