September, 1909,] 



233 



Edible Products, 



A warm moist atmosphere, a fairly- 

 high rainfall, a friable soil and a porous 

 sub-soil appear to ba bast suitable for 

 pine apples in India. 



Pine apples in India thrive well on 

 soils which have been improved, in 

 forests, by partial clearing and by the 

 natural addition through rainfall of leaf 

 mould. A friable moist soil with a fairly 

 high proportion of organic manure is 

 apparently essential for successful culti- 

 vation . 



Pine apple plantations, when estab- 

 lished 3 or 4 years, should be removed to 

 suitable areas with the view of improv- 

 ing or renewing the vigour of the plant. 



When the fruit is formed, numerous 

 suckers grow round the parent stem. 

 These can be used for propagation. 

 Plants may also be raised from the 

 crown of leaves of the fruit, and from 

 the black seeds of the fruit. 



In plantation, the suckers should be 

 planted in rows 3 feet apart. 



In Bengal, the season for planting out 

 pine apples is August. The plant there 

 flowers in February and March, and its 

 fruit ripens in July or August. In 

 September and October it makes its 

 perfect growth. 



Bach fruit should be cut off with a 

 sharp knife through the middle of the 

 stock, a little before it is fully ripe, and 

 for export should be very carefully- 

 packed in soft material, and in venti- 

 lated boxes to avoid fermentation and 

 bruising. 



The leaves yield a good fibre- lu the 

 London market it fetches about £30 

 (Rs. 150) per ton. In the Rangpur District 

 of Eastern Bengal and Assam, the fibre is 

 largely used by the shoemakers as string. 

 In the Southern Mahratta country and 

 Goa it is used for necklaces. The Fibre 

 Expert to "the Government of Eastern 

 Bengal and Assam is, however, of opinion 

 that the extraction of fibre from pine 

 apple is not likely to be an extensive 

 enterprise in any part of India. 



TIMBERS. 



TIMBER PRODUCTION. 



(From the Agricultural News, Vol. 

 VIII., No. 185. May 29, 1909.) 



In most countries the question of the 

 world's supply of timber, and its relation 

 to the increasing demand, has received 

 attention of late years. In earlier times 

 the virgin forests that existed in many 

 >. parts of the worJd, even in Europe, 

 proved an adequate source of supply of 

 all the timber required. Rapid increase 

 of population, however, has demanded 

 largely extended areas for food-produc- 

 ing purposes, and as a result the 

 primitive forest lands are being in- 

 creasingly depleted, and applied to agri- 

 cultural uses. Further, the advance in 

 population has naturally brought about 

 a greater demand for timber of all kinds, 

 to be used in house construction, and in 

 the manufacture of furniture, and many 

 other necessities of modern life. The 

 manufacture of paper pulp is another 

 industry which of late years has 

 drawn enormously upon the sources of 

 timber supply. 



The question of a cheap timber supply 

 is a most important one, but of late 

 years there has been a constant tendency 

 towards increase in price, and in most 

 European countries warnings have fre- 

 quently been given that the planting up 

 of woodlands will have to be undertaken 

 on a much more extended scale if produc- 

 tion is to keep pace with demand. 



80 



Unfortunately for the general consumer, 

 however, the question of time is the 

 most important factor in raising market- 

 able timber, and a number of years must 

 necessarily elapse before the relationship 

 between supply and demand can be 

 placed on a more satisfactory footing. 



In Great Britain the total value of the 

 wood and timber imported each year 

 amounts to over £27,000,000, Of this 

 enormous quantity, thd great bulk 

 consists of pine, larch, spruce, etc, 

 from Russia, Scandinavia, aud ujada. 

 Smaller quantities of more valuable 

 woods, such as mahogany, teak, ebouy, 

 etc., are imported from tropical coun- 

 tries. 



Since there exists over 20.000,000 acres 

 of waste land in the United Kingdom, 

 the question has repeatedly been urged 

 that portious of this enormous ar^a might 

 well be utilized in the production of a 

 good proportion of the timber now im- 

 ported. Three Royal Commissions have 

 within comparatively recent years sat 

 to consider this matter, and the third 

 has but lately issued its report. In this 

 the Commissioners state that they have 

 come to the conclusion that of the waste 

 land existiug in ,the United Kingdom, 

 about 9,000,000 acres are suitable for 

 afforestation, and they suggest that 

 about 150,000 acres should be planted up 

 annually. The return obtained in course 

 of time would be sufficient to repay both 

 capital and interest, 



