SEED NUTS CULTIVATION 29 



transplanted and have become firmly rooted in 

 the ground, very little cultivation is required 

 beyond keeping the land free from weeds, 

 particularly round the young tree. They should 

 be circled and dug round every three months 

 with the native " changkol " or hoe, and plough- 

 ing over the whole land periodically to a depth 

 of 9 inches will be found very beneficial. 



For stirring up the soil round a tree, or for 

 manuring, the best implement is the Assam 

 fork; it is spade-shaped with strong steel 

 prongs, but it has the hoe or changkol handle, 

 and the body action in using it is the same as 

 with the popular changkol. 



As the trees advance in age, the radius of the 

 circle dug up should be increased for one-year- 

 old trees, 2 to 3 feet from the stem of the tree will 

 be found sufficient; for two-year-old trees the 

 radius should be increased to 4 feet, and so on ; 

 the circle dealt with in this way, when the tree 

 reaches maturity and is in full bearing, is about 

 8 feet from the stem. 



These remarks refer particularly to the stiffer 

 land ; where the soil is loamy and rich, hoeing 

 and ploughing may perhaps be unnecessary, or 

 not until the trees are much older. 



" The question of the cultivation of coconuts 

 is, to my mind, still an open one. Does clean 

 weeding, as commonly practised on rubber 

 estates, pay best ? Is it better to keep clean an 

 8-foot circle round the trees and allow the weeds 

 to grow (always excluding lalang), or should 



