200 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



clamp districts it may even be injurious. Grenada is against the use of 

 shade trees, and so is, I believe, Dr. Nicholls, of Dominica. Van Hall, 

 in Surinam, does not seem to favour it except in dry centres. Everybody 

 outside Trinidad, and many inside the island, agree that the estates there 

 are, on the whole, over-shaded. There is no doubt that over-shading 

 encourages Nectria. Malins Smith, in the notes that he was kind enough 

 to send to "Tropical Life," stated that : " It is a fact that cacao planted 

 with other trees lives longer, and does not exhaust itself so early as cacao 

 grown alone. This is the best proof that shading is not to the interest 

 of the planter, as it reduces the yield by saving the strain on the 

 trees." 



In the "Proceedings of the Agricultural Society of Trinidad" (March 

 190<S) the question of shade or no shade for cacao has been discussed 

 at various times during the last fourteen years by the members of the 

 Society, but there does not appear to be any record of a serious or 

 systematic attempt to obtain practical proof of the advantage one way 

 or the other. Looking at the very superior yield in Grenada, where 

 shade is not applied, it would seem worth while to experiment on a few 

 acres in Trinidad, as recommended by Mr. Barrett, under such con- 

 ditions and with such cultivation as are found favourable without shade 

 elsewhere, and decide once for all a matter of such paramount importance 

 to the island. The cost of the experiment would be trifling when com- 

 pared with its importance. In a letter recently received from Grenada, 

 the writer says : " I spent a few days last week at Diamond Estate, of 

 which Mr. Malins Smith is the manager. Some fields have already 

 given to date (January 19) six and seven bags of 182 lb. to the acre. 

 The crop year ends on June 30 next, and it is estimated to obtain from 

 160 acres 1000 bags, equal to between six and seven bags to the acre. 

 The next-door neighbour has already got in 240 bags from a small 

 property of 45 acres, and another, a larger proprietor, 1600 bags from 

 850 acres. What estate in Trinidad planted with shade trees can equal 

 the above ? " 



If over-shading diminishes the crop, it is becoming recognized that 

 wind-belts tend to increase it. I do not believe, and never have believed, 

 in inter-planting rubber and cacao. Rubber, the stronger-growing tree 

 of the two, is bound to kill out the cacao in the end. I am, however, 

 a strong advocate for planting mixed crops, both to distribute the risk 

 and minimize the effects of adverse markets, as well as to serve as 

 wind-belts and restrict the area affected by pests. I am entirely in 

 favour of mixed plantations — i.e. growing cacao, rubber, coco-nuts, 

 cotton, &c. — on the same estate, but in belts, and not intermixed. 

 The great object in planting more than one product at a time is to 

 neutralize as far as possible the bad effects of a "slump" in the market. 

 The other day when rubber was down at 2s. del. for fine, hard Para, 

 cacao was up to 120s. ; now cacao has come down to the seventies, 

 rubber is going up again. Sea Island cotton is lower, and coco-nut 

 products are not so high as last year ; so any estate solely given up 

 to one crop must feel the slump of low years much more keenly than it 

 can appreciate high prices in a year of famine, even if it be one of the 

 fortunate ones and have a good crop. Then again, mixed crops planted 



