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the sticks to a height of about 18 ins. : to these mounds is carried the 

 burnt earth obtained from the burning of the stumps. The garden is 

 now ready for planting. 



Planting. The pepper vine is invariably propagated by cuttings 

 obtained from the terminal shoots of young vines which are only about 

 live or six feet high and from li to 2i years old. The cuttings are 

 from li to 2 ft. long and are planted straight out, nurseries being un- 

 necessary. Usually they are arranged in the soil at an angle of about 

 45° and are pointed to the East : some five or six internodes should be 

 covered by soil, the lowest one being about six inches deep : the top of 

 the cutting leans against the stick. Above, protection from the sun's 

 rays is afforded by a covering of fern leaves or grass, one to each cut- 

 ting, and this protection is continued for several months, until in fact 

 the young plant has attained a fair hold. Planting is usually perform- 

 ed in January during the wet monsoon. 



Treatment of Vines. Within a week or so of being planted, each 

 vine receives a first application of burnt earth, a few handfuls, and 

 afterwards this is applied regularly every four months. 



Whenever it becomes necessary, the young shoots are tied to the 

 stick with soft bark or twine. After six months or more these tempor- 

 ary supports are replaced by the permanent posts which are of the 

 hardest wood obtainable and of the dimensions 12 feet long by 4 ins. 

 or more square. This post is fixed vertically two feet deep in the 

 centre of each mound and the vine is transferred to the post. 



Three main shoots only are allowed to climb up the post and these 

 are tied to their support at every internode. Formerly it was custo- 

 mary to pull down the main shoot and to coil it spirally round the 

 post so as to obtain a more bushy vine : nowadays this is no longer 

 practised. 



About this time the flower spikes may appear in which case they 

 should be at once picked off. It is the custom of the pepper gardeners 

 to prevent sporadic fruiting, which is liable to occur almost any time 

 in the life of the vine, and thus to concentrate on the proper annual 

 crop. When the vines are about a year old, all those from which cut- 

 tings are to be taken are pruned so as to leave one main shoot only. 

 This is allowed to grow for six months or more and is then cut off: 

 this is the cutting which is ordinarily employed in planting. After this, 

 around the roots of each vine a quantity (half a catty) of prawn refuse 

 is spread : the valuable manure is applied in preparation for the first 

 fruiting. In the ordinary course of events fruiting occurs during the 

 succeeding year and now the gardeners are particularly, busy with 

 weeding, draining, the regular application of burnt earth, and with 

 spraying operations. Judicious pruning is also necessary for producing 

 bushy vines : by the time it has reached the top of its post a vine has 

 been pruned at least three times. When the vine is from 2i to 2 J years 

 old the first crop is over, the yield being estimated at from 1 to li catties 

 of white pepper per vine (four to six catties of green pepper). By the 

 end of another year, the vine being 31 years old, the plant has reached 

 the top of its ten ft. post and is considered to be full grown : the crop 

 of that year is estimated at three catties per vine. In each year the 

 fruiting period extends over some months, the main crop being produc- 



