June 2, 1902. j Supplemeni to the " Tropical AijricuUnnsL" 
857 
Tlie flowers are yellow, and ore arvnugeil five to 
seven together in the axils of the leaves.. Theie 
are succeeded by pods about 1^ inches long, and 
contain two, and sometimes three, seeilf^, seventy- 
five of which weigh 1 oz. Tlie most remarkable 
feature of the plant is that it thrusts its fruit into 
the ground to effect its maturation. This pecu- 
liarity, however, is not confined to this genus of 
plants, bnt exists likewise in an allied genus 
(T'oandzeia subterranea, Thours.), commonly 
knotrn as the Bombara ground-nut. This pi tint is 
a native of Madagascar and various parts of Africa, 
and has been groun successfully in this country, 
but it . will be more fully noticed in a separate 
article. 
The pea-nut is a native of the West Indies and 
West Africa, but it is now cultivated extensively 
in many of the warmer parts of the earth for tlie 
sake of its seeds. Tliere are two well-marked 
varieties of the plant, the difference between them 
being that one has a small pod and the other a 
large one. Its cultivation is withal fso simple, 
aud as it only occupies the land for about five 
months of the year, the produce can scon be turned 
to profitable account. Taking into consideration 
the quantity of pea-nuts that are consumed in tlie 
Colony, it would take the produce of many acres 
to supply the annual demands. The chief com- 
mercial value of this plant, however, is the valu- 
able oil that can be expressed from its seeds. 
Professor Church, (to whom we are also in- 
debted for the engraving of the plant), give* the 
following analysis of the Pea-nuts:— 
Composition of Pea-nuts. 
In 100 pans. in 1 lb. 
Water 
... 7-5 . 
. 1 
oz. 
87 
grs 
Albuminoids 
... 21-5 . 
. 3 
403 
» 
Starch 
... 11-7 . 
. 1 
» 
882 
>> 
Oil 
... 60-0 . 
. 8 
<> 
0 
Fibre 
... 4-5 . 
. 0 
it 
315 
' ! 
Aih 
... 1-8 . 
. 0 
126 
II 
It will be seen by the foregoing analysis that the 
pta-nuts contain 60 per cent of their weight in 
oil. This excellent result must not be expected, 
however, as a general thing, for the yield varies in 
nuts that are grown on different soils aud it will 
be safe to put it down at a lower fii^ure. The oil 
is thin, of a clear, pale, straw colour, somewhat 
resembling poppy and the finer kinds of olive oil'. 
It will not become rancid, and it is said to be im- 
proved with age. In commerce it is known as 
" nut oil," and it is said, on good authority tliat 
olive oil is not only adulterated with it, but that this 
nut-oil is "often substituted for it." It is a valuable 
oil as a lubricant for delicate machinery, and as it 
doesnot clog thebearings,itpos3e^89sgreatad vanta- 
gesovermany other kinds of oil. Theoilisestracted 
from the pea-nuts by two processes— one of them by 
simple pressure, aud the other by the application of 
heat. Whilst agreater percentage of oilcan be ob'ain- 
ed by the application of heat, that obtained by the 
simple pressure process is more valuable as a com- 
mercial article. After the greater part of the oil lias 
been extracted from the pea-nnts by pres-uie, the 
residue, or cak can be used for feeding cittle. 
and it is considered very fattening. Moreover, it 
can be used as a fertiliser for sugar-cane lands, and 
also for other crops that are exhaustive to the soil, 
Besides the valuable products alreidy mentioned, 
the pea-nut has many other important economic 
u-e^ Owing to the faC, however, tli-it the nuts 
ccntainsuch i large percentage of oil in a f fesh state, 
they require a considerable admi.xtui-e of starchy 
food in order to render tlieni easy of digestion, 
Bnormjus quantities of parched i)ea--iut<, however, 
are consumed nearly all over the world, more parti- 
cularly in America, and they are fitr from being 
UTiknown in this country, for boys may often be 
seen eating tliera, although they are sometimes in- 
ferior to what they would be if grown and parched 
in the Colony. I read a short time ago where cna 
American writer of authority stated that the 
manufacture of chocolate cakes out of pea-nuts , 
alone, and without a particle of cocoa, is an im- 
mense and prcfltabl« manufacture in the States. 
Although so much has been said about this valu- 
able economic plant, its uses are not nearly ex- 
h.iusted. As a green crop it makes valuable 
forage, and after the pea-nuts are picked off the 
dried stems, the latter make valuable fodder, 
which herbivora of all kinds are remarkably fond 
of, and they are said to be very fattening. 
The soil best siiitedto the growth of the pea-nut. — 
The soil best .-united to the growth of this plant is 
of a light sandy nature, or one inclined tliat way. 
It is important that the surface soil should be loose, 
so that the young pods have no difficulty in 
pushing their way into the ground to effect matu- 
r.ition. After a suitable piece of groun l has been 
chosen it should be thoroughly cleaned of all weeds 
and ruiibish, and ploughed with a light one-horse 
plough to a depth not e.tceeding 6 inches. If it is 
not naturally fertile, some manure should be ap- 
plied. If well rotted farm-yard manure i« not 
available, then those commercial manures should 
be applied that are rich in phosphates. Siiper- 
pliospliate of lime is considered an e.tcellent 
manure to apply to the land where this crop is 
grown. The advantage of shallow cultivation 
will be apparent when it is explained that after 
the embryo nuts are fertilised, the stalks they are 
attached to will continue to puih themselves into 
the ground until a firm bed is reiched for the pea- 
nuts to mitura o i. When the pea-nuts are mat- 
ured as ne ir to the surface of the soil as is practi- 
caljle, the harvest operations are not nearly so 
laborinis, because the produce is more easy to 
bring to the surfac'^ and a less number of nut< 
will be likely to be left in the ground. If the soil 
can be left in a rough plouglied cinditiou for n 
montli or so previou?) to planting, so much the 
b 'tter — the sua and air will get into it and 
sweeten it. If weeds should spring up, hovever, 
the scarifier should be put over the lanl to kill 
them. The scarifier should be freely used on the 
land a few d lys previous to planting, so that it 
will be in the best possible tilth to receive the seed, 
and be cleaned thoroughly free from weedi. 
The rows should be 3 feet apart, and the .seeds 
sown 18 inches np irt in the rows. This will allow 
the land to be e.isily worked with a horse and 
light plough or scarifier. It will take 25 lb, of 
seed to plant an acre. Like many other kinds of 
seed that cont tin a large percentage of oil, the 
pea-nut soonloses its germinating power,even when 
kept under the best of circumstances. The first 
