2O COFFEE : ITS CULTIVATION AND PROFIT. 



magnesia, oxides of iron, oxides of maganese, 

 potash, soda, sulphuric acid, phosphoric acid, 

 carbonic acid. The preponderance of one or 

 more of the natural divisions makes the soil pro- 

 ductive or unproductive, while certain plants make 

 special calls upon one or more substances, and 

 consequently such must be present and available 

 in a soil that is to suit them. 



Officially, five kinds of soil are recognized in 

 India, but in truth there are a greater variety 

 than in any other country in the world except 

 China. 



A rich soil gene^^_j:pjitairia^fiv^ier -cent., 



or one twentieth, of its weight of organic matter 

 in combination with other fertilizing substances. 

 As for the best ground for Conjee in particular, 

 it may be~TToT:e37jhat our chief authorities differ 

 in their viewsj^but as a broad principle the best 

 soil is the j^ches^^no matter what its colour, or 

 whether it be the volcanic mould of Java, the 

 rich red earth of Brazil, the deep valley silt of 

 Arabia, or the Ceylon jungle mould. 



Sabonadiere's description of a good soil's 

 exterior character is as good as any we have read. 

 "We come to the conclusion," he says, "that 

 a dark chocolate-coloured soil mixed with small 

 stones, under ledges of rock, and bestrewn with 

 boulders, is most suitable for the trees." In this 

 he will be found to have given a very accurate 

 description of much of the best ground in Ceylon 



