Miscellaneous. 



830 



[October, 1910. 



Anew Agricultural Calendar in English 

 and Sinhalese is now in preparation, and 

 should be ready for issue in January, 

 1911. 



A leaflet entitled ' ' Two Valuable Green 

 Manures : lephrosia purpurea and Crot- 

 alaria juncea' has just been published 

 in English, and is available to members 

 free of charge. 



Miscellaneous.— -In reply to an inquiry 

 by a member as to whether the sensitive 

 plant, Mimosa pudica, growing on co- 

 conut land exercises a beneficial in- 

 fluence, the Government Agricultural 

 Chemist states that none of the nitrogen 

 stored up in the living plant is available 

 to the coconuts, but the amount in the 

 fallen leaves and decayed nodules is 

 available after some time. It is better 

 to cut down the mimosa at the beginning 

 of the dry period, and mulch it round 

 the trees about 4 to 6 fc. from the stems. 

 This gives up its nitrogen on decom- 

 position, and at the same time prevents 

 the loss of moisture from the soil 

 beneath, and reduces the amount lost by 

 evaporation through the growing mimosa 

 itself. 



The Government Entomologist has 

 kindly furnished the following instruc- 

 tions for employing carbon bisulphide to 

 destroy rats in paddy fields. The in- 

 instructions are based on the directions 

 given in a pamphlet by Mr. Gallagher, 

 Director of Agriculture in the Straits: — 



(1) Clear all weeds and undergrowth 

 from the banks so as to expose the rat 

 holes. 



(2) Mark every hole on the day pre- 

 vious to that on which the poison is to 

 be applied. 



(3) Where (as is usual) there are two 

 or more holes to one burrow, block all 

 but one hole with clods of earth firmly 

 rammed down. 



(4) The poison should be applied 

 during the heat of the day — between 10 

 A.M. and 4 P.M.— when the rats will all be 

 in their burrows. 



(5) Carbon bisulphide should be poured 

 on to a plug of kapok and quickly pushed 

 into the hole to a distance of about one 

 foot, Plug the hole immediately with 

 clods of earth rammed tight. 



(6) A half shell of the egg of a village 

 fowl will form a convenient measure 

 for the bisulphide. This quantity will 

 be sufficient for two rat holes. 



(7) The gas from the bisulphide is 

 heavier than air, and will sink to the 

 lowest level. It should, therefore, be 

 placed in the upper part of the burrow, 

 where there is a choice between several 

 holes. 



Warning. —Carbon bisulphide is highly 

 inflammable and should not be ap- 

 proached with a naked flame. The 

 resulting gas — when mixed with air — is 

 violently explosive. 



Mr. P. Samaranayak«, Manager of the 

 Government Model Farm, reports as 

 follows with reference to his trial of 

 Congayan grass (Pennisetum cenchroi- 

 des) : " The parcel of 4 lb. seed was divid- 

 ed into two lots and plauted in a plot 

 20 ft. by 60 ft. on the Model Farm on 

 gravelly soil on March 8. The grass 

 suffered much for want of rain, and had 

 to be watered to effect germination in 

 beds. The first crop was gathered in 

 June, and was found to be soft to the 

 touch and much relished by the cattle. 

 The yield consisted of four single-bullock 

 cart-loads. Birds and fowls are very 

 fond of the seed. The other lot was 

 sown on a plot 24 ft. by 15 ft. on loose 

 loamy soil at the Government Dairy 

 premises about the same time. The 

 grass came up more readily and two 

 crops in place of one from the gravelly 

 plot were realized." 



Replying to an enquiry by a member 

 as to cause of worms in mango fruits, 

 the Government Entomologist reported 

 as follows:— 



" The worms in the mango are the 

 larvae of the 'fruit-fly,' Dacus ferru- 

 gineus, and can have no possible connec- 

 tion with the cattle disease. Similar 

 flies attack the fruits of oranges, pump- 

 kins, cucumbers, &c. The pest may 

 be checked to a considerable extent by 

 collecting and destroying all fallen fruits 

 at least once every day. If left to rot 

 on the ground the maggots make their 

 way into the soil and re-appear as flies, 

 which lay their eggs in a fresh crop of 

 fruit. It has been found that the flies 

 may be attracted ind poisoned by spray- 

 ing the foliage of the trees with a mix- 

 ture of syrup and arsenic. The pest has 

 hitherto been very troublesome in the 

 fruit-growing districts of South Africa, 

 but has been almost entirely controlled 

 by treatment with poisoned bait. A 

 note on this treatment will appear iu 

 the September number of the Tropical 

 Agriculturist." 



C. DRIEBERG, 

 Secretary. 



Colombo, October, 3. 1909, 



