Nov. 1, 1902.] Supplement to the Tropical Agriculturist.'^ 
365 
farmer and merchant. A good variety of Upland, 
haTing the merit of small seed and easy and cleanly 
separation from the lint, will usually yield 300 lb. 
clean fibre to the 1,000 lb. of unginned cotton. 
When the ratio of lint to seed goes below that 
stated, it is time for the planter to seek better 
varieties. Good varieties grown in West Moreton 
of the Upland sorts during the period of the 
cotton company's activity, and which can be 
recommended, were — Okra, Southern Hope, Jeff 
Welboru's Pet, Peerless, Jone^' Improved, Elsworts' 
Truitt's Improved, Champion Cluster, Hawkins' 
Improved, 
Sowing thk Seed. 
Presuming the farmer has his soil in good tilth 
for his planting operations, his next duty is, 
in the absence of a properly constructed cotton 
drill and planter — an implement, unfortunately, 
as yet not obtainable in Queensland — to sow tlie 
seed by hand. He will use a light plough to 
strike out his drills either by means of guiding 
poles or with the more expeditious land marker, 
and care must be taken to have the drills uniform 
in depth and width, as each operation materially 
facilitates the subsequent cultivation of the crop. 
The usual plan adopted is to draw drills about 
4 feet apart, 3 inches deep, dropping the seed 
by hand at such distances as to finally leave 
a stand of plants 2 feet or 3 feet apart in the 
drills. When seed is plentiful, it is prudent 
to sow thickly, and later on thin out the plants 
to the spaces mentioned. In poor soils, the 
lesser distance may be settled on, and in richer 
soils the wider space may be adopted or exceeded 
as experience of the fertility of the soil may 
suffgest. 
Frequently crickets and beetles make havoc 
among the young plants, destroying numbers 
while in the succulent tender stage of growth. It 
is, therefore, not prudent to finally thin out the 
plants to their standard distances until all danger 
from this quarter is past. 
The seed is sown sometimes after soaking in 
water for twenty-four hours or so, and this is one 
advantage when the seed is old or when planting 
is intended in the absence of suflicient soil mois- 
ture, as sometimes happens in planting large 
areas when the land is quickly drying up. 
Generally, the seed is sown in the dry state and 
covered in, awaiting the rainfall. This is, of course, 
attended with some risk, as in the event of a 
partial rainfall suflicient moisture may be unavail- 
able to bring the plant above soil, and the 
germinating seed may perish. Thisis a contingency 
that must be faced in all cultural pursuits, and 
is not common alone to this crop. It certainly 
is more trouble to sow in wet soil, but, on the 
other hand, when the areas are small and supply 
of seed a consideration, this system will probably 
be the safest. The seed can be covered in the 
drills either by harrowing, or, perferably, by 
removing the front and hind tines of the scnfller, 
and working the soil into the drill by running 
this implement up the furrows. This gives good 
cover, and proves better tillage, and at the same 
time checks the germination of grass and weeds 
much batter than the harrow does. It must 
tioti be forgottea that young cottoa plants canaot 
stand the struggle for existence with weed', and 
it is better to safeguard the plant in this way 
than have it succumb by reason of the struggle 
with pests and grasses. The number of plants 
per acre, calculating on distances of 4 feet by 
3 feet, is 3,630 ; on the basis of 4 feet by 2 feet 6 
inches, the number is 4,356. 
Theoretically, 1 lb. of seed should be about 
sufficient for oneacre. About 300 seeds weigh 1 oz. 
I merely wish to mention this fact in view of 
the scarcity of seed now available, and to indicate 
a method of sowing without waste. As in all 
probability the demand for seed this season will 
exceed the supply, intending planters are advised 
that by steeping the seed for twenty-four liours or 
so, and sowing by hand in wet soil, making 
allowance of about half for unfertile seed (if 
from the Ipswich stock, if from other sources this 
contingency need not be taken into account), 
a way is demonstrated of meeting the exigencies 
of the case. Sowing should be completed during 
October in the southern part of the State — early 
in the month is preferable, because the plants thus 
have a longer growing period, and thus the crop is 
increased. Cotton is a child of tlie sun ; thus 
as soon as warmth appears in soil and atmosphere 
the crop will assert itself. 
In our own practice our standard distances 
were frequently settled for some soils as close 
as 18 inches to 2 feet apart. This, of course, 
involves the use of much more seed, and is a 
question for the planter to determine for himself. 
American growers, I may state, endorse the system 
of planting at much the same distances as here 
indicates. Cotton sown under general conditions 
as regards moisture and warmth svill appear above 
ground in from three to five days after sowing. 
Care must be observed that the seed is not buried 
too deep, 2 to 3 inches being the limit of depth at 
which it is tadvisable to sow. 
■ " 
BY HIGHWAYS AND HEDGES, 
Some time ago we referred to the provision 
made for a "wet day" by the villagers in the 
Salpiti Korale, who preserve the pulp (as well aa 
the seeds) of the jak by boiling and sun-drying. 
In the Auuradhapura district we found the people 
collecting the small variety of mushroom, which 
at certain seasons springs up in hordes in tank 
beds, and preserving them in the same way for 
future use. 
There is a great deal written now-a-days about 
cattle fodders, especially for dry districts, where 
it is recommended that the leaves of suitable trees 
(whose deep roots render them safe against 
drought) should be depended upon rather than 
the herbage of shallow-rooted grasses. In this 
connection such plants as Erabcdu {Erythina 
indica) and dhall {Cajanus indicus, Ratathora S."), 
and even the jak sliould net be lost sight of. 
In the Balangoda district it is a common sight 
to see cattle making a good meal of lantana 
flowers, while Mimosa pudica constitutes an alter- 
native diet. In the iV.CP. " tora " (cassia) 
taHea tU« i)la^CQ of tbe latter (whicU is ao ua^ 
