8 



NURSERY. 



After the seeds are duly selected they should be "cured" in a dry 

 place (not on the ground) for a few weeks to insure the full ripening 

 of the germ and the "meat." 



The seed bed or nursery should be located in partial shade (for in- 

 stance, under, tall coconut trees on the edge of the plantation) so that 

 the germinating nuts and young plants will be protected from the drying 

 action of the hot sun during the middle of the day. The soil should be 

 sandy or at least well drained; richness is not of much importance. In 

 low, wet locations the nuts may be laid (40 or 50 centimeters apart) 

 on the gi'ound in rows, and earth thrown over them ; these ridges should 

 be 1.5 meters apart. In dryer places, especially if the seedlings are to 

 remain several months in the nursery, the nuts should be planted in 

 regular rows about 1 meter to 1.25 meters each way. The soil should 

 be free from decaying wood and grass roots. The nuts should be laid 

 on the side and just covered with earth; they should never be planted 

 on end. 



A blanket of rice straw, grass, or coconut leaves placed over the ger- 

 minating nuts will hasten the sprouting; this covering should be re- 

 moved, however, as soon as the leaves appear. 



The seed bed should be watered frequently during dry weather so 

 that the young roots shall receive no check. From the beginning of 

 the process to the end, the husk of the nut should not be exposed to 

 drying winds; hence the sprouting of nuts in heaps or rows on the 

 ground is dangerous. 



No weeds or grass should be allowed to grow in the nursery. It is 

 well to plant beans between the rows of nuts. 



TRANSPLANTING. 



The time when coconut plants should be removed from the nursery 

 depends largely upon two factors : the size of the plant and the con- 

 dition of the plantation. 



It must be remembered that there is a critical stage in the early life 

 of the plant, at which it is dangerous to move it — as long as the young 

 plant is subsisting on the nutriment contained in the seed nut it can 

 safely endure rough handling and even the loss of its roots, but at the 

 period when the supply of food in the nut is exhausted and before the 

 plant has sufficient roots and a '^eart," or stem, of its own (with a 

 quantity of reserve sap) the vitality is low and hence a large percentage 

 of the plants may die if transplanted at that time. This period usually 

 occurs between five and eight months after the appearance of the leaf 

 bud and lasts for some three to frve months. 



After the appearance of the leaf bud on the seed nut some two to four 

 months should elapse before the plant is set out ; and if not transplanted 



