and Magazine of the Ceylon Agricultural Society,— Septemss er, 1912, 251 



SALES OF PRODUCE IN BRITISH AND CONTINENTAL [MARKETS. 



Fibres, Cotton, Grain, Oil Seeds, Hides and Skins, 

 Timber, Rubber, Drugs, Wool, Ores, Mica, Gums, Tea, 

 Cocoa, Coffee, Copra, Sugar, etc., are being regularly 

 dealt in; Keymer, Son & Co., being selling Agents for 

 Estates, Mills and Exporters. 



Samples valued. Best ports for Shipments indicated. 



The management of Estates undertaken. Capital found 

 for the development or purchase of valuable properties. 



KEYMER, SON & CO. , 

 Cables: Whi tef riars. 



KEYMER, LONDON. LONDON, E. C. 



(Same address since 1844), 



A beautiful coloured photographic illustra- 

 tion is given showing nuts whole and in sec- 

 tions of manured and unmanured trees. 



The experience of all local coconut planters has 

 been that if an estate had been neglected the 

 first application of manure helps to improve the 

 condition of the trees. A second application 

 should follow a year after to secure crops. This 

 advice is given in the book under review. 



Manure mixtures are suggested for "saud or 

 loamy soils," ''loamy soils," "clay soils." It 

 will serve no good purpose to analyse each and 

 will occupy too much of my time and your 

 space. 



Mulch. 



A chapter is devoted to this very important 

 and much neglected agricultural operation. 

 " Tilth, mulch and microbes " should be the 

 motto of modern agronomists. The neglect of 

 mulching, which is called the " fundamental 

 principle of plant cultivation,' 1 is much regret- 

 ted. Mulching can very easily be carried on, on all 

 coconut estates, immediately after the applica- 

 tion of manure, so as to keep the soil free and 

 moist and to permit of unarrested root-action 

 even during dry weather. The material is at 

 hand in weeds or fronds. Husks are also used, 

 but this work costs much in transport and ar- 

 rangement of husks. If the soil be kept in a 

 proper state of tilth, it acts as a mulch and per- 

 mits of the action of microbes. 



I will, as time permits, continue spasmodic 

 reviews of this book. 



B, 



RUBBER NEWS FROM CEYLON. 



Mr. Wicherley writing from Ceylon to The 

 Rubber World says : — Mr. R M Lyne, tho new 

 Director of Peradeniya Gardens, has settled 

 down to his great task which the Island agri- 

 culture presents for him. He is apparently a 

 very hard, enthusiastic worker, and is certain to 

 make a good record in Ceylon. I had a very 

 interesting chat with him the other day. He 

 found " The Whole Are of iiubber Growing" 

 somewhere on the East Coast of Portuguese 

 Africa, and I discovered him to be a genial 

 endorser of all the good things written about 

 Ceara. Among other things, Mr. Lyne sug- 

 gested "coppicing" Ceara every year. He 

 would grow it very thickly, and when the 

 plant is one year old cut it down to a 3 ft. 

 stump, and put the whole lot through a 

 macerator, afterwards recovering the rubber. 

 I am going to try it on an acre of ground 

 at once and shall be interested to know what 

 macerated Ceara is like. 



A Company has started a factory here for 

 decorticating Para Rubber seed. 1 am much 

 interested in the venture. The price offered 

 estates for waste seed is £3 per ton, but I am 

 told they want nearer £20 1 Perhaps when 

 " Perkinette " swoops down upon them, estate 

 Agents will be glad to sell it, if only to help 

 to pay the coolies rice allowance, (This is 

 not a joke.) But the exploitation of waste 

 rubber seed, on the other hand, has universal 

 attractions for tho native for whom nothing 



