Deo. 1, 1902.] 
THE TROPICA.L 
AaPJCULTURIST. 
403 
the name of ' Ceara scraps ' on the market and 
fetches good prices, aboat 53 per lb, each tree giving 
aboat 500g gum when 5 years old, 700 to 800g when 10 
years old, and by careful tapping will last from 50 to 
100 years and more. I know of no other trees which 
increase so rapidly and surely, and which require so 
little attention. 
I have seen the Manihot grow in bare 
rocky ground, where every other plant is 
killed by heat and dryness, bat the Leitera looking 
beautifully fresh and green. 
The other tree is the Bassia parki, which is a North 
and Central African tree, I have seen it growing only 
in its wild state on the Upper Nile, It is also a very 
large tree, with long, dark green leaves, which stand in 
bunches ftt the end of peculiarly marked twig5. It 
bears a very pleasant tasting fruit, from which 
the natives make batter, which is known iu the market 
as ghee or Karite batter. The fat of the fruit is also 
exported largely for the manufacture of soap and 
candles, and fetches good prices, and latterly the latex 
of this tree has come on the market as a first rate 
gotta percha, and has realised Is 9d per lb. This tree 
I have only seen wild and have no further experience 
of it, but I believe it would grow well in Natal, and, 
what is more, would pay well. 
Of balata I hope to write something in another issue 
of the Journal, as I have taken up too much space 
already. 
[I have noticed with great pleasure some criticisms 
on my article re P. insirjnis. One of these, written 
by Mr James King, says that this or that parti- 
cular tree, etc., should not be recommended for 
Natal. I did not recomended any particular tree, 
and distinctly said that I only mentioned P. insigais 
as an example how to plant a forest. To recommend 
any single class of tree for a whole country is, in my 
opinion, not very safe, and should be left to experts. 
— M Sehof, St. George's Estate, Hatting Spruit.] 
— Natal Agriculiural Journal, Sept 20, 
CONCERNING COFFEE, 
An international convention will be held 
in New York during November for the 
8tudy of the production and consumption of 
coffee. At present, little is known of the. best 
varieties as regards quality and methods of cul- 
tivation, the most profitable for different markets, 
9 mount of consumption and any otiier inform- 
ation that may tend to improve its use and quality. 
Hawaiian coflee, when care is taken in its cul- 
tivation, harvesting, drying and packing pro- 
cesses is not surpassed by any produced in other 
countries. Age adds greatly to the value of choice 
coffee. The pioneers in Hawaii had a practice of 
drying the berries in the sun for weeks, than 
bagging and storing tor months drying in a loft, 
Those who can remember drinking genuine Kona 
coffee, will never forget the delicious aroma that 
filled the room when it was poured out at the 
breakfast table, reminding of the fabled "nectar 
of the gods." Customs change, however, with the 
passing years, and much of the coffee drunk 
nowadays is imported from the " faraway." A 
coffee plantation in Kona, Hawaii, well kept and 
with its crops well dried and aged, will pay as well 
now as in years past, if the coffee planters take 
care to have none but the best sent to market. 
Genuine Kona coffee is as good today as it ever 
was, but the older it is, the better its quality. 
In the American market, the principal coffees are 
the Rio, Maracaibo and Java. Pure old Kona, 
when genuine, is better than any of them, — 
Haiuaiian Planters' Monthly for September. 
THE SILK INDUSTKY IN BENGAL. 
In his annual report for the past year, the 
Director of Land Records and Agriculture, 
Bengal, states that the work done by the Bengal 
Silk Committee with the assistance of Government 
in rehabilitating the silk rearing industry of 
the Province by teaching the rearers how to 
eradicate disease, continued to prosper. Malda 
seems to be a long way ahead of other Districts iu 
the number of intelligent rearers who have learnt 
modern ideas. Many old rearing houses have been 
properly ventilated, new houses are being built 
on approved plans, and the Collector reports 
that mulberry cultivation is extending all over 
the District, especially in Gour. — Madras Mail, 
Nov. 11. 
FERTILIZING BANANAS, 
Experimenting on a banana plantation undei" 
irrigation, and where bananas have been grown 
for 12 years, sulphate of ammonia applied alone, 
very quickly give an impetus to vegetative vigour ; 
the trees grew very large but produced bunches 
of very disappointing size relative to the huge 
plant. On another piece basic slag was applied ; 
this fertiliser is rich in phosphate and lime, the 
trees were not forced to huge growth as with the 
sulphate of ammonia, but the bunches produced 
v/ere very good and well repaid the cost of fertil- 
izing. The bunches were about equal with both 
fertilizers, but the trees with sulphate of ammonia 
were the best looking. However, as the basic slag 
only cost £4 10s. a ton and the sulphate of ammo- 
nia, cost £15 a ton, the best net return was of 
course with the slag. An application of lime alone 
did not show any results where two tons and-a-half 
were applied per acre, but where five tons were 
applied the trees at once responded, the stems were 
stouter than on the rest of the plantation, and 
seemed very firm with very strong roots, and the 
fruit was much improved. Further experiments 
will probably be carried through with simple fertil- 
izers like Bone Meal, which contains an appre- 
ciable amount of nitrogen, and is especially rich 
in phosphates ; and with Coconut Meal from the 
Oil Factory, which contains nitrogen, phosphate 
and potash, but is richest in the first named. Then 
complete commercial fertilizers may be tried, that 
is, compounds of the different elements containing 
nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash, calculated on 
the needs of the plants, and the soil, as indicated 
by the first simple experiments with single fertil- 
izers. To get the maximum of crops the soil must 
be perfectly adapted to the needs of the plant, and 
the experiments are being carried through at some 
expense in the hope that some combination j.will 
be hit upon that will cause the fields to yield ruit 
quicker and of a higher grade, when, as in the 
case with fruit-growers generally iu other lands, 
the result may give a good return on the outlay 
for fertilizing. The soil being already fairly rich 
in potash as shown by chemical analysis, no ex- 
periments have included potash, but in the great 
majority of soils, every fcrtrlizer for fruit trees 
should be strong in potash. — Jamaica Agricultural 
Society, August. 
A Crate of Orange Plants— from the Royal 
Botanical Garden*, Sibpur, Calcutta, arrived in 
the Darius on Monday. The case was consigned 
to the Secretary for Agriculture.— IP'. Australia 
Morning Herald, Oct. 29. 
