138 



THE COCO-NUT 



CHAP. 



or all tropical countries who give their trees less attention 

 than is here advised. It is even stated that once the 

 coco-nut has been planted and been given a chance to 

 begin its growth, it can take care of itself without any 

 further attentioD. The fact is that in most places a 

 large part of the trees will survive if left to them- 

 selves ; but no good planter will be contented with 

 merely seeing his trees survive. What the planter 

 wants is not coco-nut trees for themselves, but the 

 profit which they can be made to yield, and merely 

 surviving does not yield returns. I have seen prospectuses 

 and estimates which provide practically nothing for 

 labour on plantations from the first year up to the time 

 that the trees come into bearing, and which provide for 

 a full crop in ten years, with the further statement that 

 at least a fair crop should be expected earlier than this. 

 So far as I know, there is no country where coco-nuts 

 left to themselves in this way can be expected to come 

 into general bearing in ten years. They do better than 

 can be expected with any confidence if they come into 

 what is called full bearing in fifteen years, and full bearing 

 for such plantations never means what it does for those 

 which are decently cared for. I have seen various 

 plantations, for the most part small ones, which received 

 practically no care while young. In every case, there 

 were a considerable number of vacancies ; the trees 

 always spindling, with a smaller crown than, coco-nuts 

 ought to carry ; and as a rule, such groves as a whole 

 do not bear a decent crop of nuts when they are fifteen 

 years old. In spite of the fact that a great many 

 people treat their coco-nuts in this way, I do not 

 believe that anybody who has observed the matter 

 carefully enough to frame a sound opinion will hold 

 that the money invested in such plantations has been 

 used to the best purpose. 



Taking up now the other assumption, that a 

 catch-crop is to be cultivated, choice must be made 

 among the various crops which in different places are 

 used for this purpose. The catch-crop must be one 



