79 8 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. [March i, 1882. 
Prices of Feathers. 
Advance prices 
1869-72. 1877-79. June, 1881. 
Primes (white) £32 £40 to £50 £35 
1st and 2nd ... In propor- In propor- In propor- 
tion, tion . tion. 
Byocks £9 £10 10s. £14 to £16 
Long blacks ... £4 £12 to £13 £12 to £14 
Shorthorns ... £1 6s. £2 10s. £2 10s. 
Male tails ... £5 10s. £10 to £12 £10 to £'5 
Femina. 
White £20 to £23 £26 to £28 £22 to £25 
Tipped £15 to £16 £22 to £24 £18 to £20 
Light long ... £12 to £14 £16 to £18 £12 to £16 
Dark do. ... £6 to £7 £6 to £9 £9 
Tails £210sto£3 £3 10s. £310sto£5 
In 1873 to 1876 the market steadily increased and in 
face of great supply, prices were unchanged. — Austra- 
lian Paper. 
HO RTICULT UEE IN LOWER BENGAL. 
( Asian.) 
The Pea (Pisum sativum). 
Probably to the cultivation and improvement of no 
other vegetable has so much attention been given as 
to the Pea. This is fully demonstrated by the immense 
number of varieties now in cultivation. Take, for 
instance, the catalogue of any first-class English seeds- 
man, and we shall probably find upwards of a hundred 
kinds enumerated, and even this total would not 
embrace half the number of varieties grown in England. 
It must however, be admitted that an immense number 
of these are but synonyms of others ; as an example 
it may be mentioned that some of the oldest and 
beat varieties, such as Veitch's Perfection, or Langster's 
No. 1, which are the kinds principally grown by 
market gardeners at home, are known under ten or 
twelve different names. In England these are divided 
into three sections, that is, early medium, and late 
varieties, the sowing of which extend over a period 
of about six months, that is from December to May. 
Here, however, where our season for sowing is limited 
to about six weeks or two months, it is certainly 
unnecessary to grow a large number of varieties even 
for a large garden ; a selection of four or six good 
sorts will be amply sufficient. I append a description 
of a few of the many new sorts, and also a list of 
the most popular of the older kinds ; a selection from 
this may be made with every confidence of a good 
return, they being all well-known and tried varieties. 
The Pea delights in a rich, deep, light, soil, one 
that has been well-manured, for- the previous season's 
crops suits it best. Should however the soil be poor, 
it may be enriched with a good dressing of very 
old cow manure, or leaf mould, which, when possible, 
should be applied a month or two before sowing. 
On no account u<e fresh or half -rotted manure ; this 
being too stimulatini; in its action, causes an un- 
natural production of stem, to the detriment of the 
crop, and frequently also causes the plants to become 
infested with mildew. 
The first sowing may be made about the middle of 
September on raised beds, commencing with the dwarf 
early varieties, and, where space is available, this 
should be followed by successional sowings at inter- 
vals of a week or ten days up' to the end of November. 
Before sowing, the so d should he steeped in water 
for three or four hours, and then allowed to tlry for 
about the same time before being planted. The dwarf 
kinds may be sown in rows about eighteen inches 
1 . and the seeds about one inch apart, covering 
tli in with about an in '1 of soil. The taller growing 
sorts require a space of at least three feet between 
the rows, and should be planted two inches deep. 
As soon as they are about six inches high they should 
be staked, planting the sticks so that they cross 
each other at about six inches from the top, where 
they should be firmly tied together. The situation 
best adapted for the Pea is one where it receives the 
full morninz sun, but partially shaded during the 
remainder of the day. 
The Radish (Raphanus salivas.) 
The Radish requires a free, open, soil, well enriched 
with manure. In fact, to grow them to perfection, it 
is nearly impossible to make the soil too rich. Sowings 
may be commenced early in September, and continued 
at intervals of about ten days up to January, though 
1 he produce of sowings made during October will in- 
variably be found the best. The seed is best sown 
in drills about five inches apart, and after lightly 
covering with soil, the beds should be well beaten 
down. This insures the roots forming of a good 
shape. As soon as the plants are large enough, they 
should be thinned out to a distance of four inches apart 
in the rows. If the soil is fairly rich, and the plants kept 
liberally supplied with water, they should be ready for 
drawing in about three weeks from the time of sowing. 
Care must also be taken to keep the soil well stirred 
about the plants. There are now a large number of 
varieties, but these differ more in form and colour 
than in quality, for, when well grown under the 
same conditions, but little difference cm be discerned 
in their flavour. There are also two indigenous varieties 
which grow to an enormous size, and are much eaten 
by the natives. These are, however, so coarse and 
inferior in quality to the English varieties that they 
are not worth cultivating in the garden. 
Sage (Salvia officinalis.) 
This can only be grown as an annual in this country, 
and then with but a moderate amount of success. 
The seed should be sown in pans or boxes in October, 
and kept in a cool, sheltered place till the plants 
are ready to be put out. They should then be trans- 
planted into a bed of light, rich, soil, a shady situation 
being selected for them, the plants will then continue 
growing freely till April, when, as the heat becomes 
more intense, the plants will gradually dwindle off, 
and those that survive this trying ordeal invariably 
succumb to the first heavy rains. If grown in pots 
a few plants may occasionally be kept through the 
year but with extreme difficulty. The plant known 
as Bengal Sage (Meriandra bengalensis) is entirely 
distinct from the preceding, especially in flavour, 
although it is used as a substitute for it ; this is 
propagated by division of the roots. 
Salsify (Trapogon porrifolium.:) 
Scokzoneka ( Scorzomra Jiispanica. ) 
Neither of the above can be cultivated with any ' 
degree of success in Bengal, owing to the shortness of 
our cold season, both of the plants requiring a long 
time to mature their roots which is the part used. 
Spinach (Spinacea oleracea.) 
Although there are two distinct varieties of Spinach 
which in Europe are cultivated at different seasons I 
in this country, they must be grown at the same I' 
time ; and, as their produce so closely resemble each 
other, it is hardly necessary to grow more than one 
of them. Preference should be given to the round- 
seeded variety, being quicker in growth and more 
tender than the other. 
Sowings may be commenced in October in drills 
about twelve inches apart, in any good gardsn soil 
which has been previously well manured. Sowings 
should be made at short intervals up to December 
to keep up a continuous supply. The plants must 
be kept well supplied with water, and an occasional 
dose of liquid manure will also have a beneficial effect. 
