August  i,  1892.]  THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST, 
i37 
Goijttasponctenofl* 
# — ■ — — 
To  the  Editor. 
QUESTION  REGARDING  AREKANUTS. 
Fairieland,  Kandy,  June  21th. 
Dear  Sih, — I notice  in  the  Observer  of  22nd  “ 25 
pks,  and  99,906  ewt.  R906,963.'’  This  would 
represent  less  than  RIO  per  cwt.  I have 
sold  dried  areeacuta  to  traders  at  R15  to 
R17  per  cwt.  Can  you  obtain  further  information 
with  regard  to  the  local  market  or  export  for  this 
produot  ; also,  as  to  the  best  varieties’  rate,  as 
opinions  differ  very  much?  The  ‘-rata”  or  "hambam 
puwak”  is  the  most  sought  after  at  present,  yet 
I am  informed  that  the  smaller  “ native”  kind 
is  more  appreciated  by  the  trade. — Yours  faithfully, 
SHELTON  AGAR. 
[This  is  a matter  regarding  which  cur  personal 
knowledge  is  limited.  We  have  a few  of  the 
“ rata  ” or  exotio  kinds  growing  on  Eilandhu,  but 
merely  as  ornamental  trees.  Can  any  correspon- 
dent give  the  information  desiderated  regarding  the 
narcotio  nuts  ?— Ed.  T,  A.] 
EFFECT  OF  EXCESSIVELY  WET  WEATHER 
AND  OF  PRUNING  IN  SUCH  WEATHER 
ON  TEA. 
Central  Province,  June  27th. 
Dear  Sir,— I have  with  great  pleasure  read  Mr. 
John  Ferguson’s  letters  and  also  your  remarks  and 
notes  on  them.  They  are  all  very  much  to  the  point. 
One  thing  I do  nob  think  enough  has  been  made 
of — the  excessive  wet  season  of  1891,  particularly 
Nov.  and  Deo.  of  that  year’s  abnormal  rainfall 
and  also  of  Jan.  1892.  There  is  not  the  slightest 
doubt  that  the  heavy  wetting  and  chilling  the 
soil  got  in  1891  have  for  the  time  deteriorated  the 
tea  bush  and  have  more  or  less  destroyed  all  flavour 
in  the  teas  of  those  estates  that  were  exposed  to 
this  excessive  wet.  Nov.  and  Dec.  1891  and  Jan. 
1892  following  on  an  already  wet  season,  have 
done  the  principal  part  of  the  damage.  Our  rain- 
fall here  to  end  of  June  1891  was  131-OOin.  The 
highest  before,  in  1888,  was  108-30  in.  so  the  rain- 
fall for  1891  was  22-64  in.  above  the  wettest  year 
previously  in  12  years,  44  25  in,,  and  above  the 
average  for  that  time.  Another  reason  for  the 
sudden  fallirg-off  in  flavour  was  in  1891  caused 
by  a largej  number  of  estateB  pruning  very  low, 
principally  because  tea  was  in  most  places  7 or 
8 years  from  first  pruning  and  of  course  had  to  be 
cut  dowm  low  to  get  what  is  called  a new  head 
which  must  be  done  every  7 years  or  so.  To  mako 
matters  worse  this  was  done  in  an  abnormal  wet 
season,  and  many, I am  afraid,  pruned  lower  than 
there  was  any  occasion  for. 
One  of  the  first  agricultural  authorities  of  the 
present  day  says  : — “ Pruning  is  always  more  or 
less  injurious  to  the  life  of  a tree.  In  some  cultiva- 
tions it  must  be  done.  The  more  carefully  and  less 
often  this  is  done  the  better.  When  a tree  is  out 
down  the  roots  die  off  in  proportion  to  the 
amount  of  the  cutting  down  of  the  tree.  The 
great  danger  is  fungoid  growth  at  the  roots.” 
Surely  if  this  is  the  case  our  trees  must  have 
suffered  excessively  from  pruning  in  1891.  1 cannot 
agree  in  the  idea  of  our  teas  going  off  in  flavour 
as  they  get  older.  I have  been  making  tea  here 
now  for  10  years  and  have  not  noticed  any  falling- 
off  in  flavour  till  after  May  1891  and  on  to  the 
present  time.  Now  our  teas  are  gradually  recover- 
ing flavour,  whioh  this  dry  season  has  helped  on. 
Our  rainfall  to  26th  inst.  is  only  46  29  in.,  and 
only  4 days  more  of  June  to  run  against  a rain. 
18 
fall  in  1891  of  131  00  in.  to  end  of  June.  This 
dry  season  is  quite  a Godsend  to  us  tea  planters  ; 
we  have  had  too  much  wet  and  the  ground  want 
drying  to  get  rid  of  the  sourness,  &e.,  caused  by 
the  exc8ssivo  heavy  rainfall  in  1891. 
Another  cause  injurious  to  the  tea  bush  in 
wet  districts  is  pruning  in  the  wet  months,  viz., 
from  May  to  Ootober.  Tea  takes  longer  to  recover 
tbon,  than  when  pruned  in  January  to  Maroh 
(besides  the  injury  to  the  roots  if  the  agricultural 
auth-  rity  quoted  is  oorreot).  S.-W.  monsoon  prun. 
ing  takes  8 to  9 weeks  to  recover  and  eometimes 
longer.  January  pruning  5 to  7 weeks  and  in  3 
months  your  tea  is  in  full  flush  again;  besides  the 
tea  flush  is  riper  and  not  so  long  recovering  the 
effects  of  pruning ; you  will  be  making  as  good 
teas  in  3 months  from  pruning  as  you  will  be 
after  S.-W.  monsoon  pruning  be  7 to  9 months 
and  longer.  Again,  if  you  -want  flavour  you  must 
not  cut  your  tree  down  too  low.  You  may  get  a 
heavy  flush  from  low  pruning  but  a poor  thin 
flavourless  tea.  To  get  flavour  you  want  a big 
tree,  particularly  in  the  wet  months  in  best  districts, 
when  the  tree  wants  all  its  foliage  to  resist  the 
injury  of  the  damp  at  its  roots,  A knife  should 
never  go  near  a tree  then,  if  healthy  trees  are 
wanted  which  will  give  good  flavoury  teas.  Sun- 
Bhine,  of  course,  is  needed,  but  with  all  you  can 
get  of  it  you  won’t  get  good  teas  oft'  heavily 
vruned  bushes. — Yours  very  truly,  X. 
TEA  PRODUCERS  AND  TEA  BUYERS. 
Upcountry,  JuDe  28th. 
Dear  Sir, — I have  read  the  letter  signed  “ Tropical 
Rustic  ” in  the  Observer  of  the  24th  inst.  He  appears 
to  write  altogether  from  a planter’s  point  of  view, 
this  would  be  very  satisfactory  if  the  home 
buyers  would  see  it  in  the  same  light,  but  what 
care  they  how  the  tea  is  produced  ? All  the  buyer 
looks  to  is  to  get  the  best  value  he  can  for  his 
money;  and  the  planters  are  vying  with  each  other 
to  give  him  this,  and  so  long  as  there  is  a higher 
standard  to  he  attained  this  will  continue.  Small 
blame  to  the  man  who  buys  broken  pekoe  instead 
of  pekoe  souohong  if  he  can  get  better  value  for  his 
money.  Tne  planters  have  been  and  are  eduoating 
the  people  to  drink  a higher  class  of  tea;  and  this 
will  continue  so  long  as  a higher  class  can  be  attained, 
and  the  price 3 not  increased.  It  is,  as  “ Tropical 
Rustio  ” says,  a case  of  the  “ survival  of  the 
fittest”:  when  the  buyer  cannot  get  the  class  of 
tea  he  wants  from  one  shop  he  will  pass  on  to 
the  nc-xt. 
Ceylon  is  drawing  too  much  from  the  soil,  where 
the  supply  is  limited,  instead  of  drawing  more 
from  the  atmosphere,  where  the  supply  is  unlimited. 
AN  OLD  COFFEE  STUMP. 
Dimbu’a,  July  4th. 
Sir, — Re  the  letter  referring  to  the  above  in 
the  Observer,  might  I ask  ‘‘Old  Coffee  Stump” 
what  reason  he  has  for  saying  that  “ Ceylon  is 
drawing  too  much  from  the  soil,  where  the  supply 
is  limited,  instead  of  drawing  more  from  the  at- 
mosphere. where  the  supply  is  unlimited  ” ? I 
suppose  that  “ Coffee  Stump,”  before  publishing 
this  conclusion  in  your  paper  (from  which  it  will, 
no  doubt,  be  copied  into  home  papers  and  serve 
to  gladden  the  hearts  of  suoh  people  as  are 
interested  in  Ceylon),  went  scientifically  into  the 
quostion;  and  as  this  is  one  of  the  utmost  importance 
to  the  plnnflDg  community,  it  is  to  be  hoped  he 
will  favour  us  with  facts  and  figures  in  support  of 
his  statement. 
PRACTICE  VERSUS  THEORY; 
