July, 1909.] 



27 



Edible Products. 



pruning them and to cub back the 

 bushes ; it is not anticipated that any 

 such hard pruning will be necessary on 

 the cleaned out plots for some years to 

 come. 



The general character of growth on 

 Plot No. 2 compares very favourably 

 with the table pruned bushes, and also 

 with those on the control plots, Nos. 1 

 and 2 ; the healthy appearance of the 

 bushes, which is very noticeable, was 

 further in accordance with their free- 

 dom from red rust, which was prevalent 

 on the table pruned plots aud also on 

 the control plots, where the small 

 twiggy shoots and ill-nourished laterals 

 afforded favourable opportunities for 

 the development of this disease. Thread 

 blight was altogether absent from this 

 plot, although mauy Table pruned 

 bushes suffered from its attacks, aud 

 on the whole it may be said that this 

 method of pruning has completely justi- 

 fied its adoption as a means of keepiug 

 up the yield of the bushes, and of 

 rendering them less liable to such dis- 

 eases as red rust aud thread blights. 

 There can be no doubt that, in dealing 

 with other blights such as mosquito, 

 this method would allow of more success- 

 ful adoption of the appropriate remedial 

 measures, besides rendering the bushes 

 themselves more capable of resisting 

 attack. 



Plucking Experiments. 

 The experiments on plucking have 

 been confined, so far, to an attempt to 

 determine the relative merits of the 

 "Sadiya Road" system, and that in 

 vogue in other districts ; the former 

 method consists in plucking at intervals 

 of ten or more days, and taking all 

 growth above the number of mature 

 leayes which it has been decided to leave 

 for the time. Plots Nos, 8 and 10 of 

 one acre each were plucked in this man- 

 ner, whereas only the fully formed two 

 leaves and bud were taken every seven 

 days on Nos. 7 and 9. This experiment 

 has now been in operation for three 

 consecutive seasons and certain con- 

 clusions can be drawn from the results. 

 At the end of the first season, 1905, 

 seventeen pluckings of ten-day leaf had 

 yielded half a maund per acre more tea 

 than twenty-two pluckings of seven-day 

 leaf ; inspection of the bushes after prun- 

 ing, however, led to the conclusion that 

 the excessive drain on their resoiuces, 

 exercised by this style of plucking, had 

 produced an unhealthy and exhausted 

 condition, and this surmise was borne 

 out by the fact that, in the second year 

 of the experiment the first season's gain 

 was not repeated, the two styles of 

 plucking producing the same amount 



of leaf. A further loss of condition 

 was apparent, and although the yield 

 of the whole four plots was increased by 

 an application of cattle manure in the 

 cold weather of 190(5, the ten-day plots 

 failed to regain their former position, 

 although the stimulus of the manurial 

 dressing prevented any further compara- 

 tive deterioration in crop. The local 

 Advisory Committee, on inspecting these 

 plots at the end of the third season, were 

 of opinion that the results obtained, 

 taken in conjunction with the condition 

 of the bushes, demonstrated clearly that, 

 in such soil aud climate as obtain at 

 Heeleaka, this method of plucking is 

 bound to result in detei ioration of the 

 tea, with no correspondingly great ad- 

 vantage either in increased crop or im- 

 provement in quality. It was therefore 

 decided to abandon this experiment, and 

 to utilise these plots for other purposes, 



Bone Manures. 

 Experiments on the manurial action of 

 bones were commenced in 1907 on a 

 series of plots laid out on young tea of 

 good "Jat." The plots were treated 

 with | inch bones, bone meal, and dis- 

 solved bones, aud control plots were 

 included in the series manured with oil- 

 cake and with a mixture of oil-cake and 

 superphosphate, containing amounts of 

 phosphoric acid and nitrogen equivalent 

 to those provided by the bone manures. 

 No manurial effect was observable at 

 the end of the season, but these experi- 

 ments will be continued in 1908, with a 

 view to observing any differences that 

 may arise from the gradual action of 

 the bone manures. 



An account of the experiments now 

 being carried out at Heeleaka, and those 

 which it is proposed to undertake, has 

 been published iu the programme of 

 work for the Experimental Stations for 

 190S, I. would cordially invite sugges- 

 tions from planters, says Dr. Hutchin- 

 son, as to problems needing investi- 

 gation and expression of their views as 

 to the practical application of the re- 

 sults which have been obtained at 

 Heeleaka, 



COMMERCIAL ORANGE PRODUC- 

 TION IN THE PHILIPPINES. 



Br William S. Lyon. 



(From the Philippine Agricultural 

 Review, Vol. I., No. 2, February, 1909.) 



Inquiries for buds or scious of im- 

 proved varieties of American or Euro- 

 pean oranges are so frequently addressed 

 to the Bureau of Agriculture that, as 



