47 



The following cultural instructions were contributed by David de 

 Floris, of Reunion, to the * Journal of the Agricultural Society of In- 

 dia' *: — The cuttiogs must have at least three knots, but may have more 

 according to the disposition of the protecting trees, or the shade which 

 they can give. All trees are good as protectors with the exception of 

 those which change their bark; the best are the Mango-treejthe black- wood 

 {Acacia Lebbek), the Dragon-tree (Dracaena Draco, or Pterocarpus)^ 

 the Jack-tree *, the Ouatier {Bombax Malabarirum,) and the Pignon 

 d'Inde or Physic nut (Jatropha Curcas)\ but this last should not be 

 planted alone, on account of its shedding its leaves when the vanilla 

 plants are in bearing, the sun then striking upon the vanillas and on 

 their pods, being very injurious to both. It is necessary to plant the 

 ^'Pignon d'Inde" between the Dragon-trees and the Ouatier or other 

 trees, the leaves of which may serve to shade it as well as the vanilla 

 plant, to which it only serves for a protection during a certain period of 

 the year. The protecting trees ought to be planted six feet apart, in 

 rows from east to west. They should be occasionally pruned, so as to 

 produce a half-shade or chequered shade, and they should be sufficiently 

 grown to produce this demi-jour before the vanillas are planted. In 

 case, however, one should require to plant before the necessary shade ex- 

 ists, the plants should be surrounded with palm leaves in preference, and 

 watered much more often than if they had their natural shade; the cut- 

 ting should be planted at the side of the supporting tree opposed to the 

 sun. The longer the cutting the more knots must be put into the 

 ground, one knot when the cutting has three, two when has four, and 

 four or five knots when long creepers are planted. These cutt- 

 ings should be laid in the ground the tendrils towards the tree, and well 

 fixed with one, two, or several flat ties according to their length. They 

 should not be tied with a round | string, which would eventually strangle 

 the plants, but with a sort of bast or fibre from the leaf of the Pandanus 

 vacoa. Manure to the cuttings would be hurtful, but rooted plants may 

 be manured with rotted dung if the soil be poor. Vegetable manure 

 composed of rotted leaves is preferable to dung, being less heating, but 

 the stuff must be well rotted as the young roots are very tender 

 and delicate. Watering in the first tew days after planting is 

 always an absolute necessity, particularly in a dry locality. Plants put 

 in the middle of the cold season languish, lose their buds, and often 

 perish. The earth should be trodden down on each plant after having 

 been watered. The plantation should not be made very near the sea- 

 shore unless protected by trees from the direct action of the salt air 

 blowing over the plants, as such would render them poor and sickly. A 

 ground sloping to the west is preferable, as permitting more warmth to 

 the plants and less exposure to the wind. It is advised to manure 

 the plants once a year, a little before the flowering-season, and to cover 

 the manure with stones to prevent its evaporation; the stones also serv- 

 ing to keep the roots cool, and prevent the rains washing the 

 earth away. Too much shade, or shade badly applied, seem almost as 

 prejudicial to a good crop as the other extreme of exposure. Pods 

 which have been too much shaded are long, soft, thin, and difficult to 



* Vol. xi. part iv. 



* Artocarpus integrifolia, L. 



