THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [September i, 1887. 
in mind how much mustard suffers at the hands of 
the unprincipled dealer, I think it is a pity mustard 
is not more often grown for table consumption in 
our kitchen gardens. The seeds of home-cultivated 
mustard, pounded in a mortar with cream and a 
little salt added, make a sauce fit for an epicure. 
Cress, generally called American Cress, is a mild 
stomachic ; it forms a valuable adjunct to a salad. 
Waicr-Cress is a still more important vegetable, poss- 
essing, as I believe it does, tonic properties. It is 
usually eaten with cheese, but ought to be used with 
beef and mutton. 
Spinach, it should be remembered by those fond of 
it, is laxative in its properties and also highly diuretic. 
It makes an excellent breakfast vegetable for hot 
weather, although few people in this country think 
of cooking vegetables for morning consumption. 
The turnip, one of the Cnuifera, is far more valu able 
as an article of diet or adjunct to other food than 
most people think. It is also more nutrient than 
is generally supposed, and is valuable as a demulcent. 
Swedish turnips are usually ignored by the cook ; 
this is a pity ; they are better in every way than 
any other kind. Turnips ought to be well chosen, 
not too big nor too small ; they ought to be gathered 
fresh, well boiled and well mashed. The green tops 
of the young turnips are also very healthful and in 
some degree tonic. 
Parsnips and carrots belong to the Umhellifera 
family, and probably possess in some slight degree the 
medicinal properties of that family. In addition 
therefore to being highly nutritious, owing to the 
large quantity of starch they contain, they are, we may 
presume, alterative and resolvent. They make, at all 
events, an excellent change in our vegetable scale of diet. 
Parsley is another cf the umbellif e rous vegetables 
used at table, chiefly for garnishing or stuffing. It is 
an excellent blood-purifying herb, and deserves to be 
used far more than it is. It ought to be put in soups 
and in sauces, eaten raw and eaten cooked. It is well 
known that parsley chewed sweetens the breath. 
Beetroot — natural family Chenopodiacea — is one of 
the most nutrient vegetables we have. It is likewise 
cooling and slightly laxative ; it should not, however, 
be partaken too freely of, even in summer, or it may 
produce painful flatulence and diarrhoea. 
Beans of all kinds are nutritious ; but people whose 
digestive organs are not strong should take care how 
they indulge in them. French beans require to be 
very tender indeed, and very well cooked, to be safe. 
Celery is another vegetable which, though wholesome 
enough when cooked and mixed in soups, &c, should 
be partaken of with caution in the raw state, especially 
by delicate people or those who lead a sedentary life. 
BhvJbavb lis most wholesome ; it helps to purify and 
cool the blood, and to a great extent aids digestion, 
while at the same time it is healthfully laxative. 
Garden-lettuces. — These vegetables are well-known to 
possess anodyne and narcotic properties. Hence they 
are best for supper. They should, however, be eaten 
sparingly, and the younger and fresher they are the 
better. The older leaves should be rejected as 
apt to irritate instead of cooling the system. 
Asparagiis belongs to the Liliacew, which gives 
the medicinal squill. It is a delicious and very whole- 
some vegetable, and contains cooling diuretic proper- 
ties ; indeed, it seems to soothe the mucous 
membranes of both lungs and kidneys, while it 
acts sedatively at the same time. 
Onions, shalots, chives, and leelcs are all members 
of the Ijairiily iMideeke, and are not only highly nutritious 
when properly cooked, but are possessed in a greater 
or less degree of cooling and diuretic properties. They 
arc also valuable stomachics and demulcents, but are 
apt to disagree, and should therefore be partaken of 
but sparingly. They have an effect for good on common 
colds and slight congestions of the air-passages. 
From the natural family Cucv.rlilacem wc get many 
valuable vegetables, some of which, as the cucumber, 
are eaten raw. This latter is, if eaten with pepper 
and vinegar, a stomachic stimulant, »nd it also purines 
tlift l>l<x»| by acting on the secreting organs. It 
should never be partaken of too freely, even by 
those whose digestive organs are strong, and by 
dyspeptics not at all.— South of India Observer. 
BUG AND FUNGUS. 
A merchant writes : — 
" Herewith copy of extract from letter about green 
bug :— 
" I do not fear the effects of green bug on this sea- 
son's crop, and I am of opinion that if the land is 
manured and well forked, the bug will disappear, as 
I think that bug and such like pests originate from 
sourness of soil. I also notice a fungus is growing 
over the bug cells which I have examined under a 
microscope and find the young bugs contained inside 
the cells dead, this fungus is spreading on all coffee 
affected with bug. I send a few coffee leaves with the 
fungus on them by this post for your inspection." 
Another merchant adds : — 
" Touching the fungus growing over the bug, a 
superintendent writes to us \ — 'Green bug is beginning 
to " damp off " as is usual during the monsoon, but the 
weather has not been sufficiently wet to check it 
entirely. Early in July he informed us that ' a large 
part of the coffee is black with bug, but the pest does 
not seem to be spreading much during this wet 
weather.' " 
Let us hope that bug, both black and green, will 
speedily disappear, while coffee, what remains of it, 
takes a new lease of life. 
THE EFFECT OF MANURE ON CINCHONA 
OFFICINALIS 
is thus described by the Madras Quinologist, in 
a paper supplied to us by Government : — 
Plot XL, Dodabetta, was in April of last year 
divided, as near as possible, into five equal portions. 
Four portions were respectively treated with cattle, 
stable, lime and stable, and bone manures ; the fifth 
portion in the centre was left in its natural state. 
In April of this year the entire plot was harvested 
by means of the stripping process, and the green 
bark from each portion was collected and dried 
separately, and its weight ascertained. The trees in 
each portion were counted, so that the average 
amount of bark from a number of trees could be 
calculated, and compared with the weight of others 
differently manured. The result of the harvest proved 
that the amount of bark per tree was highest in the 
portion containing cattle manure, and the next, that 
from prepared bones, but the quantities of bark from 
the stable, and lime and stable manured portions did 
not materially exceed the amount of natural bark 
from the unmanured trees. Turning now to the 
effect of manuring trees in order to increase the 
alkaloidal yield of the bark, the following analysis 
of the five samples will show how that object has been 
attained. It will be seen that all the manures have 
raised the value of the barks, but in different degrees ; 
the analyses are therefore arranged according to the 
following order, the best being placed first : — 
•A 2 . m 
C? O CO <l <J Eh 
Bone manure ..3-30 1-59 -10 -38 -43 5-80 
Cattle do 3'25 1-50 -13 "35 "41 5"64 
Lime and stable manure 3-18 1-40 -08 -21 -48 5-35 
Stable manure ..3-05 1"41 -12 -32 "38 5-28 
Unmanured manure* ..288 1'45 -11 -24 -25 4"93 
The increase in each instance is not very great; 
if the unmanured be compared with the highest in 
the table, the quinine will be found to have an 
addition of only 14-58 per cent., and the rest smaller 
in proportion. In last year s report, it was shown 
that a Succirubra and a Hybrid gave a much superior 
yield of quinine under the influence of cattle co m- 
* Trees meant, of course.-'-ED,. 
