Manuring 303 



are kept, their manure must be carefully stored 

 in the compounds and made use of in the 

 building up of the compost heaps already 

 described, where all fertilizing constituents are 

 mixed and worked up with earth, and left to 

 decompose under cover until required, only 

 needing water now and again when too dry. 



Artificial manures have the most effect when 

 applied to young palms, because at that stage 

 the soil surrounding the roots is still unsettled 

 and because the most rapid progress in the 

 growing conditions takes place. Moreover, 

 the application of cattle manures from grazing 

 Animals, even when available, cannot be re- 

 sorted to because the leaves and tender fronds 

 of the young trees are within the reach of 

 domestic animals, and considerable damage 

 would accrue to the plants from the eagerness 

 of cattle, to feed upon them, but when the 

 leaves are up out of harm's way, cattle and 

 pigs and even poultry can be allowed into the 

 groves, and the more there are of them the 

 better for all. The principal thing in all 

 rational coco-nut cultivation should be to 

 determine as nearly as possible, by analysis 

 or otherwise, just how much of the afore- 

 mentioned chief plant-food constituents there 

 are in the soil and how much of these are 

 available for the trees to use up in their 

 growth, and in the formation of fruit, &c., for 

 it must be remembered that analytical returns 

 are not everything, it is not only necessary 



