356 



Another way of attaining the same end would be the establishment of 

 definite seed gardens at snitable places, where the breeding of improved varieties 

 eonld be carried on, and seed produced in large quantities. These seeds, whose 

 value would then be accurately known, could be exchanged against the villagers' 

 seed, and the latter sold in the ordinary market in partial repayment of the expense 

 incurred. Without some such system as this, carried out over long periods upon 

 a definite plan, it is idle to expect any improvement in village crops so far as 

 varieties grown are concerned, except in cases where one can introduce a "fixed" 

 strain, such as many "gardeners' varieties" represent, which will not seriously 

 deteriorate under village methods of cultivation, being independent of selection 

 for the retention of its peculiar excellences, though selection will always improve 

 these. It is well, however, to point out that such varieties are rare in field crops, 

 being for the most part due to hybridisation. There are, however, a fair number 

 of crops grown by natives in which the production of such varieties is probably 

 within the range of possibility, but careful experiments by trained breeders are 

 required, lasting over long periods of time. 



In many cases, of course, it is possible that varieties better suited to local 

 conditions may be obtained from other countries, This sort of work is of course 

 one which should be attended to in the Experimental Gardens, but the trials should 

 be on a commercial scale, should be thoroughly thought out in advance, and 

 should deal only with one or two things at a time. Local varieties should, of course, 

 be tested against the introduced ones, under as many conditions as possible. 

 Once the Experimental Garden has shown the probability that a certain variety, 

 whether introduced from abroad or bred in the garden, is apparently an improve- 

 ment upon the local ones, further tests as to its suitability may be made through the 

 school gardens, and if it pass successfully through these, it may then be safely 

 recommended to the villagers and seed exchanged against their own as suggested 

 above. It is of very great importance in dealing with eastern natives to be quite 

 sure of the result before recommending any action to them, especially in matters of 

 agriculture. Even when we have shown that a particular variety of some locally 

 cultivated crop is superior in quality and yield to the native forms, it may not be 

 easy to get the villager to adopt it, prejudices or customs standing in the way. 

 An amusing illustration has lately been afforded in our own experience. The 

 variety of Indian corn locally grown in Ceylon is what is technically known as a 

 "flint" corn, with rounded ends to the grains. This was crossed at Peradeniya 

 with imported American corns of fine kinds, most of which belong to the" dent'' 

 type, with dimples in the outer ends of the grains as seen upon the cob. The hybrids 

 are superior to the native corn in quality and yield, but are objected to by the 

 villagers on account of the dent, which they say indicates unripeness. A still more 

 remarkable case is furnished by the history of the West Indian vegetable, the 

 chocho, in Ceylon. Introduced years ago by the Botanic Gardens, this most useful 

 vegetable spread widely in the villages, and was much appreciated. A few years 

 later, a rumour was started among the natives (I believe owing to some coincidence 

 of serious illness with the fact that the patient was a great consumer of chochos) 

 that chocho produced rheumatism. This was sufficient, and the cultivation of this 

 vegetable is now extinct in Ceylon. 



