174 Br. Heifer's Fourth Report [No. 98. 



more nourishment in the third year by again planting annuals. 

 By this it will be perceived that a plantation laid out in this 

 way does not yield a return before the seventh year; but 

 that the revenue then increases in such a ratio, if laid out on 

 a somewhat large scale, as to render the planter comfortable 

 and independant after ten years. 



The first and second year the settler will scarcely gain more 

 than his livelihood by the value of the annuals ; from the third 

 to the seventh, the coffee alone will remunerate him ; after the 

 seventh year the arecas begin to bear ; and after the eighth 

 begin the crops of nutmegs. 



A plantation of 50,000 arecas, 25,000 coffee, and 7>500 nut- 

 meg trees would therefore yield as follows : — 



Annuals. 



1st and 2nd year, Trifling. 



3rd year coffee at an average of two annas net 



profit from one tree, 3,125 



4th, 5th, and 6th year, 3, 125 



7th, 8th, and 9th year, arecas at 4 annas per tree. 12,500 



Coffee, 3,125 



Total, 21,875 



10th, and following 7 years, nutmegs at 10 rupees 



per tree, .. . 32,500 



Arecas, 12,500 



45,000 



It must be observed that the calculation is taken from 3,250 

 instead of 7^500 nutmeg trees, which the colonist originally 

 planted, because half these trees will probably be males, which 

 are useless, and are to be cut down, except one for every 

 twenty females, which is quite sufficient to impregnate them. 



It is to be lamented that we know as yet no distinguishing 

 mark to discern a male or female nutmeg tree before they blos- 

 som. It is therefore necessary to plant 3,250 young trees more, 

 which after 8 years will again turn out half males and half females, 



