COFFEE CULTIVATION AND MANURING, 129 
system be carried on it will be the old story :—‘ Well, 
it bore capitally when it was young so it did, but 
the roots are now deep in the sub-soil,’ ” 
It gives us much pleasure to add a memorandum 
on Manuring by the Director of the Botanical Gar- 
dens, Peradeniya, in answer to an application made 
to him by a planter for his opinion on the vexed 
‘question of shallow or deep manuring :— 
“Tt is true, as you state, that the coffee tree has 
a tendency to be a surface feeder to a very great ex- 
tent: still, if the soil is suitable for it, a very large 
number of roots are found at a considerable depth. It 
is, of course, desirable to encourage the development 
of these deeper roots, as well as of the more super- 
ficial ones ; the plans has then more feeding space, and 
is, moreover, less lieble to suffer from wash and draught, 
‘*'The application of manure just immediately under 
the surface of the soil would doubtless sueceed very 
well under the following conditions :— 
‘** Istly.—The soil light and porous enough to allow 
the soluble portion of the manure to pass freely 
through it for the nourishment of the deeper roots. 
“‘2ndly.—The surface of the soil shaded by the 
over-hanging branches of the coffee trees, or protected 
by alittermg of mana grass or other vegetable matter. 
“‘ 3rdly.—Excessive wash provided against by a 
thoroughly good system of draining. 
“Tf the above-named conditions are not present, [ 
‘should recommend the manure to be applied in holes 
or trenches 13 to 2 feet deep, narrowing towards the 
bottom. I would have the manure well mixed with 
the greater portion of the soil taken out of the holes 
or trenches, and this mixture after being thrown into 
them, covered up by the remaining portion of the 
dug out soil. : 
** As it cannot be supposed that there can be a very 
frequent application of manure to a coffee estate, it 
would seem desirable that, in this wet climate, a 
slowly soluble manure should be employed in prefer- 
ence to a rapidly soluble one, since much of the latter 
would probably find its way by filtration into the 
streams, instead of remaining gradually available for 
the nourishment of the coffee plants.” 
Another planter gave some good reasons for object- 
ing to mere Surface Manuring in the case of coffee :— 
“TI object to put bulky organic manure on the sur- 
face, and I pointed out that coffee roots could utilise 
it even at a good depth. But I also object entirely 
to be called a ‘sub-soil manurer.’ It would take the 
juices of a lot of manure to make ordinary sub-soil 
wholesome for feeding roots, and these juices will in 
all cases do far more good absorbed by the better 
