The Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist 



five years ago, and one of Mr. Lock's early 

 researches, into the way to improve Maize, 

 resulted — by his crossing and selection — in a 

 strain giving yields higher than the native and 

 almost equal to what is borne by similar Ameri- 

 can corns. Following on these experiments, 

 other countries have taken up the study of 

 plant-breeding, as above indicated ; and Mr. 

 Lock comes back to us in good time to extend 

 his work from our minor to our more valuable 

 staple products. The paper under notice (which 

 was reproduced verbatim in last month's 

 Tropical Agriculturist) points out, to begin with, 

 the great advance which cultivated species in 

 temperate climes represent upon the original 

 wild kinds of growth. The history Mr. Lock 

 sums up : (1) primitive man deliberately sowing- 

 seeds, aiding these by digging and weeding ; 

 (2) a long stage— selection of the better plants 

 and propagating them (unlike the native to- 

 bacco-grower here, it was said) ; (3) plant- 

 breeding as a trade — e.g. in China and old 

 Rome, but only from 150 years back in England; 

 and (4) applying definite science to the improve- 

 ment of plants — e.g. Mr. R. H. BifFen (of 

 Cambridge) obtained from two species a 

 permanent breed of wheat, not only immune to 

 a certain fungus but of best quality, a result 

 obtained in one-tenth the time practical breed- 

 ers would take or one-hundreth of that of the 

 ordinary cultivator. 



The practical upshot from these introductory 

 sign-posts of Mr Lock is that they show us the 

 way to and the nature of the goal he has set 

 before himself in coming to Ceylon. Paddy 

 and rubber (hevca brasiliensis), to name only two 

 are to have his attention with a view to breeding 

 to secure superior species, and even novelties or 

 "■sports." Coffee, tobacco and coconuts are 

 mentioned later — the first-named doubtless an 

 error for lea! — as presenting scope for obtain- 

 ing marked improvements in the quality of the 

 product grown. We are not blind, of course, 

 to the fact that the benefit of much of the work 

 to be done cannot accrue to any of the present 

 generation of planters ; and much of it again 

 can only benefit those properties upon which it 

 h ?s been vigorously pursued under Mr Lock's 

 guidance, after a good many years' attention. 

 Our plant-breeding expert himself warns planters 

 not to expect everything in a few years ; nor 

 indeed the creation of anything. These permu- 

 tations and combinations, plant algebra and 

 alchemy if you will, will be a slow process ; 

 except in the case of annually grown pro- 



ducts. Novelties and valuable specimens 

 have to be watched for and their repro- 

 ductiveness proved by actual breeding — with 

 strains immune from disease when these are 

 found. Meanwhile, Mr. Lock wishes planters 

 to bring to his notice any seedling or branch 

 of any cultivated product which looks different 

 from its neighbours ; for it is, we may point 

 out, by the aid of the trained man constantly 

 on the watch for novelties that real pro- 

 gress will be made. 



Two facts will be of special value : first, that 

 it is hoped to arrange that anyone who first 

 brings to notice a " sport (or on whose land 

 it occurs) may have first choice of any valuable 

 strain bred from it by Government experiment ; 

 and secondly, that as scientific methods of 

 breeding have never yet been applied to the 

 products of Ceylon, the prospects of marked 

 improvements as soon as these methods are 

 brought to bear are all the greater. In con- 

 cluding this notice of Mr. Lock's valuable 

 manifesto to those who would work out the 

 agricultural salvation of this island — with 

 varying speed according to rate of growth of 

 the product dealt with, — we would urge all 

 who have become interested for the first time 

 to act promptly on their discoveries. If in- 

 significant novelties are made known at first, 

 let them not cease notifying them, but con- 

 tinue till — like their more accustomed brother- 

 planters — they come with facility to select only 

 what is likely to be of real value in the widoly 

 beneiicient work Mr. Lock is in a position to 

 perform as Plant-Breeding Expert in this first 

 of Crown Colonies. 



COCONUT STEM DISEASE. 



A Rival to Mr. Patch's Method of Treatment. 



Mr SOL Perera, an Inspector appointed 

 under the Plant Pests Board of the Western 

 Province, is at present on a tour of inspection 

 in the Kalutara district. Today he gave a de- 

 monstration to a large gathering of Headmen at 

 the office of the Totamune Mudaliyar, Mr J V G 

 Jayawardana, of the treatment of the coconut 

 stem disease according to the method of the 

 Government Mycologist, Mr Potch. His 

 method included the cutting off with a chisel 

 of the affected portion of the tree, scorching tho 

 same with an oiled torch and filling the hole so dug 

 with hot tar. Mr Charles Wijeymana of Quarry 

 House, Kalutara North, whose treatment of the 

 coconut stem disease is known locally as Very 

 successful gave a demonstration of his method of 



