and Magazine of the Ceylon Agricultural Society.— March, 1912, 



269 



poses. These named varieties may, therefore, be 

 depended upon. We are not aware upon what 

 stocks these are, but almost any young seedling 

 Mango will do for a stock. We believe that it 

 was the Portuguese colonists in India who first 

 started grafting Mangoes ; they noticed the 

 many varieties of Mango and the different quali- 

 ties, and started grafting. This is why the 



Goa or Mazagon Mangoes 



have been so long known as superior varieties. 

 It is not so very difficult to graft the Mango, 

 and in case amateurs in Ceylon wish to try their 

 hand we give the following notes on the subject 

 by Mr. Marshall Woodrow, who took great in- 

 terest in the subject and practised grafting in 

 India, and taught many native gardeners how to 

 do it. 



Grafting the Mango. 



We do not quote Mr. Woodrow word for 

 word, but the substance of his directions are as 

 follows: Take a seedling Mango tree, which is 

 to be the stock, about 4 inches in thickness, and 

 saw it across at 18 inches or so from the ground. 

 From a selected Mango tree, known for the 

 quality of its fruit, cut a well-ripened shoot of 

 the previous yoar's growth about f inch in 

 thickness ; this shoot is the scion. With a sharp 

 grafting knife pare the two sides of the scion, 

 until there is a regular diminution from a point 

 about 6 inches from the lower end downwards, 

 the least thickness being about J inch. The 

 side of the scion to be placed next the wood of 

 the stock should be planed and the outer side 

 slightly rounded. 



A slit through the bark of the stock is made 

 with the knife, the same length as the pared 

 part of the scion. A little dagger-shaped piece 

 of bone or horn is then inserted at the top of the 

 slit bark and pressed down till the bark is 

 raised, and into the space between the bark and 

 the wood, the sharpened or pared part of the scion 

 is pressed. The bone piece is withdrawn as the 

 scion is inserted, and then the whole tightly 

 bound round with a piece of fibre and strong 

 twine. The whole is then covered over with 

 "grafting wax or well-kneaded clay. Air and 

 water are kept away as much as possible from 

 the fresh graft, and gradually the two will fuse 

 and grow together into one plant. 



Varieties of Mango. 



The Ceylon Agricultural Society has four 

 varieties of Mango, as follows : Alphonse or 

 Badami, Raspuri, Mulgoa and Goa. 



Alphonse, Badami, or Aphoos is generally 

 considered to be the finest Mango in the East. 

 In weight the fruit averages half a-pound, 

 and is said to possess " a subtle blending 

 of all agreeable flavours." The fruit is green 

 with a crimson glow on the exposed side as it 

 grows, and is oblong in shape, slightly thickened 

 at the upper end, and without any prominent 

 point or peak. The leaves of the tree can be 

 distinguished by the midrib being light red until 

 leaves are mature ; and the branches of the 

 flower spike are of a rich rose colour. Its habit 

 of growth is stunted and irregular, and the tree 

 ia said to be delicate and prone to insect attacks, 



CULTIVATION OF PINEAPPLES. 



We are glad that this subject received such 

 prominent attention at the last meeting of 

 the Agricultural Society. There has been 

 no particular effort made to develop the cultiva- 

 tion of the fruit on a commercial basis and the 

 pioneer efforts of the recently formed syndicate 

 will bo watched with considerable interest. As 

 H. E. the Governor pointed out, pine-apple 

 canning is a great business at Singapore, and 

 also in the Hawaiian islands. In the latter, 

 canniug men pay one cent (of a dollar) a lb. for 

 pines. They plant 10,000 to tho acre and as an 

 average pine weighs 4 lb. the profit per acre 

 works out at 400 dollars (£80) less cultivation 

 and cartage. The prospective pine-apple grower 

 should select his soil with the greatest care. 

 The best soils are probably light loams, rich in 

 humus. A heavy cold soil, or soil inclined to 

 become sticky or gummy in wet weather should 

 never be chosen. Look for what is a good scor- 

 ing soil containing sufficient sand to make it 

 pliable at all times, and it is advisable that it 

 should slope gradually. Hilly parts should be 

 passed by. From 10,000 to 12,000 plants could 

 be planted in one acre without overcrowding 

 and there is an enormous profit to be made both 

 in exporting to other countries and in supplying 

 the local market. It is difficult to obtain a good 

 pine in the Colombo bazaars now-a-days. l^ancy 

 prices are demanded for small sized immature 

 fruit and we believe the general experience is 

 that the pines one gets in Colombo are dried up 

 and flavourless. The villager looks upon pine- 

 apples as an insignificant adjunct to his other 

 products, gathers up the fruit in a half ripe 

 condition and brine's it to the bazaars. He 

 spends nothing in cultivation or transport and 

 is satisfied with anything he gets for the fruit. 

 Planters in the lowcountry have an excellent 

 opportunity oi growing pine-apples for a profit. 

 Four or five acres planted with it should bring 

 in a handsome return at the end of twelve or 

 fourteen months. 



PLANTING OUT COCONUTS. 



A New Guinea planter writes : — " My prede- 

 cessor as manager of this coconut estate planted 

 all the young trees native fashion, i. el, with the 

 top of the nut level with the surface of the 

 ground, without any preparation of the soil. In 

 your book ' All about the Coconut Palm ' it is 

 distinctly stated that holes 3 ft. by 3 ft. by 3 ft. 

 should be dug, then filled in to within 6 inches 

 (one planter says 15 inches) of the top with good 

 soil and the nut set in the middle at the same 

 depth in the ground as when in the nursery. The 

 holes were to be very gradually filled, but not 

 completely until the plants were carrying 10 

 green leaves at one time. During the next wet 

 season, N.-W. monsoon, I am to plant up another 

 area and feel more inclined to follow these in- 

 structions than adopt the shallow planting of the 

 natives, but wish to get the latest expert opinion 

 before deciding." Our correspondent would do 

 well to follow the directions given in " All 

 About the Coconut Palm. ' If he fills the hole 

 up to about 6 to 12 inches of the top he will find 

 it will work well. 



