478 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [January *, 1888. 
ing China. The plants referred to, often one- 
stemmed and with large-looking foliage, seem nor- 
mally incapable of developing " flush." Success- 
ive pairs of leaves open in a " banjy" or hard 
Btate, unsuitable for tea-making. The leaves of 
such plants are generally stumpy, disproportionately 
wide in comparison with their length. One lies 
before me, quite of the indigenous type, but its 
breadth is exactly one-half its length, 2i inches 
broad against 5 long. By its side lies a leaf from 
a bush of our best flush -yielding j&t, which is 
long and sharp-pointed, the dimensions being in 
this case only 2| inches of breadth against 6| of 
length. The bush from which this leaf was 
taken had ten separate stems, and some 
of our very best plants with the largest ex- 
panse of plenteous flush -bearing surface have a 
score of stems and occasionally even more. Where 
a good flusher rises from the ground with one stem, 
we always find that the primaries spring from 
it at seldom more than 4 inches from the surface. 
In our moist, warm climate the tendency is for 
trees which would be one-stemmed in India, to 
send up 6 or 12 or even 20 stems, and their value 
is in proportion as this propensity is followed and 
encouraged. The general result is, that while to 
an Indian planter the stems of our tea plants 
are contemptible, he soon learns with astonishment 
to appreciate the superior yielding qualities of the 
flush-surfaces supported by multitudinous thin stems. 
Exceptions there are, of course, and I have seen 
stems as well as leaf surfaces in Ceylon equal 
to anything India can show; It is possible, of 
course, that at lower elevations the short and dis- 
proportionately broad-leaved plants to which I 
have referred may give better results than they 
do at our altitude, ranging about 5,000,— from 4,600 
to 6,000. I deem it right, however, to mention 
what I have observed. Happily the great bulk of 
our bushes are of the many-stemmed, long and 
sharp-pointed leaves and free-flushing variety. But 
when we come to the work of supplying good 
instead of objectionable plants, it seems probable 
that the cumberers of the ground which must be 
ousted will be to a great extent plants regarding 
which a casual onlooker would express admiration on 
account of their large, indigenous-like foliage. More 
of those which lean to the China type will prob- 
ably be spared than of this deceptive variety. 
Eucalypti of all species, from blue and red 
gums to stringy bark and jarrah, flourish here ; 
but our favourite amongst trees of Australian 
origin is Grevillea robusta, with its luxuriant fern- 
like foliage, silvery on the under side and the noble 
stems of good timber it forms. Once in the ground 
and grown appreciably, we have never known a 
grevillea die, although a fine specimen was blown 
down the other night. Only a small proportion 
of the seeds seems to be fertile, and grub (bred in a 
manure heap) has played havoc with some of our 
nursery beds, just as rats are inimical to plants of 
Cryptomeria japonica. Toon (Oedrela toona, the 
" red cedar" of Queensland), which is our favourite 
equally with if not above grevillea, seems able to 
resist both grubs and rats. The three trees above- 
mentioned seem the most desirable to cultivate for 
firewood and timber purposes, and we are inclined 
to think well of a variety of oasuarina which grows 
thin and tall, with branches at wide intervals, and 
with rough corky-looking bark. The one with fine 
dense foliage is liable to die off. 
IMPROVED (RICE) * AGRICULTURE IN 
CEYLON. 
Office of the Director of Publie Instruction, Co- 
lombo, December 17th, 1887. 
'Lo the Editor of the " Ceylon Observer.'' 
Sir,— I have the honor to annex for your informa- 
tion copies of letters No. 359 of 22nd October and 
No. 402 of 7th instant, addressed by me to the Hon. 
the Colonial Secretary concerning work done at the 
Minuwangoda and Panapitiya branch Agricultural 
Schools. 
As the subject is interesting to many, I should be 
glad if they could find a place in your columns. — I 
am, sir, your obedient servant, 
H. W. GREEN, DiMotor; 
Copy of my letter No. 359 of 22nd October to the 
Colonial Secretary. 
Sir, — I have the honor to report that the Minuwan- 
goda Agricultural Instructor reports his first crop re- 
sult from the use of the improved plough. 
2. He arrived at the village too late to cultivate 
the lands allotted to the school for the harvest just 
over. Those lands are now cultivated, but their crops 
cannot be judged of till next spring. 
3. He at once, however, ploughed an acre of paddy 
land for a Mr. Joseph Croos at Minuwangoda, and this 
ploughing alone, without " planting out," or manure, 
has now given a crop of 30 bushels for this aere, 
which Mr. Croos certifies. Two bushels of seed paddy 
were used. Mr. Croos also certifies that he never 
had more than 15 bushels from this field before, and 
usually only had ten bushels. 
4. The large yields which I have previously re- 
ported were obtained by " planting out " the paddy, 
in addition to ploughing with the new plough. 
5. The present experiment shows, what I have 
frequently demonstrated, that the mere use of the 
plough should about double the crop, while if other 
methods are added the increase is enormous. — lam, 
sir, your obedient servant, 
(Signed) H. W. Green, Director. 
Copy of my letter No. 402 of 7th December to the 
Colonial Secretary. 
Sir, — I have the honor to report that the Agricul- 
tural Instructor at Panapitiya in the Kalutara district 
has reaped his first paddy crop. 
2. The results are : — (a) For four bushels of paddy 
sowed broadcast, but cultivated with the improved 
plough and using 2J cwt. bone dust manure. 99 bushels 
of crop, which is within a fraction of 25-fold. I 
had the land surveyed and it came to 2 acres, 1 rood 
23 poles. The yield per acre was thus about 41J bushel 
an acre. 
(b) On an exactly similar extent of land immedi- 
ately adjoining this, sowed, manured and cultivated 
in exactly the same way, but without the improved plough, 
four bushels of paddy produced 60 bushels, or 15-fold, 
the yield per acre being 25 bushels and a small fraction. 
The use of the improved plough, therefore, made a 
difference of rather over 16 bushels an acre crop. 
(c) A very small piece of land was planted out 
with § of a seer after using the improved plough, and 
the yield was 4 bushels and 8 seers crop, or 204-fold, 
but this is not of much value as an experiment per 
acre, the quantity sown being so small. This could not 
be avoided as there was too much water at the time 
for planting out to enable a proper extent to be thus 
cultivated. — I am, sir, your obedient servant, 
(Signed) H. W. Gbeen, Director. 
LEAF-CUTTING "aNTS : REME DY. 
I have heard occasionally of cases in country 
districts where it has been impossible, or has been 
deemed impossible, to grow fruit-trees and vegetables 
owing to the depredations of the leaf-cuttiDg ants, 
which, in a very short space of time, strip the 
plants of all their foliage. Mr. Belt in " The 
Naturalist in Nicaragua " relates how, in a district 
where the ants were very abundant, and where 
complaints where rife and gradens barren, he was 
enabled to grow, in spite of the ants, large quant- 
ities of fruits and vegetables that were particularly 
appreciated by them. On finding the ants in his 
garden beginning their work of destruction, he 
followed their track to their nest, and here he began 
his war against them. Making a mixture in the 
proportion of one pint of common brown carbolic 
acid to four bncktet» of water, he poured this down 
