6 



on the whole, is a safe estimate, for there is considerahle waste in drying on a large scale on account of 

 the constant shifting of the bark from the drying-houses to the barbecue which causes friction and re- 

 duces a good deal of it to dust. 



It is instructive to take Columns II. and IV. together and compare the amount of bark harvested. 

 No. (2) for instance, is much higher than No. (1), but being more slender gives much less bark. It 

 therefore pays well to attend to thinning. Perhaps the most convenient time for Crown Bark is when 

 the trees are 6 years old. If the plants were put in four feet apart, half the trees should be thinned 

 out, and it will be well to uproot them, for the shoots would interfere with the other trees, and besides 

 the root bark will be more than 50 per cent, of the bark from stem and branches. 



The amount of bark per acre may be roughly estimated by taking an average tree and multiplying 

 the weight of bark by the number of trees on an acre. Trees planted 6 feet apart, are 1,210 to the 

 acre ; 8 feet apart, 680 to the acre ; 10 feet apart, 435 to the acre. 



F. — A DISEASE IN COCOANUT PALMS. 



The following is the Report on a disease which has appeared among the Cocoanut Palms in the 

 neighbourhood of Bath : — 



To the Acting Colonial Secretary. 

 On my return journey from Bath Gardens I rode up the hills from Bath on 9th September to inspect the 

 cocoanut walk on a property called Ardshiel, belonging to Mr. George Donaldson, situated at an elevation of 

 about 1,000ft. 



On examination I found that the disease was due to scale insects, and had evidently travelled from the 

 point of its first appearance in the direction of the prevailing currents of wind. The damage done by the 

 last hurricane was evident, but it is in no way connected with the disease. 



The effect of the disease is to cause the lower leaves, and then the upper, to turn brown, and eventually 

 drop off In time the terminal bud (the " heart") is also attacked, and as the growth of Palms is confined to 

 this portion of the plant the whole cocoanut tree dies. 



The scale insects (the females, which constitute the disease) do not fly, but are transferred from one 

 plant to another by vaiious agencies : birds, insects, spider's, dead leaves or twigs, to all of which they may 

 be attached. Wind acts in a secondary way, not being able to detach the scale insects themselves but carry- 

 ing spiders, &c, to which they adhere. The young larvae are active in running about, but this method of 

 spreading cannot affect tall Palm Trees. In the present case the scale insects appear to have been brought 

 from a distance by some such agency as insects or birds, and then to have been spread through the cocoanut 

 walk by means of the wind. 



Mr. Donaldson told me that he had frequently noticed the scale insects on sugar canes in the plains dur- 

 ing dry weather, but that they disappear during the rains. He observed that at Ardsheil there had been no 

 want of rain during the present year. 



A remedy against scale insects is published in Number 3 of the Bulletin, which it is advisable to use when 

 they attack Orange trees. The expense of applying the solution is enormously increased in the case of a lofty 

 Palm. I would suggest, that owners of Cocoanut Palms should carefully watch their trees, and as soon as 

 the disease appears, lop off the leaves affected and burn them. 



(Signed) W. F. 



[The disease seems to be spreading fast, and will probably soon appear in the Liguanea plains, and else- 

 where. An eflectual remedy is the Kerosene emulsiou advised in the last Bulletin, and the only question 

 about its application is the practical one of expense.] 



G— PLANTS IN FLOWER OR FRUIT. 



Cam Wood or Bar Wood (Baphia nitida ) has grown at Castleton to a height of 24 feet, and 

 measures 30 inches in circumference at the base. It has papilionaceous flowers, white, with a small 

 orange-yellow blotch near base of the standard. Some hundred tons of the wood are imported into 

 Great Britain annually from the West Coast of Africa. The logs are about 4 feet long and a foot in 

 diameter. It is a dyewood, yielding a brilliant deep red colour, and is used for the same purposes 

 as Brazil wood. The mordant employed is sulphate of iron ; common English Bandana handker- 

 chiefs are dyed with this material. In Africa, the natives colour their bodies with the pounded wood, 

 and make use of the wood also in Fetish ceremonies. 



A Dillenia ( Dillenia indica, otherwise speciosa) is in fruit at Castleton. It is a round-headed, 

 handsome tree, 60 feet high, with hard rough leaves 8 to 10 inches long, and large showy flowers 6 

 inches across with white petals, and a mass of yellow stamens in the centre. The true fruit which is about 

 3 inches in diameter, is composed of 20 cells, arranged round an axis, each one with several seeds en- 

 veloped in a jelly-like pulp ; the whole is covered round with the calyx-leaves which have become 

 thick and fleshy, forming a large heavy fruit 6 inches in diameter. Both fruit and leaves are used in 

 India for making curries and jellies. The acid juice, mixed with sugar and water, forms an excellent 

 cooling drink in fevers, and is also useful for cough mixture. The rough leaves are employed in the 

 same way as sand-paper for polishing. Both bark and leaves are astringent and are used medicinally. 

 Their timber is hard and durable, especially under water. 



The C hampaca (Michclia Champaca) is another East Indian tree, 30 feet high with flowers of a 

 rich Orange colour, and exquisite perfume. It is sacred to Vishnu, and is planted round the tem- 

 ples. The bitter, aromatic bark is used in Mauritius as a febrifuge. The wood is fragrant, and is 

 useful for cabinet-work, and for house-building. The Champaca is a near relation of the Magnolia. 



Colvileea (O. vacemosa ) is a Madagascar tree named after a former Governor of Mauritius, Sir 

 Charles Colville. It is a beautiful tree growing to a height of 40 or 50 feet, with scarlet flowers grow- 

 ing in dense clusters. It is allied to the Flamboyante (Poinciana regia ), also a Madagascar tree. 



