Edible Products. 



342 



[October, 1908. 



NUMBER OF PODS PRODUCED BY 

 TREES ON A CACAO ESTATE. 



Following article 84(3 on the crop of a 

 single tree, published in April, 1907, a 

 leading planter has favoured the De- 

 partment with an account of a crop 

 for 1907, calculated by the number of 

 pods taken from (12) selected trees grow- 

 ing on four different sections of his 

 estate. 



The actual number of pounds of Dry 

 Cacao cannot be accurately estimated, 

 as the size of the pods is not given, but 

 as it is seen that the 95 pods give 19 lbs. 

 of wet cacao, it allows 5 pods to the lb. 

 of wet cacao — and deducting 62'5 per 

 cent, for loss in curing, it would show a 

 return of some 24 lbs. of dry cacao per 



tree for selected trees on this estate. 

 As the accuracy of this calculation de- 

 pends upon a single weighing, further 

 experiment is necessary to correctly cal- 

 culate the weight of dry cacao to be 

 taken from any certain number of pods. 

 It is evident, however, that trees giving 

 a certain return of 324"2 pods in one 

 year, are not uncommon, and the problem 

 should be capable of solution, which 

 would convert the trees now yielding 

 only a single pound of dry cacao per 

 annum, into trees yielding at least 10 to 

 15 lbs. of dry cacao. 



If trees bearing over 300 pods per 

 annum were propagated by budding or 

 grafting, it is certain that larger yields 

 might be confidently expected. As an 

 officer of long experience I am convinced 

 that it can be done — Who will make 

 the Endeavour? 



Yield op Twelve Cacao Trees, Diego Martin Ward. 



Pods Harvested Jrom March 1st, 1907, to February 29th, 1908. 



No. of Trees. 





1 



2 



3 



4 



5 



6 



7 



8 



9 



10 



11 



12 





3rd January, 1907 



9 



12 



15 



18- 



5 



13 



17 



15 



29 



24 



13 



6 



166 



2nd April. 



10 



12 



5 



13 



29 



8 



18 



14 



7 



13 



31 



42 



202 



24th „ 



11 



1 



4 



1 



15 



6 



4 







1 



6 



8 



7 



64 



23rd May 



22 



2 



8 



6 



36 



1 



6 



14 



4 



4 



15 



16 



134 



24th June ,, 



40 



4 



16 



16 



83 



5 



30 



34 



10 



11 



24 



42 



321 



22nd July 



56 



7 



8 



30 



27 



5 



8 



55 



13 



1 



5 



34 



249 



27th August 

 24th September , , 



3 



2 



1 



1 



1 







I 



6 



3 







2 



6 



226 







1 







2 



4 



6 







9 



2 



4 



1 



8 



37 



22nd October „ 



6 







6 







4 



7 



5 



4 



1 



12 



6 



12 



63 



12th November ,, 



6 







11 



1 



12 



6 



16 



5 



9 



8 



6 



19 



99 



3rd December ,, 



14 



6 



23 



4 



4 



3 



15 



11 



13 



38 



5 



3 



139 



17th 



32 



14 



42 



3 



12 



12 



56 



11 



50 



41 



23 



11 



. 307 



3rd January, 1908 



57 



40 



113 



11 



22 



21 



85 



29 



38 



84 



22 



11 



533 



9th 



25 



31 



68 



17 



6 



19 



47 



17 



14 



75 



36 



6 



351 



20th February 



38 



10 



31 



16 



18 



19 



59 



28 



24 



34 



30 



37 



344 



Total per trees 



335 



142 



351 



139 



278 



131 



367 



242 



218 



355 



227 



260 



3,045 



Total per 

 Picking. 



Average per Tree from 12 Trees— 

 253-9 Pods. 



The six best trees gave pods as fol- 

 lows :— 



PRICKLY PEAR AS FODDER. 



No. 7 

 „ 10 



M 3 



, 1 



>> 5 

 „ 12 



367 1 

 355 I 



g'rjj { Average per tree 

 g'gg y from six trees— 



278 j 

 260 J 



324-3. 



— Bulletin, Botanical Department, Tri- 

 nidad, No. 58, April, 1908. 



Some time ago, Mr. R. T. Keys, Mus- 

 wellbrook, wrote on the above subject 

 to the "Stock and Station Journal," and 

 we drew attention to his remarks, as 

 some people have a firm belief in the 

 value of the pear, and not only as a 

 life-sust iiner in dry seasons, but even 

 as a fattening fodder. Mr. Keys' 

 remarks are as follows : — 



By advocating the use of the noxious 

 Aveed at this adverse period of our 

 history, when stock-owners are eager 

 to discover drought-resisting plants, 



