THE CULTIVATION OF COCOA 179 



is considered inappreciable. Besides farmyard manure, 

 other sorts of humus-affording manures are regarded 

 as useful. On one estate, for instance, good results 

 were obtained by the application of undergrowth 

 (herbs and shrubs) from the virgin forest ; but this 

 method, though good in itself, could not be applied 

 every year and over the whole plantation, as the under- 

 growth from 4 to 5 acres is necessary to cover the 

 soil of one acre in the cocoa fields. Another kind of 

 humus-affording manure is regularly given on different 

 estates in Java, viz. " boengkil," i.e. "ground-nut cakes," 

 or cakes made of castor seeds after extraction of the 

 oil. Little can as yet be said, however, as to the effect 

 of this manure for cocoa, for systematic experiments 

 have only lately been started. Generally about one to 

 two kerosene tins of " boengkil " are given per tree. 



In many countries, however, organic manures are 

 not to be had at a reasonable price, and the planters 

 have no option but to try artificial manures. This, for 

 instance, is the case in St. Lucia. The Agricultural 

 Superintendent wrote : "Pen-manuring is undoubtedly 

 the best system, but the difficulty of transportation 

 prevents its general adoption." Experiments were 

 therefore made with artificial manures, and these 

 experiments have shown that in St. Lucia the soil 

 needs no addition of potash, but that phosphorus and 

 nitrogen produced good effects. On the experiment 

 plots the best results were obtained by the application 

 of 200 kilograms of basic slag and 50 kilograms of 

 sulphate of ammonia to the acre. 



In Victoria (Kamerun) manuring experiments were 

 started in 1904, and the results of the first crops of 

 the different plots were published in the following 

 year. 1 Though results after only one year cannot be 

 regarded as conclusive, it may be mentioned that on 

 two experiment fields an application of potash and 

 phosphorus seemed to have the best success (about 

 220 kilograms of kainit and 100 kilograms of super - 



1 Strunk, "Kakao Dingungsversuche " (Tropenpflanzer, 1906, p. 516). 



