86 Coco-nuts The Consols of the East 



his handbook, entitled " Tropical Agriculture," 

 which has now become a classic among those 

 interested in the industry. 



If no secondary crop be planted between the 

 coco-nuts, Barrett tells us, the disc-harrow is 

 a very good implement for keeping down the 

 weeds and grass. Shallow ploughing between 

 the trees is in some cases advisable, but there 

 is danger of injuring the roots of the palms ; 

 the ploughs, on that account, should never pass 

 nearer than 1-5 metres, say 5 ft., to the base 

 of the palms. It is questionable whether fallen 

 leaves should ever be burnt, unless there is fear 

 of fungus, or trenching and burying is too costly. 

 It is best, according to Barrett, to collect the 

 leaves as often as possible, at least three times 

 a year, and, better still, every other month, and 

 strip them, i.e., cut the leaflets off the mid-ribs, 

 burying the latter in a narrow trench between 

 the palms, deep enough to avoid the beetles, 

 which go down a good depth, from getting at 

 them. The leaflets should be thrown on the 

 compost heap, together with such husks as are 

 not burnt, grass, straw, and other rubbish, with 

 any dead animals or birds, and all left together 

 to rot. These heaps should not be built-up on 

 the bare ground, otherwise drainage takes place, 

 and valuable plant foods are lost. They should 

 be laid on concrete, or cement-covered bricks, 

 with a roof to prevent the entrance of too 

 much rain, which will wash out and waste that 

 which one wishes to conserve. Those, how- 



