50 



NATURE 



[July 14, 19 10 



of the Guayule rubber industry and of Ceara rubber in 

 German East Africa, in addition to papers on tea cultiva- 

 tion at Limoru. Among the more general papers is an 

 interesting diary of a journey made by Mr. E. Battis- 

 combe down the Tana River ; photographs are reproduced 

 showing typical views and native huts. 



The current issue of the West Indian Bulletin (No. 4, 

 vol. -x.) contains a description by Mr. Josepfi Jones of 

 some cacaos grown at the Dominica Botanic Station. The 

 root disease of sugar-cane (^Marasmius sacchari) is also 

 discussed, and found to be prevalent in all districts of 

 Antigua, although planters do not readily recognise it, and 

 therefore cannot apply remedial treatment as early as is 

 desirable. There is an interesting paper by Mr. G. Moody 

 Stuart on implemental cultivation, in which attention is 

 directed to the necessity for using the best and most 

 efficient tillage implements, some suitable types of which 

 are described. 



The theoretically ideal method of dealing with insect 

 pests is to encourage their natural enemies, but it is of 

 limited application, because complications invariably set 

 in sooner or later. The natural enemies of the sugar-cane 

 pests were recently described in the Agricultural News 

 (No. 209). Several parasites are known of the sugar-cane 

 borer {Sphenophorus obscurus), one being a Tachinid fly, 

 one a Histerid beetle, and one a beetle of the family 

 Elateridse. Attempts are being made in Hawaii to intro- 

 duce the natural enemies of the pests occurring there. 



We have received a little booklet, " How to Use Nitrate 

 of Soda," with a preface by Dr. Bernard Dyer, in which 

 summaries are given of various field trials with this 

 fertiliser. Several old misconceptions are dealt with ; it is 

 shown that nitrate of soda is not a mere stimulant, but a 

 true plant food, and that it does not exhaust the soil. The 

 necessity for potassic and phosphatic manuring and for 

 periodical liming is also emphasised. Whilst primarily 

 intended for practical men, the pamphlet is also of interest 

 as showing what has been done with artificial manures. 



A REPORT describing the experiments made during 1909 

 at the Harper Adams Agricultural College, and in the 

 counties of Staffordshire and Shropshire, has lately been 

 issued. One of the most notable features is the cropping 

 power of a wheat, Browick grey chaff, recently introduced 

 to the district by the college authorities ; other wheats 

 selected from Fife are also under investigation. We have 

 also received the report on experiments with potatoes made 

 in 1909 by Mr. Stewart, of the Edinburgh and East of 

 Scotland Agricultural College. The effect of a change of 

 locality on the vigour of the plant was well marked ; 

 apparently the best change is from a later or colder dis- 

 trict to one earlier or warmer. Thus in the south-east of 

 Scotland it was found advantageous to procure seed from 

 the north, just as in England it is found profitable to 

 procure seed from Scotland or Ireland. 



Reference is made in the Kew BuUeiin (No. 5) to the 

 flowering of the Burmese rose, Rosa gigantea, in the 

 Himalayan section of the temperate house, this being the 

 first record for the gardens. Another interesting item is 

 the production of carpophylls on a plant of Cycas 

 MichoJitzii, which is being cultivated in the water-lily 

 house. 



The current number of the Keiv Bulletin (No. 5) opens 

 with a report, by Dr. J. M. Dalziel, on the botanical 

 resources of Yola province, northern Nigeria. Shea 

 kernels {Buiyrospermum Parkii) and gum are the chief 

 commercial vegetable products. The author was not able 

 NO. 2124, VOL. 84] 



to trace the sources of the gum beyond recognising that it 

 is obtained from species of Acacia and Combretum, notably 

 Acacia Senegal and Combretum verticillatum, with 

 admixtures of inferior gum from such sources as 

 Anogeissus leiocarpa and species of Albizzia. Odorous 

 resin is obtained from two species of Boswellia — new to 

 science — and Daniella thurifera. Diagnoses of new 

 LauraceEE from the Malayan region, by Dr. J. S. Gamble, 

 include a dozen species of Cryptocarya and ten of the 

 genus Beilschmiedia. 



In the first issue of the meteorological chart of the 

 North Atlantic for July, published by the Meteorological 

 Committee, the synchronous weather charts show that from 

 June 9-12 inclusive an area of high barometric pressure 

 remained nearly stationary in the neighbourhood of the 

 Azores, and afterwards travelled slowly eastward and 

 north-eastward, causing a gradual improvement in the 

 weather over the British Isles. Icebergs have been sighted 

 with increasing frequency on the Banks of Newfoundland, 

 drifting south, but the total number is below the normal. 

 It is stated that navigation opened earlier this year than 

 for some years past, owing to the exceptionally favourable 

 conditions of the ice, not only in the St. Lawrence; but 

 also in the White Sea and the Baltic. The first steamer 

 reached St. Petersburg on April 18, only a week later than 

 the earliest date of arrival there on record. 



The Bulletin of the Manila Weather Bureau for 

 November, 1909 (recently received), contains particulars of 

 two notable typhoons which crossed the Philippine Archi- 

 pelago during that month. The first, on November 6-7, 

 was remarkable for the unusual violence which it dis- 

 played in the Visayas and the China Sea, and for the 

 changes in direction of the track while traversing the 

 China Sea. Attention is directed to the occurrence at two 

 stations of ball-lightning, which is said to be extremely 

 rare in the neighbourhood of a cyclonic vortex. The 

 second storm, November 12-23, ^^^ distinguished by the 

 extraordinary development which it acquired in the China 

 Sea, and especially by the fact that for several days it 

 remained practically stationary to the east of the Paracel 

 Islands ; from November 18 to 21 the mean velocity of 

 translation was only about 1-5 miles per hour. The tracks 

 of the typhoons are laid down, and isobaric charts drawn 

 from all available observations and reports ; much credit 

 is due to the Weather Bureau for its persistent efforts 

 to throw light on the behaviour of these destructive 

 storms. 



The present summer has so far proved cool and un- 

 settled, and to the present it has given cause for 

 suspicion that the season may prove as unfavourable as 

 that of last year. The summary just issued by the 

 Meteorological Office for the five weeks ended July 9 shows 

 the mean temperature for the period to be in fair agree- 

 ment with the average, but there has so far been a marked 

 absence of high day temperatures. The rainfall has been 

 in excess of the average over the whole of England and 

 Ireland, but there has been a slight deficiency of rain in 

 Scotland. The greatest excess for the five weeks is 

 1-69 inches in the south-east of England and 1-54 inches 

 in the Midland counties, whilst in nearly all districts the 

 excess is more than an inch. The duration of bright sun- 

 shine is deficient in England and Ireland, but there was 

 a slight excess in Scotland. At Greenwich, the mean con- 

 ditions for June were for the most part in fair agreement 

 with the normal, but the weather was by no means agree- 

 able. The rain fell at the commencement and end of the 

 month, the aggregate measurement being 2-11 inches, 



