July 1, 1902.] 
THE TROPICAL 
AGRICCJLTUEIST. 
13 
I saw also instances of ruthless destruction with the 
surface burnt to encourage grass, and no forest 
undergrowth to speak of, bat side by side with these 
badly managed heta lands there was even greater 
destruction in protected forest for which the people 
at Urge, and not the garden owners alone, were 
responsible. 
It is suggested in the papers that the full require- 
ments of the garden occnpauts could be meS if tbey 
gathered dead leaves and grass in enclosed forest 
to supplement the supplies of green leaves and 
twigs got from assigned heta. It is also urged that 
the dead leaves and grass would not be less valu- 
able for manure than green leaves and twigs. I 
cannot sapport these views. Leaves, as they become 
perfected, dry up and become fibrous and a good 
deal of the plant food, both mineral and organic which 
they contained when green and growing, passes 
from them and is utilized in increasing the size of 
the stem or branches aad in perfecting the fruit. 
There can be no question at all, therefore, as re- 
gai'ds the superiority for manurial purposes of tho 
green leaves of a particular tree over the dead leaves 
from the same tree. The dead leaves fall, moreover, 
at a particular season and h-sve to be collected at that 
particular season; otherwise they soon become incorpor- 
ated with the soil and disappear. If put in deep pits 
tbey v/ould in the course of a year decompose into what 
is known as a leaf-mould by gardeners. This materal 
would, in my opinion, have inferior manurial value 
to the manure now used. I am convinced that such 
would be the c.ise from the results of analyses by 
the Agricultural Chemist to the Government of India 
of the vaiious descriptions of green leaves and small 
twigs ordinarily used. I sent him the leaves and 
twigs of eight different varieties of trees, being such as 
are considered best for leaf-manure. The analyses 
are appended below 
*^ U cc 
K3 
0=r 
b 
^ 2. 
■J} 
5 ^ 
,_, CO 
Carya arborea. 
Bassia latifolio. 
to f2 cc Pterocarpus 
g g :Jj iMarsnpium. 
mannriallv^ gardeners that certain leaves are better 
mannnally tha.n others is not supported by the 
sun ?in'> ^^TH considered locally very 
honne. iJut the analyses show that other varieties 
0 hei h^n'd' purposes. On the 
hirrt ;■ ^° "'^^'^ ^^'-''^ the leaves of 
vlln.kl and Aomie are considered specially 
valuaDl.3, because the manure produced from them 
ae»troys insects and grubs which would be harmful 
t3 the plants m the garden. These leaves and in 
tact nearly all the leaves used by the gardeners 
have^ astringent properties, and it is, I think 
certain that vegetable matter containing astrineent 
resins or volatile oil would be obnoxious to in- 
sects and therefore insects or grubs which mi^ht 
be harmful to the plants of the garden would 
^nii If'T'''' material. Dry leaves, unless 
collected soon after they have fallen, undoubtedly 
harbour nisect life, and this is one serious ob- 
jeoLion .0 their use as manure. I was hopeful 
taat tne Agrioultnral Chemist would be able to 
state definitely how far the various leaves and 
twigs submitted for analyses differed in astringent 
properties. He was, however, unable to investigate 
tms poiut. I took no samples of dead leaves, besause 
at the ime of my visit to Kanara (ApriO it was 
niipossible to collect samples which could be iden- 
tiUed as belonging to any of the particular trees 
irom which green leaves are usually taken. In fact 
dead leaves had mostly disappeared by that time. 
1 believe they mostly fall in December-January 
a d could not, except in trifling quantity, be collected 
ouiing the monsoon when green leaves and - twies 
are ordi.'uanly collected as manure. ^ 
6. Dr. Leather's analyses clearly indicate that 
manure of good quality can be made from the areen 
leaves and twigs ordinarily used. The system of 
trampling the leaves under the feet of cattle, so 
tnat tlie unue and solid excreta are absorbed 
would improve the quality of the manure parti 
cularly ,f the cattle are fed partily on cake as g 
sometimes the case. The storage of manure in deep 
pits formed in soil and subsoil, which is very reten- 
fh!f'»T improved upon excepting that 
the extremely heavy rainfall of the district must 
Iteep the unprotected pits excessively wet during 
the monsoon, and probably valuable manurial in- 
gredients are washed out of the manure at this 
season, 
7. The Kanara system is to apply manure every 
second year. 
B. I submitted to the Agricultural Chemist to the 
Government of India four-samples of manures. Each 
sample is sufficiently described in the tabulated state- 
menc Delovv i— 
o5 w Xylia dolabri- 
gS^illrfiiogS formis. 
6 >- o S Terminalia 
feSi°gg>5:^ Chebnla. 
6 . , H> 1^ tS S Dillenia penta- 
w . . ^ Xerminalia 
JoofeKwfegg paniculata. 
to 
b . . S flS h2 Terminalia 
tf^cp^^.^j£^^(^ LomeuiOha, 
5. The leaves and twigs contained from 73 per cent 
to 87 per cent, of water. Bnt even in this succulent Moisture 
condition the percentage of nitrogen and potash (the ^""y m.^itter 
two most important elements of plant food) wese Organic matter . 
equal to about half the quantities usually found in Mineral matter . 
well preserved farmyard manure. The air-dried Sand 
materiil of these leaves and twigs would be consider- Potash (K„0) 
ably richer in nitrogen and potash than air-dried Phosphoric acid 
well-preserved cattle manure. The leaves and twigs (PgOs) 
are all deficient in phosporic acid. The content- Nitrogen 
0 CO 
§1 Sob 
tw a 
§ ?" 
d a.2 S 
© <U _Q 
^ ^ ^ r^. 
r. <0 Q S 
55-07 
44 93 
23 44 
21-48 
14-G9 
•16 
CD 
S S <u 
^^Q ■ 
0) -'J 00 
© 5? Q. 
58-05 
41-95 
28-74 
13-21 " 
7-80 
•41 
SO 
^3 a 
ca o 
S _ 
f3 CD 
as* 
rr ^ o 
"2 -J 
•14 
•51 
•18 
■51 
56-90 
43-10 
25-42 
17-6S 
1143 
•43 
-12 
•55 
^ > m 3 
3 S am 
59-72 
40-28 
20-48 
13 80 
7-47 
•17 
-17 
•75 
