20 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST 
[July  r,  1892; 
would  be  “ carrying  coals  to  Newcastle,”  but  the 
following  seems  worthy  of  attention:  — 
The  distance  which  Cacao  trees  should  be  planted 
apart  will  be  determined  by  the  planter  in  accord- 
ance with  the  character  of  the  soil  and  the  elevation 
above  sea-level.  The  higher  above  sea-level  and  t he 
poorer  the  soil  the  closer  the  trees  may  be  planted 
and  vice  versa — a distance  ranging  from  12  to  15  feet 
apart  each  way  will  probably  meet  all  requirements, 
( i.e .)  12  feet  in  poor  soil  and  15  feet  in  rich  soil. 
In  Grenada  the  practice  of  close  planting  is  followed 
much  more  generally  than  in  Trinidad,  but  successful 
planters  are  to  be  found  among  those  who  follow 
each  system.  The  wide  planting  cultivator  saya,  I 
get  more  fruit  per  tree  and  of  better  quality  than 
the  close  planting  cultivator,  while  the  latter  affirms, 
I get  as  much  from  two  trees  as  you  do  from  one, 
and  the  quality  is  as  good.  Probably  more  depends 
upon  the  judgment  of  the  individual  planter  with 
regard  to  the  character  of  the  soil  he  is  working  than 
anything  else.  If  it  is  poor  he  will  plant  close,  if 
rich  and  deep,  he  will  regulate  his  planting  accordingly. 
It  is  not  to  be  doubted  however,  that  where  practi- 
cable, wide  planting  gives  the  advantage  of  afford- 
ing easier  access  to  the  cultivator  for  the  various 
operations  of  pruning,  harvesting,  manuring,  weeding, 
&c.,  and  the  plantations  where  the  practice  is  carried 
out  certainly  assume  a much  better  appearance  than 
those  which  are  crowded  with  trees. 
We  refer  to  Mr.  Hart’s  dictum  against  our  own 
general  experience  when  he  says:  — 
Cacao  is  certainly  benefited  by  intermediate  cul- 
tivation between  the  rows  of  trees  in  their  younger 
stages,  and  planters  who  reside  near  to  their  young 
fields— as  all  should  who  wish  to  work  successfully 
— should  endeavour  to  plant  crops  of  which  he  can 
most  readily  dispose  and  those  which  are  least  ex- 
hausting to  the  land. 
In  the  West  Indies  as  herein  Ceylon  there  are  wide 
divergences  of  opinion  as  to  the  question  of  shade. 
The  general  opinion  respecting  offee  in  Ceylon  was 
that  if  it  could  not  be  grown  without  shade  it  had  bet- 
ter not  be  grown  at  all.  But  cacao  is  a different  pro- 
duct, always  grown  in  a climate  of  intense  sun-beat' 
This  is  what  Mr.  Hart  says  on  the  subject; 
The  question  of  shade  is  one  upon  which  much 
has  been  written,  and  upon  which  there  exists  great 
divergence  of  opinion.  In  the  Island  of  Grenada 
the  general  practice  is  to  grow  Cacao  without  shade. 
In  Trinidad  the  prevailing  practice  is  to  give  the 
plants  permanent  shade  by  planting  umbrageous 
trees  at  regular  intervals  through  the  plantations. 
Bach  system  has  its  advantages  and  its  disadvan- 
tages, and  no  hard  and  fast  rule  can  be  laid  down, 
but  the  novice  would  certainly  be  safe  in  following 
the  general  practice  of  the  district  in  which  his 
land  is  situated,  giving  due  force  to  any  surrounding 
circumstances  which  may  justify  him  in  using  a modifi- 
cation of  the  prevailing  practice.  As  stated  in  a pre- 
vious chapter,  the  greatest  care  should  be  taken  in 
securing  “ windbreaks”  on  the  side'of  the  plantation  ex- 
posed to  the  prevailing  winds,  and  belts  of  original 
Forest  should  be  left  for  this  purpose  if  practicable. 
< In  Grenada  the  land  in  Cacao  is  sometimes  un- 
dulating, but  in  the  major  part  of  the  Cacao  dis- 
tricts distinctly  hilly.  Where  the  aspect  of  the 
plantation  affords  by  the  conformation  of  the  ground 
itself,  shade  or  shelter  from  a particular  direction, 
artificial  shade  can  certainly  be  dispensed  with  in 
a great  measure,  but  on  level  land  in  Trinidad  the 
general  practice  goes  to  prove  that  it  is  absolutely 
necessary,  to  produce  CacEio  to  perfection. 
For  shade  in  the  lower  lying  lands  of  Trinidad 
the  tree  generally  used  is  the  “ Bocare,”  or  Ery- 
thrina  velutina,  which  affords  a deep  shade.  For  the 
higher  lands  the  “ Anauca,”  or  Erythrina  umbrosa  is 
used.  Both  being  known,  together  with  several  other 
Erytlirinas,  as  “ Bois  Immortel.”  The  Bois  Immortel 
proper,  however,  is  the  “ Anauca,”  Erythrina  umbrosa .* 
* Mr.  Morris  remarks  on  this  point  as  follows:  — 
“ This  tree  is  said  to  store  up  moisture  in  its  tissue 
which  it  is  supposed  to  dole  out  to  the  tree  in  times 
of  drought.  This,  I fear,  is  only  a planter’s  senti- 
ment and  cannot  stand  the  test  of  experiment.” 
The  latter  grows  to  a much  greater  height  than 
the  “ Bocare  ” and  does  not  afford  so  dense  a shade. 
Why  these  trees  should  have  attained  their  present 
high  reputation  is  somewhat  difficult  to  arrive  a>,  but 
one  thing  is  certain,  they  answer  weil  the  purpo;e  for 
which  they  are  used. 
The  wood  of  this  tree  for  timber  or  fuel  is  utterly 
useless  and  the  branches  often  fall  injuring  the  Cacao 
trees  beneath.  Among  the  numerous  timber  trees 
whioh  flourish  in  Trinidad  it  is  strange  that  one  could 
not  have  been  selected  which  would  serve  some  useful 
purpose  besides  affording  shade.  That  Buch  trees  exist 
is  not  to  be  doubted,  but  the  difficulty  is  to  find  them. 
The  planter,  however,  should  remember  that  once 
such  n tree  is  found  and  planted,  it  would  materially 
increase  the  value  of  his  estate — certainly  an  induce- 
ment for  him  to  seek  for  suoh.  Nearly  all  trees  sug- 
gested for  such  a purpose  possess  characters  which 
gives  them  no  economic  value.  Mr.  Morris,  however,  in 
his  work  on  British  Honduras  suggests  Castilloa  Elas- 
tica  as  a shade  for  Cacao,  but  haviug  seen  the  plant  in 
its  native  habitat  in  Central  America,  and  having  had 
the  opportunity  of  observing  it  under  oareful  cultiva- 
tion in  Trinidad,  I cannot  confirm  Mr.  Morris’  good 
opinion  of  it,  as  it  appears  from  our  experience  that 
the  tree  itself  requires  shade.  Timber  trees  (to  be 
grown  for  the  timber)  would  be  u’eless  for  Oacaoehade, 
a3  it  would  be  iraj  ossible  to  out  them  without  injury  to 
the  Cacao.  It  is  therefore  patent  that  we  Bhonld  look 
for  a plant  which  produces  an  annual  crop,  whioh 
could  be  gatherei  without  injury  to  the  Caoao  The 
Rubber  tree  iB  certainly  such  a plant,  if  it  would  only 
thrive  above  the  Cacao,  and  there  are  doubtless  many 
other  fruit-bearing  and  umbrageous  trees,  with  which 
it  would  desirable  to  experiment. 
The  TIeveas  or  Sipkonias,  whioh  supply  the  Para  Rub- 
ber of  the  Loudon  markets,  are  likely  trees  for  this 
purpose,  but  they  are  of  much  slower  growth  than  the 
Immortel.  Terminalia  belenca  which  suplies  the“myra- 
bolaus  ” of  commerce  might  al'o  be  tried.  Both  these 
trees  thrive  well  in  Trinidad.  It  will  be  seen  that 
although  it  is  desirable  to  procure  a better  tree  than 
the  “ Bois  Immortel,”  it  is  a diffioult  task  to  find  one, 
and  the  novice  had  therefore  better  rest  content  with 
what  has  served  the  p'anter  so  well  in  the  past,  and 
stick  to  the  Bois  Immortel,  leaving  the  experimental 
trials  of  new  plants  to  the  more  experienced  planter. 
Our  experience  of  Grevillea  robusta  leads  us  to 
suggest  that  it  might  prove  valuable  as  a shade 
tree.  There  is  a manurial  value  in  the  immense 
quantity  of  leaves  this  tree  sheds.  In  Southern 
India  the  grevillea,  when  planted  as  a shade  for 
ooffee,  gets  the  credit  of  destroying  the  fungus  so 
fatal  to  our  old  staple.  Mr.  Hart  proceeds  : — 
Having  decided  upon  the  qusstion  of  the  permanent 
shado  he  will  use,  the  planter  should  make  arrange- 
ments to  plant  it  either  before  or  at  tbe  same  time  as 
the  Cacao.  The  distance  and  manner  of  planting  will 
depend  a great  deal  upon  the  ground,  tbe  quality  of 
tho  soil  and  the  exposure,  but  the  usual  distance  is 
from  35  to  40  feet  apart  each  way  for  the  “ Booare,” 
and  from  40  to  45  feet  apart  from  the  “Anauca.” 
If  the  planter  believes,  what  we  certainly  do  not, 
that  “ intermediate  culture  ” will  do  good  and  not 
harm  to  the  cacao  plants,  the  following  informa- 
tion from  Mr.  Hart’s  book  will  be  valuable  to  him:  — 
For  the  smaller  shade  plants,  Corn  (Zea  mays). 
Pigeon  or  Gongo  Pea  ( Gajanus  indiem ),  Tannias,  Ed- 
does,  or  Cocoes  ( Colocasia  esculenta),  Castor  oil  ( Ricinus 
communis),  Cassava  ( Manihot  utillissima)  and  the 
Banana  or  Plantain  (Musa  sapientum),  can  be  used. 
The  Banana  or  Plantain  used  for  shade  is  usually 
planted  intermediate  between  the  permanent  rows  of 
Cacao.  If  Caoao  isatl5feet, then  Banana7§  and  so  od.  A 
variety  of  Plantain  commonly  known  as  the  “ Moko,” 
or  “jumbi  Plantain,”  is  preferred  to  other  members 
of  the  family  by  Trinidad  planters  for  the  purpose  of 
affording  secondary  shade.  The  fruit  of  this  plant  is 
however  considered  fit  for  little  else  but  cattle  food, 
though  the  green  fruit  when  dried  and  pounded  makes 
a wholesome,  pleasant  and  nutritive  meal,  which  is  a 
most  suitable  food  for  invalids  and  children.  Sinoe  the 
Banaua  trade  has  assumed  such  large  proportions  in  the 
