422 COCOA 



CHAP. 



has three, four, or five stems (Fig. 60). I cannot, 

 however, see any advantage in this method, and it has 

 certainly not been proved that the yield of trees, treated 

 in this way. is higher. 



Flowering goes on on most estates more or less 

 through the whole year, and the time of the main 

 blossoming is different on different estates, and shows 

 also some variability in the following years. Also the 

 time necessary for the ripening process is not the same 

 everywhere. Generally speaking, it is shorter in the 

 plains, where the temperature is high. It takes about 

 four months and a half there. Up in the mountains, 

 where the climate is cooler, the ripening takes longer, 

 about 5 to 5^ months, in some fields even six months. 



These circumstances result in that the season of the 

 main crop is different. 



These different conditions are also the cause of the 

 lack of uniformity in " rampassing " on the different 

 estates, as we shall show below. 



As already mentioned, the cocoa in Java is, probably 

 more than in any other country, subject to insect 

 pests. 



The two worst enemies are the cocoa-moth and the 

 Helopeltis ; but in some parts of Middle Java the borers 

 are terrible enemies, especially the Glenea beetle. In 

 some plantations the canker does much damage. 



These diseases and insect pests have already been 

 described in Chapter VIII. , and we need not again go 

 into details here. A few words are desirable as to 

 their influence upon the crops. 



The moth began only to be important about 1895. 

 Before that time cocoa culture was very remunerative 

 and high yields were obtained ; yields of 10 pikul (600 

 kilograms) per bouw (0'7 hectare) (about 750 Ibs. per 

 acre) were no exception. But since the appearance of 

 the moth an average yield of five pikul is seldom obtained 

 (about 400 Ibs. per acre). Not only the yield but also 

 the quality is much affected by the moth. It is difficult 

 to estimate what is the total loss caused by the moth, but 



