September 2, 1889.J THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
201 
SELLING TEA LEAF. 
{To the Editor of the " Times of Ceylon. ") 
Sra, — There are many grumblers among sellers of 
leaf, and a very common expression with them is 
"if you won't give me more than 8 cts. per lb., I'll 
start manufacturing myself." For their benefit I beg 
that you will publish the following calculations, from 
which it will be seen that the extra profit to be 
derived from manufacture would hardly compensate 
them for the outlay in machinery, buildings, &c, to 
say nothing of the extra work thrown on the Super- 
intendent. 
Plucking to Sell. R B 
Ordinary upkeep, say, per acre — 40 
Medium plucking, 1,200 lb @ 4 cts. 48 
1,200 lb leaf @ 8 cts. — — 96-00 
Profit to seller per acre — — 8 
96 9600 
Plucking and Making. 
Ordinary upkeep and Plucking as 
above — — — — 88 
Making 22J per cent=270 tt>. tea 
@9cts. _____ 24-30 
Wear and tear of Machinery, Insur- 
ance &c. @ 2 cts. — — ■ — 5-40 
270 lb. at 47 cts, being equivalent 
of 9Jd. — — — — 126-90 
Profit per acre to manufacturer * — 9 20 
Haldummulla, May 28th. 
126-90 126-! 
D. 
TOBACCO CULTIVATION AND MANUEING 
IN GEYLON. 
Now that tobacco cultivation is coming to the front 
in your island, I may as well allude to the best form 
of manuring for that rather exhausting plant. Many 
years ago I saw a good deal of native tobacco cultivation 
in the Negombo district, and aid not fail to notice how 
assiduous the goyas were in their attention to the grow- 
ing plants as regards water and manure. The former 
was supplied during the dry months by means of small 
bamboo spouts from wells dug at intervals in the 
land ; mauure was carelully applied by the hands of 
little children in the form of cattle refuse, aBhes, and 
when procurable lime, in the form of burnt coral or 
shells. There is I believe very little doubt that lime 
is one of the best fertilizers for the plant; and on 
tbis point I may remind you that most of the tobacco 
laud in the Jaffna district, where the plant thrives so 
well, lies over a subsoil of coral, the gardual decomposi- 
tion of which, no doubt, fertilizes the ground and saves 
it from exhaustion. I need hardly say that the native 
method of curing the leaf was not one that could be 
adopted by Europeans ; more than this they invariably 
went in for quantity rather than quality and so allowed 
the leaves to grow large and coarse. — Local " Times. " 
EICE CULTIVATION IN CEYLON. 
Muturajaweia Paddy Fields.— The broad expanse of 
these fields is now under cultivation. The plants are 
now about 6 inches from the ground and a satisfactory 
crop is expected. The field is dotted here and there 
with "Wala Kumburas" which cannot be sown owing 
to their being full of water. So far Mr. De Mel, 
the enterprizing merohant, deserves all praise for the 
success of his scheme: but I fear there will be a sort 
of barrier at certain seasons when perhaps his hopes 
may be damped. 1 refer to tbe season when there 
is a run of sea-water into the field, when all cultivation 
may have to be stopped. It is not only here that 
salt water forms a barrier against the successful cul- 
tival ion of paddy crops. There is an immense extent 
of paddy fields in the Salpiti and Rayigam Korales, watered 
by the Bolgoda Lake, which suffers in the same way. 
This Lake, which covers a very large area, has a wide 
outlet at Panadura, which is a means of conveying tho 
Bait water inland at high tide, and it is thus distributed 
all over the lake. An immense tract of fields is left 
uncultivated when this, happens, The goiyaa about the 
26 
place have often represented matters to the Government 
but nothing has been done by it to prevent the influx 
of water through the rise of the tide. One cannot con- 
ceive how much the poor cultivators suffer owing to 
the neglect of Government, Only those who have been 
to the villages tbat border the immense Bolgoda lake 
and its branches could form an idea of the ihousauds 
and thousands of acres that are left uncultivated owing 
to the run of salt water into the fields. The judicious 
expenditure of a modest sum by Government at places 
where the sea runs inland into fields will set matters 
aright. Mr. Green, who takes such an interest in matters 
agricultural, would do well to impress upon Govern- 
ment the expediency of taking urgent steps. — Cor., 
"Examiner." 
FEUIT AND VEGETABLE CULTUEE 
IN FLOBLDa. 
In Florida, which must be a veritable laud of Goshen 
as almost every fruit and vegetable that is good for 
anything is Said to flourish tut re, the Sugar-cane is 
reported as one of the uselul introductions, but grown 
mostly for reoail purposes, being st. ipped and eaten 
mostly by children and the coloured race as a sweet- 
meat, and the sale for such is immense, realising 
about 2|d. for each stalk. Some little Sugar and 
syrup are mauutaciured on a small scale, but tne 
cane is said to lack much of the rich, juicy saccharine 
matter of the Sugar-cane of the West Indian Islands, 
so that its quality and yield would never equal those 
of the West Indies. Florida, then, could not compete 
with these islands in the exteu.ied cultivation of the 
Sugar-cane for commei cial pin poses. 
Sweet Potatoes grow web in Florida, are very largely 
grown, and are of much importance as a food product. 
The English Pea is largely cultivates, and does well; 
also a hardy Pea, called Cow-pea, is extensively grown. 
It is said not to be of a very delicate flavour, but 
highly nutritious, and produces a yield of 10 to 15 
bushels per acre. The Cow-pea, put up in sacks and 
other packages, is quite an article of trade in some 
of the American markets. 
The Ground-nut, or Pea nut as it is called in 
America (Araehis hypogsea), is very largely grown 
in Florida. The plant thrives well in almost any soil, 
the cultivation is very simple, and the yield very 
productive, averaging about 100 bushels to the acre. 
The Spanish Pea-nut is now very extensively used in 
Georgia for feeding hogs ; the average crop is about> 
125 bushels per acre. The hogs do ali the harvesting 
and they generally eat the steins of the plant as well 
as the seeds. It is estimated that an acre of Spanish 
Pea-nuts will furnish four times as much hog food 
as an acre of corn. The Peccan-nut belonging to 
the genus Oarya, the species of which, however, it 
not given, is said to be receiving much attention at 
present in Florida ; it thrives so readily, and is so 
easy of growth, that it is suggested that it might 
flourish in many warm and tropical climates, such as 
the West Indies. The nut itself is planted and grows 
readily in auy moderately good mixed soil of sand 
and clay. It is very hardy, and attains height, strength, 
and body from year to year, until it reaches a great 
size. The tree begins bearing at about eight or ten 
years, and the yield annually increases in quantity 
till the full growth of the tree is attained. The nut 
is a favourite one, and sells at about 5d. per pound. 
Notwithstanding that nearly all our best-known 
fruits are cultivated in Florida, the Orange of course 
occupies the greatest amount of atteution. The Orange 
groves in all parts of the State are rapidly multiplying 
and the bearing trees are now numbered by tens of 
thousands, while the young groves, which are being 
constantly started, comprise millions of trees. The 
Orange from the seed produces fruit in from seven to 
ten years, depending upon situation, culture, &o. 
Groves are made from wild stocks, usually cut off at 
a height of 3 to 4 feet from the ground, and the 
new shoots budded, generally produce fruit in three 
years. The number of Oranges produced from a 
single tree varies from 100 to 10,000 according to 
the age, situation, and treatment of the tree. The 
