m 



The Supplement io the Tropical Agriculurist 



£16 to £25 pel! ton.) The experts also stated that, 

 in then- opinion, the cultivation of this plant 

 could be encouraged with advantage, as 

 thote would be a very good market for the 

 fibre. — Indian 'Trade Journal, Aug. 13. 



A New Fibre. — "Mr Charles A White, f.r.h.s. 

 a native of Australia, and at present manager of 

 an estate in Central Africa, has made an acciden- 

 tal discovery that may prove of immense benefit 

 to Australia. Requiring a rope one day, he was 

 surprised to find that a native servant had im- 

 provised one from the fibres of a plant with 

 which he was well acquainted, but of the valu- 

 able properties of which he had no knowledge. 

 Eli the course of a letter to the Minister for 

 Agriculture (Mr Perry) Mr White says he has 

 kuown the Asceplias semilunata (the plant re- 

 ferred to) to have a wide geographical distribu- 

 tion— ho has seen it growing in Western Austra- 

 lia, South Africa, Rhodesia, German Africa. 

 Portuguese Africa, Uganda, and in the Congo 

 country. Nobody seemed to be aware of its 

 great market value. In its habits it does not 

 object to abundant rain, and it is also drought- 

 resistant, growing on the Equator 6ft. in height 

 in stony ground. By the same mail Mr Perry 

 received from Mr White a parcel of seed and a 

 hank of fibre. It is of fine colour, about four 

 feet in length, and very tough. The fibre was 

 submitted to a well-known firm of rope-makers 

 in the city, who pronounced it equal to the best 

 manila, and worth £35 a ton in Sydney if sup- 

 plied in lengths of not less than 4ft. Each seed 

 carried a down tuft, more silky than kapok, and 

 this down the African natives use for bedding. 

 Mr Perry has taken steps to have the seed 

 tested in Sydney and different parts of the 

 State, to ascertain if it can be grown success- 

 fully under New South Wales conditions. Mr 

 White advises that it may be sown broadcast, 

 like wheat, and he is very confident that it will 

 do excellently in Australian soil. " — Sydney Mail. 



"AMHERST1A NOBILIS." 



There is a good example of this handsome 

 tropical tree in the Aroid house (No. 1) at Kew 

 where it has been for at least 30 years. Until 

 about 10 years ago it was planted in a tub, but 

 since then it has been in the open border the 

 soil in which receives a certain amount of heat 

 from the boiler chamber immediately below. 

 This plant is 25 feet high and has a stem 

 li inches in diameter with loosely spreading 

 branches. It has flowered more or less freely 

 every year since it was planted out, and this 

 year it has been exceptionally lloriforous, 

 < arrying 82 large pendulous racemes of bright 

 .scarlet and yellow flowers which were at their 

 best early in Juue. A rjiherstia was first intro- 

 duced from Burma into English gardens through 

 Chatsworth about 60 years ago, and was lirst 

 flowered in a garden at Ealing in 1849. The 

 Kew tree is probably about 40 years old. In 

 Burma there are trees 40 to 50 feet high and 

 when in flower they are said to be magnificent, 

 and one of the features of the Royal Botanic 

 Garden at Calcutta is an avenue of these trees. 

 The flowers are used by the Burmese in con- 

 nection with their religious ceremonies. — W. W. 

 — Hew Bulletin, No. 6, 1908. 



PINEAPPLE CULTIVATION IN 

 SINGAPORE. 



The cultivation of pineapples in Singapore 

 island has taken larger dimensions than before. 

 Large tracts of country formerly occupied by 

 secondary growth are now cleared and covered 

 with pineapples. Great quantities of pines have 

 been also brought into Singapore from the 

 islands around. The result of this immense crop 

 has been that pineapples have been selling in 

 town for a cent a piece and upcountry at 5 for 

 a cent; that is, about -20 for a penny. The tinning 

 trade is now apparently entirely in Chinese 

 hands. It is satisfactory to see in many of the 

 pineapple fields coconuts or rubber being 

 planted, as pineapple culture is by no means 

 good for the land. — H.N. R. — Straits Agricultural 

 Bulletin for August. 



EUROPEAN AGRICULTURE IN 

 NYASSALAND. 



(Year ended 31st March, 1908.) 



RUBBER. 



District. Variety. 



■a] ja 



a-5 



o 



5 



a>co" 



US 



#8* 

 w 5 



10 



10 



76 



Lower Shire Ceara 20 

 West Shire do 52V 



Blantyre do 9651 



Castilloa 25~ 

 Landolphia Large acre- 

 age — 



MJanje C'eara 62 50 



Zomba do 637 



Chikala do 280 



Upper Shire do 124 

 West Nyasa Funtumia 1 

 Ceara 3 

 Castilloa 25 

 Para 124 

 Landolphia Large acre- 

 age V lOcwt. lOcwt. 

 North Nyasa Ceara 100 

 TEA. 



Estimated 



District. Acres Acres in Crop 1907, crop 1908, 

 planted. bearing. tons. tons. 



West .Shire 3 — — — 



Mlanje 513 53 2J 9] 



Totals 516 



53 



-Nyasaland Gazette, May 30. 



West African Maize.— Sir Alfred Jones, pre- 

 siding at the monthly meeting of the Li verpooJ 

 Chamber of Commerce yesterday, stated that 

 the cultivation of maize in West Africa had 

 been most successful. Three crops a year could 

 be obtained, and he was convinced that Africa 

 would be tbe greatest maize-growing country 

 in the world. Maize shipments from Lagos were 

 going to be immense. Already small white maize 

 was being sold in Liverpool at six guineas a ton, 

 or 10s more than was being obtained in Ham- 

 burg. As to the Canadian cattle embargo, he 

 said the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce had 

 always been in favour of the removal of the 

 embargo, —London Times, July 29, 



