THE MANGO 105 



vegetative growth previous to the flowering season. Ringing 

 and hacking the trunk are two of the commonest practices, while 

 root-pruning is occasionally performed in India. Recent 

 experiments indicate that a liberal application of potash is 

 extremely beneficial. Mulgoba trees at Miami, Florida, and 

 Guanajay, Cuba, which were heavily fertilized with potash, 

 produced much larger crops than those fertilized in the ordinary 

 way. A standard commercial fertilizer especially prepared in 

 Florida for use on mango trees contains : 



Ammonia 5 to 6 % 



Phosphoric acid 7 to 9 % 



Potash 9 to 11% 



These elements are derived from ground bone, nitrate of soda, 

 dried blood, dissolved bone black, and high-grade potash salts. 



Woodrow recommends for India that young trees be fer- 

 tilized liberally with barnyard manure; but he adds that as 

 soon as they come into bearing the application of manure must 

 be stopped, and leguminous cover-crops planted between the 

 rows. These crops can be plowed under, thereby enriching the 

 soil in the necessary degree and at the same time keeping down 

 weeds. The best legumes for this purpose, according to Wood- 

 row, are Crotalaria juncea, Cicer arietinum, Phaseolus aconiti- 

 jolius, and Phaseolus Mungo. P. J. Wester says, "The velvet 

 bean (Stizolobium Deeringianum), Lyon bean (Mucuna Lyoni), 

 the cowpea (Vlgna Catjang) and related species may be used 

 with good success in the Philippines. Of these the Lyon bean 

 is preferable in the Philippines, since here it produces a greater 

 amount of growth per acre than any other legume." In 

 Florida velvet beans, cowpeas, and the bonavist bean (Dolichos 

 Lablab) have been used. Growers should plant a number of 

 different legumes experimentally to determine which are the best 

 for their particular localities. 



Numerous experiments to test the effectiveness of girdling 



