COCOA-GROWING COUNTRIES 345 



Phytophthora) is well known on all plantations. 

 Possibly it may have been the disease which destroyed 

 the Criollo crops about the year 1727, which led to 

 the introduction of the Forastero about 1757. 



The canker is also well known and occasionally 

 causes loss of trees. This is also the case with the 

 " die-back " or Diplodia-disease (Diplodia cacaoicola), 

 which at present may perhaps be regarded as the most 

 serious disease. 



Mr. Barrett 1 especially pointed out that in many 

 cases the death of cocoa trees had to be attributed to 

 Diplodia or "die-back" disease, and he recommended 

 a careful removing of all diseased or dead wood and the 

 burying of pods or covering them with lime. 



Besides, "thread-blight" and "horse-hair blight" 

 are sometimes met with. Neither of these diseases 

 is so prevalent that regular measures have to be taken 

 against them. 



Among the insect pests the cocoa-beetle (Steirastoma 

 depressum) is by far the most important, but the 

 parasol -ant (Oecodoma cephalotes) is also sometimes 

 very troublesome. 



The trees are flowering during the whole year but 

 most abundantly from June to September. Accordingly 

 the main crop is gathered during November, December, 

 January, and February, but during the whole year 

 cocoa is picked in a greater or smaller quantity. 



The picking is done by means of a light cutlass or 

 machete as used in pruning, and for the fruits which 

 hang high in the tree a " cocoa-pruner " is used. This 

 cocoa -pruner (see Fig. 63, b) is attached to a long 

 wooden rod or bamboo, and consists of a blade, about 

 4 inches long, which is provided with a bent-down 

 narrow knife. With this instrument either a push 

 upward can be made (with the straight part), or a pull 

 downward (with the curved part). 



The pickers are chosen amongst the most skilful 

 workmen. 



1 Papers of the Agricultural Society of Trinidad and Tobago, 1907. 



