54 NATURE OF THE SOIL. 



however, has already been answered in the affirm- 

 ative. He further adds, that " care is always 

 taken to hoe the ground well, and sometimes it is 

 manured."* 



This botanist, however, observes in the course of 

 his report, that he visited the plantations of Major 

 da Luz at Nossa Senhora da Penha, which were 

 exceedingly well kept, and further states that "the 

 ground, which was almost level, had formerly been 

 under water, and had been drained at the expense 

 of much labour by Major da Luz. The soil here," 

 he adds, " is less argillaceous than in other places, 

 and the vast quantity of vegetable detritus which 

 remains in the uncultivated parts, gives it the 

 appearance of a soil richly manured. Besides which 

 the plants here have a vigour of growth I have not 

 observed elsewhere ; almost all have attained the 

 height of two or three metres." f But the ordinary 

 height of plants in the settlement generally does 

 not appear by the same author to exceed half that 

 size, or one and a half metres. The plants there- 

 fore of Major da Luz mark a great luxuriance of 

 growth, ascribable no doubt to the richness of the 

 soil, and the quantity of decomposed vegetable 

 matter which it contains. 



* In his summary or concluding remarks he considers that 

 " an argillaceous ferruginous soil on the slopes of hills is more 

 suitable to the cultivation of tea than light soils and plains." — 

 La Rev. Agricole, Fevr. 1840, p. 272. 



t lb. Janv. p. 218. 



