154 SUGAR 



assist the industry. This institution conducts soil investi- 

 gation and classification, experiments in cultivation, 

 rotation and manuring, and the introduction and testing 

 of new varieties of cane. Many of the latter have been 

 brought over from the adjacent island of Papua, or New 

 Guinea, where there are stated to be immense numbers 

 of sugar-cane varieties being grown in the gardens of 

 the natives. 



The best variety of cane grown in Queensland at the 

 present moment is a New Guinea cane called Badila. It 

 is an exceedingly rich cane with a small percentage of 

 fibre. The following is an analysis of the Badila cane: 



Sucrose Glucose Sucrose Available 



Brix in juice in juice in cane Quotient sugar 



total solids per cent. per cent. per cent. of purity per cent. 



22-6 ... 2i'4 ... 0-21 ... 18*6 ... 95*0 ... 17*85 



A large number of varieties are grown in different 

 parts of the State, and, in comparison with other sugar- 

 producing countries, Queensland is well to the front in 

 the growth of canes of good sugar content. In the north, 

 i ton of sugar is made from 6 to 8 tons of cane accord- 

 ing to the condition of the mill treating the cane. The 

 central district takes usually from 8 to 9 tons, while in 

 the southern districts, which are out of the tropics, from 

 9 to 12 tons are used in manufacture. Many of the mills, 

 more particularly those belonging to the Colonial Sugar 

 Refmery Company, are thoroughly up-to-date and under 

 skilled technical management. 



Cultivation is also steadily improving, and fertilizers 

 are being used to a much greater extent than hitherto. 



Cane soils vary considerably in type and colour, from 

 rich red, volcanic, and deep sandy alluvial to shallow 

 soils of a gravelly nature. The following analyses are 

 the averages of each of three sugar districts in Queens- 

 land in the north, central, and southern districts : 



jy . Lime Potash Phosphoric acid Nitrogen 



per cent. per cent. per cent. per cent. 



Cairns ... ... 0*292 ... 0*310 ... 0*141 ... 0*122 



Mackay ... ... 0*829 ... 0*223 ... 0*165 ... 0*122 



Bundaberg ... 0-636 ... 0*144 ... 0*404 ... 0*220 



The Cairns soils are both alluvial and volcanic, the 

 Mackay soils all alluvial, and the Bundaberg soils all 

 volcanic. 



