79 



There are probably other crops which would answer for green 

 manuring quite as well as Mali Kalai* Dr, Watt mentions several. 

 The sensitive plant {Mimosa pudica} he points out would be valuable, 

 but for its thorns ; and there would be no objection to planting it on 

 old nurseries and " busti " sites. He also names Crotalaria striata, 

 Desmodium polycarpum, and Urana crinita among others. The 

 first of these three has been strongly recommended by Mr. Bambe r 

 to the Ceylon planters, but Mr. Buckingham's experiments with the 

 plant have not up to date been very promising (see page 85). In 

 addition to these, Mr. Hulbert has used French Beans as a green 

 manure on the Assam Company's gardens, but no apparent good 

 effect was produced and the treatment has been discontinued. I 

 hope, at an early date, to have facilities for making a careful trial 

 of these various plants, as well as some of the Lupins which have 

 proved such a brilliant success elsewhere for green manuring. 



In all that precedes it has been assumed that the green manur- 

 ing crop was an occasional crop on any particular plot. I think, 

 however, that there seem distinct arguments in favour of making 

 it an annual and regular matter on many soils, and having a 

 green crop on the land during the greater part of the rains. The 

 object secured by this means would be 



(1) The prevention of a great amount of nitrates being 

 washed out of the soil, because they would be used up by either the 

 tea or the green manuring crop as soon as formed. 



(2) The avoidance of much destructive wash. 



^3) The reduction in the number of hoeings> although at the 

 same time each hoe would be deeper. 



Under such a system we might have the following scheme : 



(a) Sow Mati Kalai in May with the spring rains on the top 

 of a recent hoeing. 



(b) Hoe in the crop about the end of June. 



(c) Hoe an ordinary hoe in August, and on top of this. 



(d) Put in a crop of mustard (or even Mati Kalai again if 

 the la.nd will stand it) to be hoed in at the commencement of 

 October. 



This would, under such a scheme, be applied, with modification 

 as to time and to crop, to a large part of the cultivated area each 



* I have recently noticed the enormons number of root nodules possessed by Scsbania 

 argyptica. It would hence very likely be an extremely valuable plant for this purpose. 



