T 1 1 !•: C U F. A R F. \' I i: w 



27 



AGRICULTURAL NOTES 



THE USES OF LIME 



Lime, water, windlireaks, and leguminous 

 cover crops present the best and most 

 economical insurance policy for successful 

 fruit farming in Cuba. Applied to the rais- 

 ing of sugar-cane, they will easily double 

 the yield per acre of a poor field. 



Carbonate of lime, presented in the coral 

 rock formation which underlies many parts 

 of the West Indies, is plentiful in Cuba and 

 is usualy soft enough to break easily in 

 a simple stone-crusher with sifter attached ; 

 a boll mill will work economically. To 

 apph' carbonate of lime in any save finely- 

 powdered form is a waste of money. If 

 mixed with dirt the powder maj'^ be ap- 

 plied by means of any drilling or spread- 

 ing machine. 100 parts of carbonate of 

 lime are equivalent to .56 parts of burned 

 lime or 74 parts of air-slaked lime. These 

 proportions presuppose chemically pure 

 materials : slight changes in the proportion 

 are occasioned b}" impurities, such as sand, 

 iron, dirt. etc. 



In citrus fruit groves I would apply half 

 a ton per acre broadcast, or five pounds 

 aliout each tree, covering a circle .5 ft. wide, 

 commencing 2 ft. from the trunk. To mix 

 the lime with dirt, by hoeing, is advisable. 



If a cover crop has been grown in the 

 grove, the lime should be applied after it 

 has been turned under. Turned-under cover 

 crops (which supply nitrogen) are liable to 

 sour the soil ; hence the after application 

 of lime to sweeten it. 



Sugar-cane fields will be benefited im- 

 mensely by apphnng, per acre at least a 

 ton of lime. 



It is advisable to hav"e near the stables 

 a supply of powdered carbonate of lime, 

 and to sprinkle the powder daih' over the 

 fresh manure ; it prevents the ammonia 

 from escaping into the air and keeps flies 

 away. To apply burned or air-slaked lime 

 to the manure v.ould reverse the result, as 

 it would help to free the ammonia. — Prof. 

 Paul Kanitz in Trofical Life. 



NOT SO MUCH WATER REQUIRED 



Some very instructive experiments were 

 recently made at the Utah experi- 

 ment -Station on the amount of water re- 

 quired for crops on rich and poor soils, 

 especially in regions subjected to seven 

 droughts. A fact of immense importance, 

 brought ouf by the investigations reported, 

 was "that the amount of water actually re- 

 quired for the production of a pound of 

 dry matter becomes smaller as the available 

 fertility of the soil increases." 



This law is not new, but it does not seem 

 tn have been applied to agricultural meth- 



ods in countries when tiic limiting factor 

 is the water' supply. 



The important lesson from this work, 

 briefly stated, is that if the farmer wishes 

 to conserve a scanty water supply and use 

 it to the best advantage in the growth of 

 crops he must keep his land rich. 



GRAFTING-WAX FORMULA 



^lany requests have come in of late for 

 a formula and method of making grafting 

 wax ; we publish the same for the benefit 

 of our readers : 



Rosin 4 lbs. 



Beeswax 2 lbs. 



Beef tallow 1 lb. 



Put this material in a boiler over a fire 

 and heat until it is all melted and well 

 mixed together. Grease the hands vyell. 

 Get a pail of cold water and pour a little 

 of the melted wax into it. As soon as 

 this wax gets cool enough to handle pull 

 the same as if it were molasses candy : 

 when it gets to a golden white color wrap 

 some paper about it and lay aside to harden. 

 The warmth of the hands is sufficient to 

 make the wax pliable when }ou are ready 

 to use it. Be careful not to let it catch 

 afire, as it is very inflammable. 



Grafting twine can be made by putting 

 a ball of Xo. 10 knitting cotton into the 

 melted wax before pulling it. After the 

 ball of knitting cotton has soaked for three 

 or four minutes, fish it out and put it 

 aside to cool and harden. This twine can 

 be used for tying in buds and is very handy 

 as it does not require tying, but will stick 

 of its own accord. — Soiitlicni Orchards and 

 Homes. Houston. Texas. 



TO STUDY COCOANUT DISEASE 



Professor Earle. formerly director of the 

 Santiago de las Vegas experimental station, 

 and Professor Carlos de la Torre, the noted 

 naturalist, have been named by President 

 Gomez to form a commission that will study 

 the extirpation of bud rot among the cocoa- 

 nut trees in Cuba. 



Congress last year appropriated $■'30,000 for 

 the discovery of a remedy for the disease 

 which is attacking cocoanut trees in all 

 parts of the island, especially at Baracoa. 

 Oriente Province. 



There is need of better fruits and more 

 skill and system in marketing. Co-opera- 

 tion is highly desirable in meeting the de- 

 mands of a distant market. There are 

 few industries more profitable than com- 

 mercial fruit growing with intelligent 

 manaeement. 



