Edible Ptoducts. 



426 



fMAY 1908. 



will be required by the wide-spreading, 

 surface-feeding roots of the trees, and 

 that pasture crop of any kind, grown 

 for any purpose other than soiling or 

 for green manuring, are prejudicial to 

 future success He will know that the 

 initial preparation of all of his orchard 

 and its continuous maintenance in good 

 cultivation are essential not only to the 

 future welfare of his trees but as a 

 necessary means in connection with a 

 judicious intermediate crop rotation. 



Hence the preparatory requirements 

 may be summed up as such preliminary 

 soil breaking $?k would be required for a 

 corn crop in similar lands, succeeded by 

 such superficial plowings and cultiva- 

 tions as would be required to raise a 

 cotton or any other of the so-called hoed 

 crops. 



Seed Selection. 

 Preliminary to planting the very im- 

 portant subject of seed selection cails for 

 close scrutiny on the planter's part. 



The small native planter is often 

 familiar with the individual characteris- 

 tics of his trees. Owners of small estates 

 in Cuyos and about Zamboanga have 

 pointed out to me trees that have the 

 constant fruiting habit confirmed, 

 others that will fruit erratically, and 

 others that flower yet rarely bear fruit. 

 The f ruitf ulness of the first class is un- 

 doubtedly a result of accidental heredity, 

 for the planter has in the past made no 

 selection except by chance, nor is the 

 characteristic in any way due to his cul- 

 tural system, which consists in planting 

 the nut and letting nature and heredity 

 do the rest- One tree in Zamboanga, 

 the owner assured me, had never pro- 

 duced less than 200 nuts annually for 

 fully twenty-three years. Asked as to 

 the bearing of all of his trees (of which he 

 owned some three hundred), he stated 

 that from the lot he averaged 20 nuts at 

 a picking, five times a year, a total of 

 100 nuts ; that the crop of these was 

 very fluctuating, some years falling to 

 00 nuts, again running as high as 130. 

 The especially prized tree did not vary 

 appreciably. In very dry seasons the 

 nuts shrunk somewhat in size and the 

 copra in weight, but the yield of nuts 

 never fell below 200, and only once had 

 amounted to 220. He had raised a great 

 number of seedlings, but it had never 

 occurred to him to select for planting 

 the nuts from tnat particular tree. 



Planting. 

 "We have pointed out the necessity of 

 selecting seed trees of known good 

 bearing habits, and equal care should be 

 exercised in selecting from those the nuts 

 of which are well formed and uniform. 



This precaution will suggest itself 

 when one observes that some trees 

 have the habit of producing a few very 

 large nuts and many of very small and 

 irregular size and shape, and it is 

 obviously to the planter's interest to 

 lend no assistance to the propagation 

 and transmission of such traits. In 

 view of what has been previously stat- 

 ed, it is almost superfluous earnestly 

 to recommend planters to sow no seeds 

 from young trees. The principle for 

 this contention— that no seed should be 

 selected except from trees of establish- 

 ed, well-known fruiting-habits — would 

 seem to cover the ground effectually. 



The best seed should be selected and 

 picked when perfectly mature, and low- 

 ered to the ground. The fall from a 

 of tree not infrequently cracks the 

 irner shell, without giving any ex- 

 ternal evidence of injury. A seed so 

 injured will never sprout and therefore 

 is worthless for seed purposes. 



Freshly collected seed nuts contain 

 in the husk more moisture than is requir- 

 ed to effect germination, and if planted 

 in this condition, decay is apt to set 

 in before germination, occurs. To avoid 

 this the natives tie them in pairs, sling 

 them over bamboo poles where they 

 are exposed to the air but sheltered 

 from the sun, and leave them until well 

 sprouted. It is, however, more expedi- 

 tious to pile the nuts up in small heaps of 

 eight to ten nuts, in partial shade, where 

 the surface nuts may be sprinkled occa- 

 sionally to prevent complete drying out. 



Germination is very erratic, sometimes 

 occurring within a month and some- 

 times extending over four, five, or more 

 months. When the young shoot or 

 plumule(see illustration) has fairly thrust 

 its way through the fibrous husk it is 

 a good practice to go over the heaps 

 and segregate those that have sprouted, 

 carefully placing them so that the 

 growing tip be not deformed or distor- 

 ted by the pressure of uperincumbent 

 nuts When these sprouts are 30 to 

 50 cm, high, and a few roots have thrust 

 through the husk, they are in the best 

 possible condition for permanent planting > 



First.— The original preparation of 

 the land should be good and the surface 

 tilth at the time of planting irreproach- 

 able ; i.e. free from weeds and so mellow 

 that the soil can be closely and properly 

 pressed around the roots by hand. 



Second.— The orchard should be secure- 

 ly protected from the invasion of cattle 

 etc. It is sometimes impossible to pro- 

 tect orchards against entry of these 

 animals. If the success of these precau- 

 tions canuot be assured, then the nuts 



