2 



NOTES ON BANANAS. 



To the Director of Public Gardens and Plantations, 



Sir, 



I send you the following rough notes for Banana Cultivation which I have gained from actual 

 experience. 



1st. Limit the cultivation to an area that you can give direct personal supervision to, say each 

 root to be examined once per month. 



2nd. Calculate your means and always have sufficient ready money in hand to do the work as 

 soon as required. I have seen three weeks delay in the performance of necessary cultivation ruin a 

 crop for a whole season. 



Sid. Keep the land properly drained. Allow no surface water to become stagnant or heated by 

 the sun's rays, neglect of this precaution in bad weather means sudden death to Bananas. I have 

 seen a whole row destroyed in three days. 



4th. Do not plant too close unless one or two crops are all the planter wishes to reap, say 14 ft. 

 square for level lands that can be ploughed and 10 ft. square for hill sides. Let the rows be straight 

 to enable the planter to detect trespass and theft easily. 



5th. Leave suckers that will fruit in succession at intervals longer or shorter in accordance with 

 the fertility, or poverty of the soil. In rich soils the intervals may be as short as 2 or 3 months, in 

 poor lands 4 to 6 months. Two stalks should not be permitted to shoot at once if it is possible to 

 avoid it. If several suckers of the same size are left in one root it takes longer for them to mature, 

 and even if the land is good, the bulk of the fruit will not be ready in the spring when good prices 

 are the rule, but late in the season when the demand is less, and prices unremuner ative. The cultiva- 

 tor, if he is an observant man, will soon discover the capabilities of his land, and be in a position to 

 control th-e yield of fruit. 



6th. To ensure ratooning, the land must be kept thoroughly broken up and pulverized, by fork- 

 ing or ploughing and harrowing. Care should be taken that the plough is always followed by a har- 

 row. It is injurious to leave the land in heavy clods unfit for plant growth. 



7th. Bananas always throw suckers outwards, so that ratoons grow away from the original plant. 

 The rotted trees in the centre form a barren circle after a few years. This circle can be sweetened, 

 and made available by application of unslacked lime. 



8th. Green grass or Cow peas, forked or ploughed in, keeps the soil loose and supplies nitrogen- 

 ous food to the plants, encouraging early maturity. 



9th. Too many of our small proprietors waste a great deal of their time in eSorts to obtain a trifle 

 more per bunch for their bananas, by carrying it themselves to the shipping port, instead of selling it 

 on the spot, and devoting their energies to planting and cultivation. They often expend time worth 

 four shillings, to obtain one shilling on the sale. 



10th. Sufficient care is not observed in carriage of fruit. Bananas which take twelve months to 

 produce are often destroyed in five minutes from this cause. Rejections are greatly complained of, 

 but in very many instances they are caused either by damage in carrying, or by immaturity of the fruit 

 delivered. There are sometimes faults on both sides. 



I promised you a few figures in re Banana Cultivation, and as my financial year has ended and 

 my books have been closed, I append the particulars showing the results attained. 

 Stalks per acre, 339. 

 Gross sales per acre 



Cost of cultivation and delivery per acre 

 Net profit 



Selling price per stalk 

 Cost per stalk cultivation and delivery 



Net profit per stalk 



£27 



1 



3 



6 



18 



6 



£20 



2 



9 





s. 



d. 





1 



7i 









4f 



Cultivation per acre. 



Each acre was weeded, ploughed, and harrowed seven times during the year ; forked around 

 the roots once in the year ; suckered regularly whenever the suckers shewed. 



I may remark that forty acres of my cultivation have been bearing since 1886 and are still in 

 cultivation. 



My crop in 1887-88 when I took charge of the property, averaged ten six-hands to one nine- 

 hand. The crop for 1892-93 averaged fifteen whole bunches to one six-hand. This has been done 

 without the aid of manure, and shows the result obtained by improved methods of cultivation. 



I hope these figures will be of use to you, They are taken from my books and can be relied on. 



My figures include cost of keeping up herd of cattle, cleaning and fencing pastures, watchmen, 

 htadmen, salaries,general supplies and all minor improvements. 



Yours, &c., 



Hexrt Cork. 



NOTES ON POTATO CULTIVATION. 



As the cultivation of the so-called Irish Potato is not carried on to any great extent in Jamaica, 

 and the methods usually adopted by experienced growers elsewhere are not clearly understood by small 

 planters, a few words on the subject may be useful. There is no reason why this highly important 



