Fibres, 328 



tendent the laying: out of land for irri- 

 gating cotton, and anyone desirous of 

 knowing the system may do so by 

 visiting the Experiment Station, which 

 would be advisable for everyone to do 

 who contemplates commencing cotton 

 cultivation under irrigation. 



One of the chief precautions is not to 

 overwater the crop, or to allow the 

 water to rise above the point where the 

 stem of the plant comes out of the ridge. 



Thinning and after Tillage. — Under 

 ordinary conditions, the plants are above 

 the ground in eight to ten days after 

 sowing ; on the tenth day extra seed 

 should be soaked and all places resown 

 where seed has not germinated- 



Immediately before the second irri- 

 gation the cotton should be thinned by 

 hand, leaving two plants in each hole; 

 care being taken not to leave Hindi 

 cotton, 



Weeds should be killed at the same 

 time with a drill cultivator, and the 

 soil loosened round the plants with the 

 mammoty. 



It will be found necessary to repeat 

 this cultivation every fifteen to twenty 

 days until the plants meet in the drills 

 {i. e., two to two and a half months after 

 sowing). After the plants meet, owing 

 to the danger of breaking the branches, 

 tillage should cease, and cotton after 

 this stage will keep the weeds in check 

 by overshadowing them ; the only atten- 

 tion required from this period to harvest 

 is an occasional hand weeding to remove 

 any conspicuous tall weeds. 



Immediately before discontinuing 

 tillage it is advisable to finally set up 

 the ridges with a ridging plough to 

 facilitate irrigation, 



Hindi or Egyptian Weed Cotton.— 

 This is the old indigenous cotton of 

 Egypt, and is found in all samples of 

 imported Egyptian seed, and must be 

 eradicated, as it greatly affects the 

 value of the staple. 



Eortunately this cotton is easily dis- 

 tinguished. The sketch accompanying 

 shows differences in the seed and in the 

 plants when about a month old. 



Egyptian cotton now growing at Maha- 

 illuppalama contains about 5 per cent, 

 of this weed cotton, and this would pro- 

 bably reduce the value of the staple by 

 about 15 per cent., the fibre from Hindi 

 being short, white, harsh, and brittle, 

 whereas the fibre of Mit-Afiffi Egyptian 

 is brown, long, silky, and strong. 



The following differences are easily 

 noticed :— 



[April, 1909. 



Hindi. 



(1) Seed black, having no fuzz and 

 distinctly pointed (with rudiment 

 of seed stalk). 



(2) Red spot at base of first leaves. 



(3) Boll four-chambered, with distinct 

 gland at base. 



Egyptian. 



(1) Seed black, little fuzz along middle 

 and both ends (no distiuct rudi- 

 ment), 



(2) No distinct red spot. 



(3) Boll three-chambered, no distinct 

 gland. 



It is advisable to have the seed picked 

 over by children to remove Hindi, and 

 thinners should be told to pull out the 

 plants showing the characteristic red 

 spots at the base of the first leaves. 



The Hindi plants are generally stionger 

 than Egyptian plants, and are frequently 

 left growing by people not acquainted 

 with this useless weed cotton. 



Looking through samples of African 

 experimental Egyptian cotton in the 

 Imperial Institute, London, the writer 

 was struck by the uuevenness of colour, 

 owing largely to the presence of Hindi 

 cotton ; needless to say this affects the 

 commercial value. 



Varieties op Egyptian Cotton. 



(1) Mit-Afiffi, (2) Abbassi, (3) Janno- 

 vitch, (4) Ashmouni, (5) Nubari. 



Mit-Afiffi is the only variety which is 

 cultivated at the Experiment Station, 

 and although it is the principal variety, 

 it might be advisable to procure seed of 

 the other varieties. The Abbassi is the 

 only white Egyptian cotton, the other 

 varieties having brown lints. 



Jannovitch most nearly approaches 

 Sea Island cotton, is the most specu- 

 lative to grow, but the most valuable. 



Ashmouni is a small variety, stands 

 most heat, and hence principally cultivat- 

 ed in Fayoum and Upper Egypt, but of 

 less value than other Egptian varieties. 

 Nubari is a new variety similar to Mit- 

 Afiffi, and popular with the Manchester 

 spinners. 



Harvesting. — The crop should be picked 

 three times and the sticks uprooted and 

 burnt. 



The three pickings should be kept and 

 ginned separately. The first is the most 

 valuable. 



Cotton should be ready to pick by the 

 middle of August, and it is advisable to 

 have about 45 per cent, of the crop in 

 the first picking, as it is the most valu- 

 able ; the second picking should be ready 

 three weeks after the first, and by the 



