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year,  however,  they  yielded  18  lb.  of  seeds,  which  were  sent  home  for  report,  and  Mr.  T.  Christy, 
of  London,  informs  me  that  he  finds  them  to  contain  a large  percentage  of  the  “ Kola-red,”  to  which 
principle  much  of  the  sustaining  power  of  this  food  is  ascribed. 
Caryocar  nuciferum. — Seeds  of  this,  the  “ Souari  ” or  Butter-nut  of  British  Guiana,  were 
received  from  Kew  in  1891,  but  as  none  had  germinated  by  the  end  of  the  year,  it  was  not  included 
in  last  year’s  notes.  The  large  seed  has  an  extremely  hard  woody  shell,  and  it  was  advised  to 
assist  germination  by  the  removal  of  a part  or  the  whole  of  this.  All  the  seeds  treated  this  way 
were  lost,  falling  a prey  to  rats  and  other  rodents,  which  no  doubt  found  these  oily  seeds  much  to 
their  liking.  But  I am  glad  to  report  that  of  the  seeds  sown  in  their  natural  state  three  have  in 
due  course  germinated  at  Peradeniya  and  one  at  Henaratgoda,  and  have  made  healthy  seedlings. 
This  tree  gives  a valuable  timber,  besides  the  food  afforded  by  the  large  nut-like  seed. 
Fruit  Trees  at  Hakgala  (Apples,  Pears,  Plums,  and  Peaches). — Mr.  Nock  reports  : — 
The  plants  made  very  good  growth  during  May  and  June.  At  the  end  of  June  those  from  Japan  looked 
particularly  well  ; probably  this  was  due  to  the  dry  weather  which  prevailed  all  through  the  month.  The  strong 
cold  winds  of  August  put  a stop  to  this  promising  growth,  and  the  fruits  which  had  set  on  many  of  the  apples  and 
plums  were  nearly  all  destroyed.  However,  one  of  the  Japan  plum  trees  ripened  a single  beautiful  fruit  of 
remarkable  size  and  delicious  flavour.  It  measured  in.  in  circumference,  and  had  a flavour  between  the  green- 
gage and  apricot.  So  that,  when  they  get  used  to  the  climate,  and  with  a favourable  season,  we  may  reasonably 
expect  them  to  do  well.  The  English  blackberries  fruited  fairly  well,  but  the  American  varieties  only  flowered 
sparsely  and  ripened  very  few  berries. 
I may  here  mention  that  Mr.  A.  J.  Kellow,  of  Albion  estate,  has  grown  some  remarkably  fine  apples  this 
year.  His  plants  are  of  the  same  ages  and  varieties  as  some  of  those  we  have  here.  The  estate  is  about  200  to 
300  ft.  lower  down  and  well  sheltered,  the  soil  particularly  rich  and  free,  and  the  climate,  though  the  estate  is  only 
two  miles  away,  is  much  drier.  One  tree,  a “ Kentish  Fillbasket,”  bore  eighteen  very  fine  fruits — the  largest 
measured  12^  in.  in  circumference  and  weighed  12  ounces. 
Strawberries  at  Hakgala. — The  Superintendent  reports  : — 
In  February  packets  of  six  of  the  best  and  hardiest  varieties  of  strawberries — viz.,  “ President,”  “ Waterloo,'’ 
“Sir  Charles  Napier,”  “Crescent  Seedling,”  “ Yicomtesse  Hericut  de  Thury,”.and  another  with  the  name  lost — were 
received  through  the  Royal  Gardens,  Kew,  and  from  the  Royal  Horticultural  Gardens,  London.  They  were  at  once 
sown,  and  seedlings  of  each  variety  were  raised.  These  were  planted  out  in  October  in  specially  prepared  beds  in 
the  new  nursery,  and  at  the  end  of  the  year  have  grown  into  fine  bushy  plants  showing  abundance  of  flowers,  and 
promise,  should  the  weather  be  favourable,  to  give  a good  crop.  A few  plants  flowered  in  seven  months  from  the 
time  of  sowing.  If  these  prove  to  be  productive,  they  can  easily  be  propagated  and  distributed  in  quantity.  We 
have  also  received  a few  plants  of  a good  fruiting  variety  from  Mr.  Reginald  M.  Knight,  of  Annfield,  Dikoya, 
which  are  having  a trial  in  the  same  beds. 
Pineapples. — In  answer  to  a request  from  Mr.  Medley  Wood,  Superintendent  of  the  Botanic 
Gardens  at  Natal,  4,000  shoots  of  the  large  pine  grown  here  under  the  name  of  the  “ Kew  Pine” — 
the  real  name  of  which  I believe  to  be  the  “ Smooth  Cayenne” — were  forwarded  to  that  Colony  at  the 
commencement  of  the  year.  Owing  to  a series  of  unfortunate  delays  en  route  the  consignment 
reached  Natal  in  but  poor  order,  but  Mr.  Wood  reports  that  between  a half  and  three-quarters  will 
grow.  Though  these  large  pines  are  much  thought  of  elsewhere,  yet  so  little  are  they  cultivated  in 
Ceylon  that  it  was  a matter  of  some  difficulty  to  make  up  the  number  sent.  Mr.  Wood  informs  me 
that  a large  trade  in  fruit  is  springing  up  at  Natal  with  the  Transvaal  gold-fields. 
Lucerne  or  Alfalfa  (Medicago  sativa). — Mr.  Clark,  of  Peradeniya,  brought  back  with  him 
from  the  Peruvian  Andes  seeds  of  this  valuable  fodder,  which  were  sent  to  Hakgala  at  once,  and 
Mr.  Nock  now  reports  on  it 
The  weather  being  wet  when  the  seed  was  received  it  was  not  sown  until  the  12th  of  March  ; it  germinated 
quickly  and  freely,  but  bad  weather  kept  it  back  until  July  and  August,  when  it  began  to  grow  fast.  By  the 
7th  of  September  it  was  18  inches  to  2£  feet  high,  and  beginning  to  flower.  On  this  date,  six  months  after 
sowing,  I made  the  first  cutting,  taking  the  best  square  yard  I could  find  ; it  produced  exactly  5 lb.  weight  of 
green  fodder.  On  the  7th  of  November  this  same  space  was  again  cut.  The  produce  of  green  fodder  was  again 
5 lb.  At  the  end  of  December  another  cutting  was  taken  off,  which  for  the  third  time  gave  5 lb.  Thus,  one  square 
yard  produced  15  lb.  of  green  fodder,  or  equal  to  4 lh.  of  dry,  in  nine  months.  This  yield  is  equal  to  a little  over 
32  tons  of  green  fodder,  or  8£  tons  of  dry  fodder  to  the  acre,  which  is  up  to  the  highest  yields  in  England  ; the 
average  for  that  country  being  3 to  5 tons.  This  is  most  satisfactory,  but  it  must  be  stated  that  the  soil  in  which 
it  is  growing  is  exceptionally  good,  and  has  been  liberally  dressed  with  lime.  Lucerne  is  essentially  a lime-loving 
plant  : it  is  useless  to  attempt  its  cultivation  in  land  poor  in  this  mineral  without  adding  it  abundantly.  Mr.  Clark 
informed  me  that  this  variety  appeared  to  him  to  be  more  hardy  and  robust  than  that  generally  grown  in  Europe  ; 
and  this  may  be  so,  as  I have  tried  seeds  from  England  on  several  occasions  without  success.  It  should  be  sown 
in  shallow  drills  8 to  10  inches  apart,  and  cut  as  soon  as  it  shows  signs  of  flowering.  When  established  in  Ceylon, 
in  good  soil,  I believe  that  at  least  six  cuttings  a year  could  be  obtained. 
English  Oak. — It  is  worth  putting  on  record  that  one  of  the  young  oaks  raised  from  seed 
received  from  Kew  at  the  end  of  1883,  at  Hakgala,  has  this  year  produced  acorns.  When  ripe  these 
were  gathered  and  sown,  and  three  of  them  have  germinated.  The  parent  tree  is  16  ft.  high  with 
a stem  girthing  at  the  base  18  in.,  and  9 in.  at  a yard  from  the  ground,  perfectly  healthy  and 
growing  well. 
