238 



TROPICAL AGRICULTURE 



CHAP. 



l^escription 

 of the drug. 



Cultivation 

 in India. 



Cultivation 

 in Jamaica. 



A rich soil 

 necessary. 



Climate. 



Cuttings. 



Tubercules 



called tubers, and varying in size from that of a small nut to 

 that of an orange. The so-called tubers are, however, simply 

 enlarged divisions of the root known botanically as tuber- 

 cules. A tuber is an enlarged underground stem, and the 

 term is therefore incorrectly applied to the transformed roots 

 of the jalap plant. 



Until within the last few years all the jalap of commerce 

 came from Central America, but now the cultivation is carried 

 on in India on a small scale, and the plant has been estab- 

 lished on the Cinchona plantations of Jamaica where it thrives 

 remarkably well. Mr. Morris recommends its cultivation on 

 a small scale by those possessing suitable land at the proper 

 elevation ; and, as a secondary crop, it may well engage the 

 attention of small proprietors. 



Soil and Climate. — Jalap requires a rich soil for the crop 

 is an exhausting one. Formerly the plant was grown amongst 

 the Cinchona trees, but this system had to be abandoned for 

 the jalap throve at the expense of the Cinchonas. A rich 

 deep vegetable sandy loam is best suited to the cultivation ; 

 and, although moisture is necessary for the welfare of the 

 plant, undrained soils are fatal to it. In its natural condi- 

 tion, the jalap plant is found '' in shady mountain woods, at 

 "an elevation of from 5.000 to 8,000 feet above the sea, in 

 " regions where rain falls almost daily, and where the tempera- 

 "ture during the day ranges between 60° and 70° Fahr." 

 A climate as near as possible approaching this one should 

 be chosen, but it is quite possible that tTie plant may yield 

 profitable returns at much lower elevations in the West 

 Indies. 



Propagation. — Plants may be obtained from cuttings of 

 the side shoots set in a sandy soil in a shady place and kept 

 constantly moist ; but for cultivation on a considerable scale, 

 the smaller tubercules should be planted, or cuttings of 

 underground stems may be buried a few inches below the 

 surface. The tubercules should on no account be exposed 



