NUTMEGS AND MACE 121 



to be remembered that in cutting off these parasites the 

 branch on which one is growing should be cut off below 

 the point of attachment of the parasite, as it thrusts 

 its roots downwards in the branch, and merely breaking 

 off the branches of the Loranthus is not sufficient to kill 

 it. Nutmegs are less liable to the invasion of epiphytic 

 plants, such as mosses and lichens, than cloves, but when 

 these appear it is advisable to pull them off. 



Grafting. Grafting to improve the production of 

 the fruits and to make certain of having many female 

 trees has often been suggested and tried by planters for 

 many years. It does not, however, seem to have ever 

 repaid the planter for his expense and trouble in the 

 operation. 



Dr. Oxley describes how he grafted several plants 

 by approach, and writing three years later says, that 

 though the plants are looking well and growing, they 

 have thrown out their branches in a straggling, irregular 

 manner, having no leaders, and consequently they cannot 

 develop their branches in the regular verticils necessary 

 for the perfect formation of the tree. Without these the 

 trees must ever be small and stunted, and consequently 

 incapable of producing any large quantity of fruit. 

 Hart, who also tried grafting in order to produce a 

 larger supply of female trees by grafting branches of 

 female trees on male ones, found it a long and ex- 

 pensive business, and states that though grafted plants 

 fruit earlier they do not last as long. He says that 

 while seedling nutmegs cost 6 cents in Trinidad, owing 

 to the expense and labour entailed grafted plants cannot 

 be sold under a dollar. 



Much the same statements are made by others who 

 have tried grafting, that is to say, they find it is not 

 worth the cost. 



In Grenada, in order to obviate the difficulty of 

 having too many males and too few females, it is advised 

 to grow the trees until the fifth year, when the sex 

 can be determined, and then to remove the unnecessary 

 males. As a rule, however, the greater proportion of 



