210 



TMarch, 1909. 



apparently diametrically opposite views 

 with regard to the question of clean 

 weeding as applied to the ease of per- 

 manent tropical crops. 



Let us go back for a moment to home 

 experience. We find that fruit trees at 

 home are grown in one of two ways. 

 Orchards are either laid down in grass, 

 or they are combined with the cultiva- 

 tion of vegetables. Where fruit trees 

 are grown by themselves and without a 

 catch-crop of any kind, weeding is only 

 resorted to in cases where large tracts 

 of level land can be dealt with by means 

 of machinery, as is done in parts of the 

 U. S. A. Weeding by hand is certainly 

 never dreamt of. 



Returning to the consideration of 

 tropical products. It is clear that the 

 same rule applies as at home to crops 

 which only occupy the ground for a few 

 months. Grains and vegetables, cotton, 

 tobacco and other annual crops require 

 cultivation and the thorough extermin- 

 ation of weeds. But when we pass on to 

 the consideration of more permanent 

 crops like tea and cacao, we find that a 

 number of separate points have to be 

 taken into consideration. In the case of 

 every such crop the question of the 

 growth of leguminous plants as a source 

 of nitrogen and organic matter and the 

 question of forking or other methods of 

 cultivation have to be considered in 

 their relation to the process of weeding 

 proper. But more than this, weeding 

 on tea estates is a problem intimately 

 bound up with the question of the 

 management of labour, and that is a 

 problem upon which we do not propose 

 to intrude upon the present occasion. 



The controversy over weeding relates 

 chiefly to rubber, and it is to the ques- 

 tion of clean weeding rubber that we 

 propose to devote our attention just 

 now. Here, again, the question of weed- 

 ing cannot be considered without at the 

 same time taking account of the kindred 

 wocesses of tillage and the growth of 

 leguminous crops. 



The question of catch crops, too, de- 

 mands attention. And there can be no 

 doubt that the growth of a suitable 

 catch crop under conditions of thorough 

 weeding and cultivation is a process 

 which will pay if a suitable crop can be 

 found, and if it can be disposed of at a 

 profit when grown. Unfortunately 

 these conditions are not always realis- 

 able in Ceylon. 



Apart from the question of catch crops, 

 does it pay to clean-weed a plantation 

 consisting simply of rubber ? In the 

 face of the assurance of such authorities 

 as Mr. Carruthers and Mr. Kelway Bam- 



ber that in most cases itdoes not, it may 

 appear superfluous to discuss the matter 

 any further. But, ou the other hand, 

 many experienced planters tell us that 

 we must clean-weed, and besides we are 

 anxious to thresh the matter out for 

 ourselves. 



We feel bound to give it as our own 

 impression that, where rubber is planted 

 on level ground and stumps can be got 

 rid of within practicable limits of cost, it 

 will pay to cultivate and weed a rubber 

 estate with modern machinery. But it 

 is no doubt the case that on a majority 

 of estates, owing to the nature of the 

 ground, the size of stumps and general 

 monetary considerations, "such a method 

 will be found impracticable. 



It is the contention of Messrs, Bamber 

 and Carruthers that rubber can be 

 grown with hardly any diminution in 

 size, and at a much smaller cost as com- 

 pared with clean weeding, by a pro- 

 cess which consists essentially in the 

 growth and encouragemeut of selected 

 weeds. The method consists in weeding 

 only a narrow strip down each row of 

 trees, and encouraging between the rows 

 the growth of some creeping plant 

 which will smother and eventually kill 

 all other forms of vegetation. 



A point upon which Mr. Bamber lays 

 special stress is the use of the green 

 creepers themselves as a mulch to be 

 applied round the bases of the rubber 

 trees. Here, again, we see the impossi- 

 bility of regarding the weeding question 

 as a thing by itself, the advantages and 

 disadvantages of removing weeds must 

 be considered in connection with other 

 operations not strictly comprised under 

 the head of weeding. 



In the report and circular before us 

 various advantages are claimed, and we 

 think with justice, for this method of 

 dealing with weeds. The creepers speci- 

 ally recommended for this purpose in 

 Ceylon are the wild passion flower— 

 Passiflora fcetida and Mikania scan- 

 dens. The latter might recently have 

 been observed in the act of demonstrat- 

 ing its powers of smothering other 

 vegetation to a marked degree by anyone 

 travelling up or down the railway be- 

 tween Kandy and Polgahawela ; and the 

 former is also abundant, though less 

 rampant, in the neighbourhood of Pera- 

 deniya, Extracts from Mr. Carruthers' 

 report will be found on a later page 

 of the present issue of the T.A., and 

 Mr. Bamber's circular has recently been 

 published by the Royal Botanic Gar- 

 dens Department. We may leave them 

 to tell their own story, confidently re- 

 commending both these essays to all 

 who are interested in the planting of 

 Hevea rubber. R. H. L, 



