and Magazine of the Ceylon Agricultural Society. 



179 



all the rice produced was used in the colony, 

 replacing rice formerly imported from India, 

 but a year or so ago a commencement was made 

 of an export trade with the West Indian Islands 

 and about 700 tons were exported from the 

 colony during the year 1906-7. The export re- 

 turns to April, 1907, show that this amount 

 will be very largely exceeded during the pre- 

 sent year. 



The enormous area in British Guiana suitable, 

 ormore correctly speaking, pre-eminently suit- 

 able, for the cultivation of rice, will enable 

 the colony to become the granary for the 

 W est Indian Islands when the cultivation of 

 Sea Island cotton attains the great develop- 

 ment which appears to be in the near future 

 for it. Even if the Islands throw all their avail- 

 able laud into cotton, a product which does no 

 appear likely to be produced on a large scale in 

 British Guiana, that colony will grow the rice 

 for the food of their inhabitants, a very fair 

 division of labour and in all probability also 

 of profit. 



The rice generally grown in British Guiana 

 is known as Creole rice, and seems tobe a variety 

 which has originated there by unconscious 

 selection. It is of excellent quality, quite 

 equal to any that has been imported into the 

 colony. The choicest type of the Creole rice 

 is that known as the ''Berbice'' Creole, The 

 only variety which appears to excel this type 

 in quality is that best of all rices, the Caro- 

 ina Golden Grain, but it is hoped by experi- 

 mental cultivation to ^obtain even better kinds 

 in future. 



With this object in view large numbers of 

 varieties of rice have been imported into the 

 colony by the Board of Agriculture. About 

 seventy of these are at present under cultiva- 

 tion at the Government Experimental Fields. 

 From among these it is hoped to select kinds 

 which will give satisfactory yields in the lands 

 of the interior of the colony, so that those en- 

 gaged in the forest industries and in the ex. 

 ploitation of the various mineral products may 

 grow rice and thus supply at least a part of the 

 food they require. 



The experiments with varieties have been- 

 utilised as far as feasible to ascertain the pro 

 bable manurial requirements of rice under the 

 conditions under which it is grown in British 

 Guiana. Nitrogen is not required as a manurial 

 constituent as the creek- waters used to irri- 

 gate the growing crops supply it in ample 

 quantity, and where the soil is at all rich in 



nitrogen the rice is almost invariably laid. 

 Potash also does not appear to be necessary as 

 a manurial application, the rice soils containing 

 it in abundance, whilst it is generally present 

 in small quantities in the irrigation-waters. 

 On the other hand, the judicious use of phos- 

 phates appears, on the whole, to be advant- 

 ageous ; superphosphate of lime cannot, how- 

 ever, be recommended as at times its use has 

 resulted in decreased yields ; slag phos- 

 phate is preferable to it, and may be applied 

 without risk to the crops ; but as far as the ex- 

 periments go the application of so-called basic 

 superphosphate, a preparation introduced by 

 Mr. John Hughes, F.I.C., has given the most 

 satisfactory results. 



"TREE CULTURE BY STREAMS AND 

 RESERVOIR -AFFORESTATION 

 IN WATER W03KS AREAS." 



It would be superfluous to give instances of 

 the destruction of forests causing the gradual 

 drying up of springs and streams, and conse- 

 quent widespread barrenness. The covering of 

 the catchment areas with forest growth dimi- 

 nish the quality of silt brought down by the 

 heavy falls of rain, and the roots of the trees 

 having rendered the soil open and porous, the 

 surface flow would be retarded at the time, 

 and the flow into them would continue long 

 after the rains had ceased. Forests exercise 

 a most powerful influence on the consolidation 

 of the soil and the maintenance of earth and 

 rocks on the slopes of the hills. They act both 

 by the trunks and the roots of the trees. 



The action of trees in preventing landslips 

 is two-fold. Large quantities of water are an- 

 nually lost from the reservoirs of the country by 

 evaporation, caused by the barren and hot sur- 

 face of the land surrounding the reservoirs. 

 The planting of trees will certainly be to dimi- 

 nish evaporation ; many clouds charged with 

 vapour would be attracted by the coolness 

 about the trees, and the result would most 

 probably be a deposit of rain. 



Many illustrations can be given from the evil 

 effects of a barren and dry surface of land 

 surrounding several of our reservoirs. It has 

 been asserted, and theoretically the contention 

 is doubtless correct, that masses of woodland 

 increase the rainfall. The causes of this result 

 are sought for in the redaction of temperature 

 associated with forests, and in the greater 

 absolute and relative humidity of the air in 

 woods. Trees do, however, under certain con. 



