2l6 
THE  TROPICAL  AGRICULTURIST. 
[Sept,  i,  1892 
plants  have  reproduced  themselves  vigorously  without 
the  intervention  of  flowers,  and  have  never  shown 
the  slightest  trace  of  degeneration,  although  they  have 
followed  from  time  immemorial  this  process  of  re- 
production. The  potato  is  the  best  illustration  of  it ; 
so  is  the  Ananas.  It  is  true,  however,  that  cross- 
fertilization when  possible  has  produced  much  va- 
riety in  flowers  as  regards  their  colour,  form,  fragrance, 
and  fruit.  Plants,  again,  are  reproduced  from  “ cut- 
tings ” and  “buddings,”  such  as  in  the  cultivation 
of  roses.  They  are  also  reproduced  by  grafts.  The 
good  varieties  of  mangoes  and  oranges  are  commonly 
from  grafts  of  a superior  fruit  bearing  plant  stuck 
on  to  an  inferior  plant.  Plants  are  also  reproduced 
by  inarching.  This  is  a practice  followed  commonly 
in  mango  cultivation.  Then  there  is  a process  of 
‘layering.”  These  processes  are,  however,  tedious, 
and  require  individual  care.  The  reproduction  of 
plants  from  seeds,  however,  is  the  most  natural 
process;  it  is  easier  and,  numerically  speaking,  capable 
of  reproducing  more  abundant  supply  of  new  plants 
within  a much  shorter  time.  Reproduction  among 
flower-bearing  plants  is  of  two  kinds  : one  where 
the  ovule  is  fertilized  as  it  lies  uncovered,  as  for 
instance  in  the  pine,  cicad,  and  genetum  order;  and 
the  other  where  it  is  fertilized  as  it  lies  in  a 
covered  ovary  in  the  remaining  orders  of  the  flower- 
ing plants. 
After  describing  in  detail  the  mode  of  fertilization 
in  each  of  these,  the  lecturer  went  on  to  mention 
the  various  agencies  whereby  seeds  are  transferred 
from  one  place  to  another,  from  one  country  to 
another,  and  from  one  hemisphere  to  the  other.  He 
said:— “In  the  air  were  the  seeds,  travellers  bearing 
plumes  and  parasols  of  featherlike  appendages  which 
helped  them  to  descend  or  ascend  mountain  heights." 
The  lecturer  next  described  how  oceanic  currents, 
rivers,  and  mountain  cataracts  helped  in  transferring 
seeds  and  even  branches  of  large  trees  from  America 
to  the  shores  of  Spain ; from  the  West  Indies  to 
Iceland  and  the  Orkney  Isles,  from  the  Seychelles 
Isles  to  the  Indian  Coast  of  Malabar,  journeying  or 
rather  voyaging  over  1,500  miles  of  the  Indian  Ocean. 
As  an  instance  of  how  germs  of  plants  are  carried 
about  by  the  prevailing  wind,  the  lecturer  drew 
attention  to  the  white  patches  of  lichen  which  cover 
the  windward  bark  of  the  numerous  palms  that 
grow  between  Virar,  Palgur,  and  Boisar  stations 
along  the  line  of  the  B.  B.  & C.  I.  Railway.  Ex- 
tending his  remarks  to  the  seeds  loving  to  dwell  in 
tranquil  waters,  the  lecturer  referred  to  the  Nile- 
lotus  and  the  lotuses  inhabiting  the  ponds  and  tanks 
of  Bombay,  and  how  their  peculiar  life  was  rendered 
easy  by  a suitable  boat  like  home  for  their  seeds 
floating  on  the  surface  of  the  water,  or  ri-ing  high 
above  the  water-surface,  so  that  the  deleterious  and 
soddening  action  of  the  water  may  not  affect  them, 
and  thereby  destroy  the  vitality  of  the  embryo  of 
the  future  plant. 
He  next  referred  to  the  third  method  of  the  mi- 
gration of  seeds — viz.,  through  the  agency  of  birds 
and  beasts.  “Buffaloes  and  cows  that  swallowed  raw 
Bajn  and  Jowari,"  said  he,  “often  passed  the  grain 
whole  from  insufficient  chewing  of  the  cud — but 
sufficiently  moistened  through  the  internal  moist 
heat  and  intestinal  juices  of  the  animal  to  germinate 
in  their  excreta  very  shortly  after  they  are  passed. 
Mice,  squirrel,  and  such  other  fruit-devouring  crea- 
tures often  store  fruit  and  seed  in  their  dens,  where 
either  from  the  abundance  of  fruit  or  from  there 
“storing  agents”  being  killed  by  higher  animals,  the 
fruit  rots  and  the  seed  germinates  in  due  course. 
Such  animals  as  goats  and  sheep  carry  on  their 
fur  seeds  of  the  Mulvaceae  order.  Parrots  eat  chillies 
and  guavas,  and  drop  their  seed  in  their  excreta. 
So  do  crows  eat  the  various  fruits  of  the  fig-order,  and 
give  rise  to  plant  wherever  they  deposit  their  excreta 
round  palms  - as  seen  along  the  whole  of  our  western 
sea-coast,  and  on  the  tops  of  old  castles  and  churches 
that  are  now  to  be  seen  in  ruins  all  over  Salsette. 
A very  interesting  account  is  given  by  Dr.  Pauchet, 
how  the  nutmeg;  survived  the  destructive  hand  of 
the  conquering  Dutchman  in  the  Indian  Archipelego 
Isles,  in  days  gone  by.  In  order  to  restrict  the 
growth  of  the  nutmeg  to  Ceylon,  the  Dutch  destroyed 
the  nntmeg  tree  in  every  other  place  but  Ceylon. 
But  the  nutmeg-eating  pigeon  in  a body  came  to 
the  rescue.  They  ate  the  fruit  and  away  they  went 
to  the  ravaged  islands.  They  were  too  weak  of 
stomach  to  digest  the  nut.  They  managed  to  ap- 
propriate only  the  soft  pulp  covering  the  hard  nut. 
The  result  was  but  natural ; they  had  to  deposit  the 
seed-nut  as  their  excreta,  which,  as  both  luck  and 
nature  wou'd  have  it,  gave  fresh  plants  of  the  nutmeg, 
which  was  a God-send  to  the  poor  islands  which 
had  suffered  not  long  ago  from  Dutch  mercilessness. 
The  quadrupeds  also  add  their  quota  to  the  repro- 
duction of  plants.  Pauchet  mentions  of  a civet  in 
Java  and  Manilla  who  feeds  on  the  coffee-berry,  but 
can  digest  only  the  pulp  of  it  and  not  the  seed. 
The  seed  comes  away  as  excreta  ready  for  germin- 
ation. The  natives  know  this  so  well,  that  they 
are  not  ashamed  of  collecting  such  seeds  for  the 
purposes  of  cultivation.” 
Lastly,  the  lecturer  referred  to  the  reproduction 
of  plants  through  human  agency.  Men  travelling 
from  one  country  to  another,  or  voyaging  from  one 
hemisphere  to  the  other  as  discoverers,  conquerors, 
merchants,  or  mere  travellers,  have  carried  with  them 
to  a distant  country  or  brought  back  thence  to  their 
own,  plants  which  have  become  quite  naturalized  in 
their  land  of  adoption,  or  more  ti-uly  their  banishment. 
But  as  banished  man  may  be  happier  in  th£  land  of 
exile,  and  that  is  literally  the  case  with  some  of 
our  exotic  but  naturalized  plants,  for  witness  what 
could  be  more  delicious  than  a Mahableshwur  potato. 
I ask  those  who  knew  it  when  the  Chinaman  culti- 
vated it  twenty  years  ago. 
The  lecturer  concluded  his  lecture,  which  was 
illustrated  with  fresh  specimens  and  illustrations  of 
some  of  the  plants  mentioned  in  the  discourse  by  a 
reference  to  some  touching  lines  from  the  poet  Crabbe, 
who  speaks  in  his  simple  yet  forcible  style  of  “ Flora's 
triumph  over  the  falling  tower.” — Times  of  India. 
Cardamom  Cultivation  in  Kalimpong. — 
The  Government  of  Bengal  have  decided,  in  con- 
nection with  the  Kalimpong  settlement,  that  lands 
newly  prepared  for  oardamom  cultivation,  may  be 
held  rent-free  for  the  first  three  years,  and  after 
that  will  be  assessed  at  the  rate  of  RIO  per  acre. 
For  the  first  three  years  the  annual  average  yield 
of  one  ace  of  cardamom  is  nil,  but  in  the 
fourth  and  fifth  years  about  two  maunds  are  ob- 
tained annually,  and  from  the  sixth  to  the  eighth 
year,  three,  four  and  subsequently  five  maunds. 
In  consideration  of  there  being  no  yield  for  the 
first  three  years,  Government  have  allowed  the 
ryots  immunity  from  rent  for  that  period.  The 
average  price  of  a maund  of  cardamom  at  Kalim- 
pong for  the  past  year  is  stated  to  be  B35,  but 
with  the  spread  of  cultivation,  the  price  is  likely 
to  fall  considerably  within  the  next  ten  years.  A 
good  deal  of  trouble  has  been  experienced  in 
assessing  the  present  rate,  as  cardamoms  are  an 
exceptional  crop,  and  it  was  found  difficult  to 
mike  a comparison  with  rates  in  other  parts.  In 
Sikkim  and  on  Chaboo  Lama's  zemindari,  for 
instanoe,  a royalty  of  R5  per  maund  is  levied, 
whioh  is  equal  to  R25  per  acre,  when  the  plants 
are  in  full  bearing.  This  seemed  to  Government 
an  exceptionally  high  rate,  considering  the  amount 
of  labour  and  illness  that  oardamom  cultivation 
entails.  The  cultivators  are  obliged  to  keep  the 
plants  entirely  under  water  when  the  pods  are 
ripening,  to  protect  them  against  rats,  and  spending 
so  muoh  of  their  time  at  the  bottom  of  unhealthy 
valleys  leads  to  a good  deal  of  sickness.  In 
assessing  the  rate  in  Kalimpong  at  RIO  per  acre 
after  the  first  three  years,  Government  have 
endeavoured  to  arrange  matters  to  the  cultivators’ 
advantage  as  muoh  as  possible  and  with  a view 
to  encouraging  the  industry.  Allowing  for  the 
limited  quantity  of  land  available  for  cardamom  crops, 
this  rate  seems  to  us  to  be  very  moderate.— Indian 
Agriculturist, 
