July  i,  1892.] 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
21 
West  Indies,  attention  has  been  called  to  thevalue  of 
the  Banana  as  a shade  plant  for  Cacao.  The  fruit  ship- 
ped from  Jamaica  is  known  there  as  the  “ Martinique 
Banana,”  and  in  the  various  Colonies  it  appears  under 
different  names;  in  Trinidad  beiog  recognized  only 
under  the  name  of  “ Gros  Miohel,”  and  the  plaut 
proves  by  those  who  have  tried  it  to  be  very  suitable  for 
Cacao  shade. 
The  distance  at  which  the  intermediate  shade  plants 
should  be  placed  apart  is  a matter  of  the  planter’s  con- 
venience, the  skilful  will  always  take  care  that  he  has 
enough  and  not  too  much,  but  as  they  are  removed 
after  four  or  five  yearn  it  matters  little  really  what  is 
the  exsct  distance  they  are  placed  apart  so  long  as  the 
object  is  attsiued  of  giving  the  Cacao  the  necessary 
shade. 
In  this  ooloDy,  where  perfeotly  olean  weeding  is 
the  ru'e,  it  is  amusing  to  learn  how  different  the 
system  is  where  labour  is  so  scarce  and  dear  and 
the  soil  so  rich  as  in  Trinidad  : — 
The  after  cultivation,  i.e.  xoeeding  or  cutlassing  of  a 
Cacao  estate  is  a work  wbich  is  done  on  the  avetage 
about  twice  in  each  year.  It  is  done  by  task  work  as  a 
rule  and  at  the  rate  of  40o  to  50c  per  task,  or  at  a cost 
of  i bout  6s  per  acre. 
Mr.  Hart  holds  the  opinion  that  a “ cacao  or  any 
other  tree  in  good  health  needs  no  manure  ”1  In 
defence  of  his  theoiy  he  gives  his  idea  of  what 
a cacao  tree  in  good  health  should  be: — 
It  is  a tree  which  from  the  seedling  stage  has  an- 
nually made  good  periodic  growth,  producing  leaves 
and  branches  wbich  are  healthy  aud  strong,  without 
disease,  or  blight,  and  which  produoes  an  average  crop 
of  fruit,  without  dropping  it  prematurely  or  losing  it 
by  the  attaoks  of  disease,  and  a tree  which  can  with- 
stand a maximum  of  either  drought  or  rainfall  with- 
out its  general  bearing  being  affected. 
Snch  a tree  I say  needs  no  manure.  It  must  not, 
however,  be  understood  that  I hold  the  opinion  that 
no  manure  should  ever  be  applied  to  Cacao,  for  snob 
would  be  in  direct  opposition  to  the  principle*  and 
practice  of  agricultural  science  and  could  not  bo  up. 
held.  The  application  of  manure  lo  trees  planted  in 
poor  soil,  to  trees  which  are  in  weak  health,  or  to 
trees  which  it  is  desirable  should  make  a more  than 
usually  rapid  growth  to  serve  a purpose  of  the  cul- 
tivator, would  have  good  effect,  and  could  not  be 
depreoated,  but  the  application  of  manures  to  treeB 
in  good  health  and  in  average  bearing,  would  have 
the  result  of  encouraging  rank  growth  which  would 
be  non-productive  and  a loss  of  crop  wou'd  be  the 
result.  A tree,  like  a horse,  can  do  more  work  when 
in  “condition”  and  with  less  exertion  than  it  can  if 
overfed  or  surfeited.  Manure  may,  however,  be  ad- 
vantageously applied  to  trees  in  average  health, 
should  it  be  found  that  the  plant  has  set  itself  more 
work  to  do  than  it  can  efficiently  carry  out,  i.e.  by 
setting  a larger  crop  of  fruit  than  usual.  In  such  a 
oase  the  application  of  manure  would  oertainly  be 
benefioial  and  enable  the  tree  to  oarry  a crop  which 
under  ordinary  circumstances  and  without  manure,  it 
would  not  be  able  to,  but  the  application  of  manure 
to  a tree  before  the  fruit  is  formed,  or  at  an  early 
period  of  its  growth,  would  probably  result  in  incit- 
ing the  tree  to  produoe  a large  amount  of  branch 
growth,  to  the  detriment  of  the  fruit,  which  would 
probably  fall. 
It  will  be  seen  therefore  that  the  application  of 
manures  to  Cacao  (having  reference  to  chemical  or 
artificial  manures  chiefly)  requires  great  judgment 
and  should  only  be  done  under  the  personal  super- 
vision of  a skilful  cultivator,  or  loss  may  result, 
’ft  here,  however,  the  plantation  will  evidently  be  the 
better  as  a whole  for  the  stimulating  action  of  manure 
owiDg  to  a poor  soil,  its  application  may  be  made 
general  and  not  speoial  from  tree  to  tree. 
Farm  yard  or  stable  manure  can  always  be  applied 
with  much  greater  safety  than  chemical  manures,  it 
is  not  so  quiok  in  its  action,  but  the  effect  lasts 
longer  upon  the  treo. 
He  then  warns  cultivators  against  deep  digging 
and  outting  the  feeding  rootlets,  while  pointing 
out  that  in  natural  forests  a process  allied  to 
mulching  goes  on.  We  suppose  the  system  in  vogue 
in  Ceylon  of  plaoing  manure  in  holes  dug  between 
every  four  plants  is  as  good  for  caoao  as  for  coffee 
and  tea.  We  must  not  omit  the  following  para- 
graph : — 
The  plant  or  tree  does  not,  however,  obtain  all 
its  food  from  the  soil,  as  the  surrounding  air  pro- 
vides it  with  a large  prop-i  tion  of  its  nourishment, 
taken  up  in  a gaseous  form  by  its  leaves.  It  should 
be  the  aim  of  the  cultivator  therefore  to  maintain 
on  his  trees  as  large  a proportion  of  healthy  leaves 
as  the  tree  can  carry.  Whether  the  food  is  taken 
np  by  the  roots  or  by  the  leaves  themselves,  the 
leaves  are  the  organs  in  which  all  the  material  necessary 
for  the  purposes  of  growth  and  reproduction  is  formed 
and  distributed- 
The  system  of  pruning  recommended  is  founded 
on  this  principle,  and  Mr.  Hart  states:— 
Given  a young  tree  in  good  health,  aud  with  a 
single  stem,  the  pruning  should  oommenoe  by  the 
regulation  of  the  primaries,  or  first  branches  made 
by  the  tree.  There  Bliould,  as  a general  rule,  be 
only  three,  or  at  most  four  primary  branches  left 
on  the  cacao  tree.  These  should  be  encouraged  to 
extend  themselves  laterally,  as  they  have  a natural 
tendency  to  do,  and  should  be  encouraged  to  de- 
velop at  regular  distances  the  secondary  branches. 
The  tertiary  branches  should  also  be  encouraged  to 
grow  at  regular  interval^. 
In  these  stages  the  operation  should  be  performed 
before  the  wood  is  sufficiently  hard  to  require  the 
use  of  the  knife,  by  the  method  called  pinching 
which  is  carried  out  with  the  thumb  and  finger 
pinching  off  the  youog,  succulent  shoots  that  are  not 
required.  At  all  times  it  should  be  the  endeavour  of 
the  pruner  to  maintain  the  tree  well  balanced,  i.  e. 
it  should  not  have  one  branch  growing  more  rapidly 
than  another  so  ns  to  make  it  appear  lop-sided  from 
any  point  of  view.  Many  cultivators  do  not  regard 
this  point  sufficiently  in  carrying  out  their  pruning 
perations  and  many  branches  are  left,  owing  to 
their  being  hearing  branches,  wbich  for  the  perma- 
nent security  of  the  tree,  for  its  appearance  and 
for  its  general  bearing  qualities,  should  be  removed; 
for  it  is  much  better  to  check  at  once  the  ten- 
dency cf  a tree  to  assume  an  irregular  aud  un- 
cultivated form,  than  to  allow  a branch  to  grow 
for  a time  and  finally  be  compelled  to  remove  it  when 
of  a larger  size. 
The  pruning  of  a tree  should  be  conducted  with  a 
view  to  the  production  of  fruit.  Unless  we  have  a 
plentiful  supply  of  good  healthy  leaves,  evenly  dis« 
tributed  over  the  tree  so  as  to  obtain  a maximum 
of  the  light  a. id  air  they  require,  we  cannot  expect 
to  seoure  large  crops  of  fruit,  in  faot  unless  the 
machinery  is  in  good  working  order  and  the  supply 
of  fuel  abundant,  we  cannot  expect  a good  output. 
The  leaves  and  roots  represent  the  machinery,  and 
water,  sunlight,  air  and  manure,  acting  together,  may 
well  represent  the  fuel  supplied. 
The  branches  of  a cicao  tree  therefore,  should  be 
evenly  distributed,  so  that  the  leaves  they  carry  may 
be  maintained  in  good  health,  and  just  thinly  enough 
distributed  to  admit  sufficient  snn  aud  air  to  mature 
the  fruit. 
Then  come  directions  to  cut  out  all  useless  wood 
and  “ gormandizers,  ” and  the  principle  is  quoted 
that  : — 
Every  physiologist  knows  that  unless  branches  are 
produced,  roots  cannot  be,  and  the  production  of  root 
is  in  exaot  ratio  to  the  production  of  branch. 
The  author  adds  : — 
If  pruning  is  doue  by  a saw  the  wounds  should 
afterwards  be  smoothed  over  with  a sharp  knife,  as  they 
always  heal  over  better  if  thus  treated.  In  situations 
where  the  oacao  beetle  or  beetles  (for  there  are 
several  species),  are  plentiful  a mixture  of  ooal  tar 
and  clay  of  the  consistency  of  paint  sbould  be  ap- 
plied to  all  wounds. 
Pruning  with  a blunt  cutlass,  knife,  or  cacao  hook, 
should  never  be  allowed.  The  instruments  used  should 
