§58 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [Feb. 1, 1904. 
As Mr. Drieberg says, there are many kinds 
o£ crotalaria. Some grow into big plants, 
five to six feet high, others are little shrubs 
of about 1 or 1^ feet high. What Mr. 
Bamber favours the growth of in the low- 
country is the large variety with three leaves 
together like the ' eramvidu.' By the way, is 
this a leguminous tree? It is well known 
that ccfTee and cacao growing under its shade 
flourish. The common name of the Crota- 
lai'ia on this side of the country is ' Yak-beria ' 
(devil's drum ?) 
I have, on the estate from which I am 
writing, a bean creeper growing on and 
covering over poor sandy parts of the estate. 
It has made its appearance after a lapse of 
three years. 
I will, in a future communication, give 
practical hints for the utilisation of legu- 
minous plants. B. 
II. 
Colombo, Jan. 23rd. 
Sir,— Your correspondent " B " is study- 
ing '* nitrogen-gatherers "in the proper way, 
that is, by looking into the merits ot 
naturally occurring weeds, such as Pila 
(Tephrosia purpurea). Trimen mentions seven 
species of tephrosia of which there are no 
doubt many varieties. Undupiyali (Desmodium) 
and Asivenna (Alyssicarpa vaginalis) are also 
plants suitable for the object in view. Of 
crotalaria Trimen gives no less than 23 
species, of which C. Verrucosa, C. Rctusa, 
and C. Laburnifolia are very familiar. 
Eramudu, as is surmised, is leguminous 
(papilionaceous) and is an invaluable shade 
tree. Its suitability as such is undoubtedly 
to be attributed to (among other causes) its 
soil-renovating properties. It would be 
interesting to have a description, or better 
still a epecimen (with flower and if possible 
fruit) of the creeper referred to by "B." — 
yours truly, C D. 
III. 
Jan. 28th. 
Sir, — The ways of P. D.'s are inscrutable and 
past finding out ! I wrote of " Averi i " or cluster 
Pila, called so, as the pods are in clusters. Your 
P. i>. made it " Pohnan Pila." Why, I don't 
know, except that I am a Pol-man, anglici, 
coconut planter. 
I am much obliged to " C D " for his further 
letter. He is more ready to impart knowlcvige 
now than he was before. I am sending you in this 
letter a specimen of the creeper I referred to, with 
flower and pods, for " C D." Eramudu, being 
leguminous, should be used to fence coconut plants 
from the attacks of cattle. At the very least, the 
four corner sticks of the enclosure should be 
Eramudu. Wild castor is usually used, but its 
thick, gross-feeding roots soon choke the coconut 
plant. In encouraging the growth of leguminous 
weeds and plants two objects should be kept in 
view. One, the addition of nitrogen to the soil by 
its absorption from the atmosphere by the roots, 
the other, the direct and indirect enrichment of 
ilie soil by its burial. The burial of any green 
matter in the soil sets free gases which have both 
fertilising value and act as solvents of the insoluble 
constituents of the soil. In its decay, humus is 
formed. This absorbs 'the ammonia of the Rt- 
mosphere and improves the mechanical con- 
dition of soils. Ultimately, it resolves itself into 
its constituent parts, a very importanc one of 
which is Potash. To sum up, the beneiiis accruing 
to the soil from the growth and subsequent burial 
of leguminous weeds and plants are, the addition 
to it of nitrogen from the atmosphere, of fertilising 
and solvent; gases, and of improving its mechanical 
condition. On a coconut estate, if the whole surface 
can be ploughed or tilled, the decay of the usual 
surface vegetation, the most important of which 
will be " Undupyali," will yield humus over its 
entire surface. Financial, physical and other 
causes, stand in the way of these beneficial 
agricultural operations. Therefore, cultivation in 
its widest sense, should be concentrated to a 
limited area round each tree. The limit will be 
determined by one's finances and labour force, but 
the wider the better. The area round the tree, 
say a radius of 8 or 10 feet, should be kept 
in perfect mechanical condition. If the sold 
be hard or stiff, it should be broken up from 
about 2 feet from the stem, with "quintaines" 
better still, tramp-picks. Lime should be 
used, with salt if possible, to reduce the cohesive- 
cess of the soil. The surface should be mulched 
afterwards, that is, covered over wiDh vegetable 
matter, to keep the soil in its improved mechani- 
cal condition. For mulch, coconut branches or 
husks should answer very well. The mechanical 
condition of a sandy soil is improved by the addi* 
tion of decaying vegetable matter. With this 
tilled area, all cultivation can be concentrated. 
Manure can be spread and dug in and the growth 
of leguminous plants can be encouraged and 
subsequently buried after seeding, so that the 
growth may be cootinuoas. 'Ihe presence of 
leguminous weeds vill detract from the appearance 
of an estate and will be distasteful to those who 
pride themselves on the cleanness of their estates. 
But when it resolves itself into a question of 
appearance vs. benefit, the wise man will know 
which to choose. It must be borne in mind that 
the growth of leguminous plants and their burial, 
will ultimately lessen one's manure bill, as regards 
nitrogen, and if mulch from outside is used, in 
potash as well. There are some estates, and I saw 
one recently, where the soil is so rich as to induce a 
rank growth of grass. This prevents the aeration 
of the soil, and renders it sour. If the labour and 
money be available, the turning into the soil of 
this superabundance of surface vegetation can* 
not but yield beneficial result. Any way, a circle 
round the trees should be kept free of weeds and 
grass, which should be turned into the soil by 
surface-digging. The presence of this thick carpet 
of grass makes the grounds yellow. The growth 
of grass can be easily kept under, by using coconut 
branches as a mulch. B. 
PATENTS FOR CHANGING dREKN 
TEA INTO BLACK. 
Stagbrook, Peermaad, S. India, Jan. 29. 
Sib, — With reference to Mr. Kelway Bam- 
ber's and Mr. Hall's advertisement, I have no 
idea of their respective methods of turning 
green tea dust and fannings into black teas 
of similar grades, buc Mr. Judge and myself 
have been doing this for a long while with- 
out machinery, with perfect success, but I 
do not believe the process is patentable. 
H. DRUMMONO DEANB, 
