June l. 1908.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
m 
HOW TO RAISE VANILLA, 
A Veba Cruz Planter Gives Modern Mexico's 
Readers the REsuLia of His Expekibnce. 
So mauv inquiries about vnnilla have been made 
recently tViat it occurred to me that a general reply 
regarding its planting and production would be of 
interest to many of Modern Mexico's readers. There 
are six different varieties of vanilla, namely, Mauza. 
Mestiza, Simarona, Ponpona, Tabaliua and Tarro, 
These are all Mexican names. The first, Manza, 
is the only variety cultivated in this Republic. The 
Mestiza and Simarona are used only to make Picadiira. 
There are two methods o£ planting vaniila. Some 
planters clean up the underbrush and cut out (he 
larger trees, leaving the smaller trees standiii?, on 
which *liej- tie, v.p the vinee. The other method, 
which I consider the best, is to cleer the gronud 
entirely and then burn off all uiidcrbru b. The 
land id then planted with Higuera tiees, 500 or 600 
to the acio. Two or three crops of corn may be 
raised on the land while the trees are attaining 
a sufficient size io bear the vines. When the trees 
are five or six feet tall, or when about two years 
old, the cutting, or vanilla vine, should be planted. 
It should be about a meter long, one-third of it 
covered with rotten leaves or erass or with two 
inches of soil at the base of the tree. The rest of 
the vine is trained up the truck of the tree and 
tied in its erect position, e bit of bark from the 
tonote tree being used to hold it. Two vines should 
be planted to each tree and affixed to the northern 
side to avoid exposure to the noonday sun. The 
season for planting is from February to November, 
excepting one or two dry months. The cultivation 
of vanilla consists in simply cutting weeds and grass 
about a foot high two or three times a year, and 
in pruning the trees in order that plenty of sun 
and air may reach the vines. Another operation, 
that of fructification, is necessary when the vanilla 
vine is in bloom. It is simple, and can be learned 
by any intelligent man in ten minutes. 
The total cost (all sums in Mexican money) of 
cutting and fructifying vanilla vines is about $40 
per hectare (nearly 2J acres). The price of cuttings 
for planting around Cazones is about $10 per 1,000; 
at the (Jolonia de San Bafael, aiiout $25 per 1,000. 
When three years old each vine will bear from 10 
to 50 beans (or vanilla), which ripen from November 
to January. The price ranges this year from $95 
to ^105 per 1,000 beans. Five years ago the price 
went as high as |140 per 1,000. The vanilla buyers 
generally arrive on the scene about a month before 
the crop is ready to be gathered and contract for the 
number desired. The best climate and soil for vanilla 
are found in the Stale of Vera Cruz, from Tuxpam 
to the mountains of Jalapa. Papantia and Zamora 
are the centers for curing vanilla beans. The 
vanilla cured at Papantia has the reputation of 
being the very best in the world and its price is 
generally from 15 to 30 per cent, above all others 
in the market. A. Petin. 
Jicaltepec, V. C. January 10 
— Modern Meaieo. 
WITCH BROOM DISEASE OF CACAO. 
This disease of cacao trees was first noted from 
Surinam in 1898. It receives its name of ' Witch 
broom ' from the curious broom-like appearance of 
the bunches of mal-formed twigs fFig 8) which are 
its most conspicuous symptom. An examination of 
the diseased tissues shows the presence of abundant 
fungus hyphae but at present it is still uncertain 
what the fungus is or how it spreads from tree to 
tree. Professor Rilzema Bos of Amsterdam, to whom 
specimens were first sent, concluded that iho fungus 
was an Exonsci'f, a close relation of the fungi that 
cause witch broom formation on birches, cherries, 
alders, etc, iu Europe, but no one has as yet con- 
firmed his result. The disense has recently agsin" 
been causing great damage to the cacao trees 
in Surinam, although it is not actunlly killinic many 
trees. It is accompanied by hardening of the poda 
so that many estates are losing the greater part 
of their produce. In the absence of any more definite 
knowledge of the fungus and of the method by 
which the difeaRe spreads, the only remedy that can 
be suggested is the cutting out of the tufte'd bunches 
of twigs and of the diseased pods as soon as they 
are observed and burning them. In the meantime 
it is of the utmost importance that ihe witch broom 
disease should be kept out of the West Indies; for 
this purpose the importation of all eacao pods, seeds 
and plants from the continent of Sour.h Aiuerica 
should be stricklv piohibited. Pro ■b.ms.ii'jnR to this 
effect have already been 'sened at T.r,}.iaica, Trinidad 
and Tobago, St. Vincent,, Grenadn. St. Lucia and 
Dominica (see Afp-iculiurol News, Vol. I, pp. 14, 38 
find 100.) For a fuller account of the disense. Volume 
II, pp. 205-6 and 289-91 of the West Indian Bulletin 
should be coneulted. —J</riculfural Neios. 
■ ^ 
A SUBSTITUTE FOR DISIIORiVING. 
It is well known that polled or dishorned cattle 
can be managed and fattened with greater facility 
than horned animals, and that they can be conveyed 
by land or sea with less risk of injury. The process 
of dishorning cattle is one that inflicts great pain 
on the animals and may even be the cause of death. 
In a recent leaflet issued by the British Board of 
Agriculture, a description is given of a method where- 
by the growth of horns may be prevented. The 
operation is said to be comparatively painless and 
is carried out as follows :—' Clip the "hair from the 
top of the horn when the calf is from two to five 
days old. Slightly moisten the end of a stick of 
caustic potash and rub the tip of each horn firmly 
with the potash for about a quarter of a minute, or 
until a slight impression has been made on the centre 
of the horn. The horns should be treated in this 
way from two to four times at intervals of five minutes. 
If during the interval of five minutes after one or 
more applications, a little T)lood appears in th e centre 
of the horn, it will then only be necessary to give 
another very slight rubbing with the potash." Caustic 
potash is poisonous and must therefore be kept in 
a safe place. It should also be kept in a well stoppered 
bottle, as it soon deterriorates if left in coctaot with 
air. The operation is best performed when the calf 
is under five days old, and should not be nttempted 
after the ninth day. It is better for one man to hold 
the calf while another uses the caustic. To avoid 
injury to the operator's fingers the potash stick should 
be rolled in a piece of brown paper or tinfoil. The 
stick should not be moistened too much or the caustic 
may spread to the skin around the horn and destroy the 
flesh ; for the same reason the calf should be kept from 
getting wet for some days after the operation ; also 
the operator must be careful to rub on the centre of 
the horn and not round the side of it.— Ar/iicultui-al 
News. 
COCONUT OIL INDUSTRY IN 
SULU LAND. 
Mindauoa, P. I. 
One of the strangest conditions under which your 
correspondent discovered oils in process of manu- 
facture was on the Sulu Archipelago iu the Southern 
Pacific. Here the natives handle the products of 
the vast coconnt groves of the 'oonntry in a way 
that promises rich returns for oils, coprn, etc., iu 
the future. The resulting oils are not only utilized 
iu the making of illuminating and lubricating stuffs 
bat are exported to Spaiu, Japan, and even Auierica, 
