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136 



PLANTING. 



the canes are at first covered with only a small 

 portion of mould ; and yet they are as long in 

 forcing their way to th| surface as in Brazil, 

 though in the latter a more considerable quan- 

 tity of earth is laid upon them. I suppose that 

 the superior fatness of the Brazilian soil ac- 

 counts for this. Upon rich soils the cuttings 

 are laid at a greater distance, and the trenches 

 arc dug farther from each other, than upon 

 those which have undergone more frequent cul- 

 tivation, or which are known to possess less 

 power from their natural composition. The 

 canes which are planted upon the former throw 

 out great numbers of sprouts, which spread each 

 way ; and although when they are young the 

 land may appear to promise but a scanty crop, 

 they soon close, and no opening is to be seen. 

 It is often judged proper to thin the canes, by 

 removing some of the suckers at the time that 

 the last cleaning is given, and some persons re- 

 commend that a portion of the dry leaves should 

 also be stripped off at the same period, but on 

 other plantations this is not practised. 



The proper season for planting is from the 

 middle of July to the middle of September, upon 

 high lands, and from September to the middle 

 of November in low lands. Occasionally the 

 great moisture of the soil induces the planter to 

 continue his work until the beginning of De- 

 cember* if his people are sufficiently numerous 





