750 
THE TROPICAI 
AGRICULTURIST [May, 1, 1901. 
found in dry and stony soil. As in France the 
best vineyards are sometimes found in soils of poor 
appearance." 
There is a complete demonstration of tiie pre- 
ferences of heneqmn at Cayo Kotiiaiio. A walk of 
a few hours suffices to'take account of tliese pre- 
ferences. One can henceforward plant alinost to a 
certainty. 
"The actual plantation (Cayo-Romano) occupies 
about 600 hectares (1,482 acres, 1 hectaie = 2'47 
acres) I could not say how far it may be extended. 
It would liave taken me five or six days to 
indicate and limit the size of possible extensions. 
I do not doubt, however, that 3,000 hectares (7,400 
acre-^) of land suitable ior henequen couU be round 
by clearing certain wooded parts, and I do not 
Bay that it would not be possible to push the 
cultivation up to five or six thousand hectares or 
more, by utilising, in course of time, the distant 
lands of Versalles, 
" It would be premature to attempt an account 
of the receipts and expenses of henequen. The 
price is not definitely fixed, and we believe it is 
destined to rise on account of the quality of our 
fibre, recognised in commerce as superior to that 
of Yucatan. The fibre of Cayo Rouiano is whiter, 
finer, of greater resistance and longer. These 
qualities have a very aporeciable influence jn the 
price. 
"The machine installed at Port-Versalles decoi" 
ticates on an average 50,000 leaves per day» 
furnishing about 2,000 kilogrammes (4,4001b) of 
fibre, or 13 balls of 150 to i60 kilos each. The 
fibre is sold at the rate of nearly 1 franc the kilo. 
But the machine does not work at present at its 
full power. If it were regularly fed so as to work 
without intermission 10 honrs per day it could 
turn out 4,000 kilos of fibre which represent 
100,000 leaves, or the yield of 1 hectare 78 ares 
5 centiares (4 2-5tli acres). 
"A hectare contains 2,000 plants placed at two 
metres aistance in all directions with a path line 
between at least every five rows. Each plant 
should give on an average 28 leaves, or at the rate 
of 40 grammes per leaf, 1,120 grammes of fibre per 
plant, or 2,240 kilos (4 9281b) of fibre per hectare 
and by the year 56,000 leaves. 
" Mr. Galan, the Sub-Director of the Planta- 
tion, estimates that 1,000 leaves of henequen may 
give 40 to 45 kilos of fibre; but he generally 
calculates on 40 kilos, M, Mahiquez indicates 
figures nearl.y the same. He goes as fur as 45 
kilos per 1,000 leaves." 
M L6on Hautefeuille further on in his report 
remarkb that as he was not representing the pro- 
prietary society, but only the house which had 
rented the plantation, he was not in a position to 
ask for accounts. Therefore his remarks on work- 
ing expenses must necessaril.y be imperfect. Still, 
certain of the expenses are known anu he proceeds 
to give them as follows : — 
" 100 men are employed daily in the actual cul- 
tivation for the service of the machine and these 
cost altogether 150 piastres (750 francs) for 2,000 
kilos of fibre, 
" It would need 200 men coaling 250 piastres 
(1,250 frans) to furnish 4,000 kilos, of fibre. Cutting 
1,000 leaves of henequen, potting up in bundles 
and placing in carts come to 6 francs 25 c. and 
tt)«a transporb to tife factory to 2 francs 50 c. 
" So that 2.000 kilos of fibre require a daily ex- 
penditure of 1,187 francs 50 c and 4,000 kilos an ex- 
p<inditure of 2125 francs, but the produce goes back- 
wards and forwards. The £;rairi falls through, not 
ot c airf-e absolutely clean, there must still be small 
particles' of hhusa and chaff, but it is clean enough 
to store conveniently and the small particles 
are quickly got rid of when we have a wind. If a 
winnower in the place of a thermantidote can be 
built, it of course expedites matters greatly. I 
find it a good plan to erect a long grass hut at one 
end of the threshing floor to store the partially 
cleaned grain in as a protection against rain and 
also thieving. 
Arthur L. Harman. 
PLANTING NOTES. 
PoMKGRANATEs.— The pomegraijate firuits freely in 
Qiieenslanci, but no use is made of the fruit. The 
hlorida Ar/riculturist points out that a good market for 
this fruit exists in New York. It is a highly popular 
fruit araont» certain classes, and is worth from 5 to 6 
dollars (il to £1 Os.) per crate. The demand ie 
yearly iucreasing— the more it is known, the more 
popular it becomes, Euoagh cannot be procured to 
supply the market. The Agriculturist does not state 
how many fruits are contained in a crate. Still, here 
may be another opportunity for Queensland orchard- 
ists. — Queensland Agricultural Jotirnal. 
Bananas.— Humus, Draiuage, Tillage, these three 
are the banana plants requirements, and without the 
first it is hopeless to expect bananas to grow and 
produce fruit; with the first, bat without the second, 
they might grow, but would not do very well except 
in seasons ot light rains ; with the two first and not 
the third, bananas have been grown for many years 
in succession on rich alluvia aud loams, and" fine 
bunches produced, and are being grown still, but with 
Tdlage better results would have been obtained in 
the end, for many of such lands have now been 
throwu up as worn out, which with cultivation all 
along, would have been bearing well as ever ; and 
they can bo restored with Tillage only, to almost their 
p'ristiae strength. But the greatest of these ia 
Humus. — Journal of the Jamaica Agricultural Society. 
Pork Kijeosenk for San Jose Scale. — Further 
reports are to hand as to the effectiveness of pnre 
kerosene, applied carefully with a brash, in destroying 
San Jose scale on deciduous fruit trees. In a 
letter to the fruit expert, Mr. F. Mason, of Beecroft, 
says: "I wish to tell you thar I painted, on August 
23 last eighteen Carrington Apple trees with pure 
Kerosene, and also four Nelson apple trees." on 
September 17, that were all badly affected with this 
terrible San Jose scale. The trees are now looking 
well, aud there is not a scale to be seen on any 
of them. I have a number of Carrington apple 
trees that have cot been so treated for the pest, 
and they are very badly affected. Some of the trees 
are suffering badly, and the fruit is literally dotted 
all over with the young scales, I shall be pleased 
if you can kindly tell me what to do with these." 
When the scales attack fruit it ia difficult to derise 
any economical method of destroying them. With 
a pest like San Jose scale the only really effectual 
means of destruction is to attack the scales in win- 
ter while the trees are bare of leaves, and after 
pruning. All prunings should be carefully collected 
and burnt, aud the tree either treated with pnre 
kerosene or fumigated with hydrocyanic acid gas. 
The kerosene method is, however, so simple and 
efficacious that unless one has extended use for a 
fumigating outfit for the destruction of scale in 
citrus trees, it is scarcely worth while going to 
further expense in procuring on^.—Agricultwal Gfasetti 
of Netti South l^aks. 
