February i, 1892.] 
THE TROPIOKI. ABfnoULTUmST. 
571 
a liat of Clove and Nutmeg Plants shipped on the 
" Indiana " under charge of Mr. Dunn, ancf have much 
pleasure in informing you that the whole have been 
landed safe and in good order. 
The larger plants have been regularly planted out 
■where it is intended they should remain, and the 
seed and smaller ones put in nursery beds for the 
present, the whole are in a thriving state, — you may 
depend on every possible attention being paid to the 
cultivation of Spices, and I consider myself fortunate 
in having Mr. Brooks, a European Gardener, here, 
whose services will be very useful in superintending 
generally the Spice plantations, and propose to allow 
him a monthly salary of 40 Spanish Dollars until 
your pleasure is known on the subject. 
I have &c., 
(Sd.) W. Farquhae, 
Singapore, 2Sth Oct 1819. Resident. 
Table I. 
Statement of Nutmeg Plantations with niimher of 
Trees, Trees in hearing, and produce in 1848. 
s • ? .3 n .a ^ 
.2 o "a a.sp 
A. Guthrie, . .Tan. Pagar. .2,250 .. 252,581. .19 30 
W. Montgomerie, do ..1,800 1,200 368,791 .. .. 
Joaq. Almeida .. do ..700 400 307,609 .. .. 
Government, ..Claymore.. 765 315 190,240 .. .. 
Dr. T. Oxley, .. do ..4,050 2,322 902,426 66 76 
C B.Prinsep, .. do ..6,700 5,200 749,8,36 60 .. 
T. Hewetson, .. do ..1,515 750 492,329 37 02i 
C. Carnie, ., do ..3,500 500 .. 9 93 
W.Cuppage, .. do ..1,250 647 148,120 10 .. 
W Scott, .. do ..5,200 1,700 348,711 23 65 
C. Carnie, .. do ..870 2.50 .. 3 50 
Jose Almeida .. do ..1,023 150 .36,500 .. .. 
Dr. M. J. Martin, do ..1,530 700 288,218 21 .. 
W. W.Willans, Tangling. .1,600 100* 
E. B.Leicester, do .. 800 100* 
B. Leicester, .. do .. 400 
W. Leicester, . . do . . 2.50 
W. Montgomerie, Kalang. .. 510 200 . . . . 20 
F. Sorabjeo, ., Bochor. .. 12 .. 
SyedAllie, .. do . . 600 30 .. ..71 
Sir J. d' Almeida, Sirangong.4,000 3.50* 
T. Duaman, .. do ..1,000 
J. I Woodford, . . B. Timah. 600 
Chinese &c., .. ..7,000 
G. Nicol, .. ..8,000 
55,925 14,9144,085,361252 071 
Remarks. — The greater number of the trees in 
Singapore as, will be observed from this Table, have not 
come into full bearing, but the produce is increasing 
rapidly, and this year will amount to fully 500 piculs. 
Sinyaj)ure, Z4th Jnly, JS48. 
* Commencing to bear. 
Statement of the Exports of Singapore Spices 
in 1845, 1846, and 1847. 
Years. Nutmegs. Mace. Cloves. 
Pis. cat. Pis. ots. Pis. cts. 
1845 in No. 136. 64i 37. 44^ 2. 55 
1846 1200 and 208. 79^ 60. 74 . 33^ 
1847 4 boxes & 105. 55 3 boxes & 34. 33 .03^ 
^°'''Ul200 in No. 
(4 boxes and 450. 99 3 boxes & 132. 51i 2. 91 J 
years J £ ^ 
PLANT COLOUR AND SOIL COMPOSITION, 
Mr. George Ville startled the world some years ago 
with his Bupgostioii "that planta oau absorb free 
nitrogen." He now comes torward with an equally 
pregnant notiuu " that the varying tints of green, 
which plants assume, is du indicatioD, which may be 
turned to priotical account by agriculturietH, as to the 
chemicfil dtficienoy of foIIh. This iilia is well worthy 
of tl;e attention of Trinidad planters, and espsoially 
with regard to coffee and cocoa. We all coosiiicr that 
a durk green in these piauts mdicates a peifecteoil 
arm perlect plant gfowtli ; nov; Mr, Ville says that 
any departure from this stuudard shows, according 
to shade, the oliemieal iugredient wanting, e.g. 
1. Light green = Want of phoephoric acid. 
Very pale green = Want of potash. 
3. Yellow green - Absence of nitrogen. 
If this is true Ihe plautor^ will have a pract'cal 
and ever present test, and one which will perhaps 
tell ibeai more thau Cnemiatry or Science can do. 
No one, of course, dispftrngf-s the service of tho Agri- 
cultural Chemist with regard to soils, but it is tho 
SHnie with soils as with horses — Anatomy and Physio- 
logy can no more tell you everything about a horse 
than Chemistry can tell you about a soil ; but in 
studying the proposition of Mr. George Villc two 
coi'ollaries imust be borne in rtjiod (id tropical agri- 
cuitnre). 1. How may the plant-colour be affected 
by exposure, by stoiios and other mechanical oaasee? 
2. What relationship is there between the darker 
shades of green of coffee and cocoa and their fruit- 
bearing qualities. — Trinidad Agricultural Record. 
COFFEE ENTERPRISE IN TRINIDAD. 
As to its impracticability and the nnsuitftbleness 
of our so!l and climate we have direct evidence to 
the contrary wherever we turn. Our native coffee, 
although badly kept, and mostly planted together 
with cocoa, is everywhere healthy, vigorous, and, 
yields, it is no exaggeration to say, over 1 lb. a tree 
on goo 1 lands ; Mr. Prestoe I belitve estimated it at 
dcuble that amount. The question of altitude was 
rflised by the Hon'ble Mr. Lange at the last meeting 
of the Central Agricultural Board, and it is a very 
important point : the fear is that any considerable 
area planted a little above sea levtl will be exposed 
to the coffee leaf disease which occurred in Dominica 
some years ago. Mr. Morris, of Kew, thinks we should 
go in for Liberian on low levels; but untortuuately 
we don't yet know quite how it might suit our 
climate and soil. The object of using this ra'her 
awkward plant, which ripens too slowly, pulps badly 
aud was formerly quoted so low in the markets, 
although in the general coffee rise of late it has 
touched 100s — is that it is supposed to resist the 
leaf disease (?). They are now pushing it (on Mr. 
Morris's advice) in D iminica, and they are giving it 
a fair trial also in Surinam. In the last named 
Colony they are making some interesting experimeuts 
with grafting, viz. : — 
1. Liberian on Liberian. — To hasten and improve 
bearing and to dwarf the tree. 
2. Liberian on Arabian — Th& same object. 
3. Arabian on Liberian .—Ho strei3gthen tho vegetative 
growth of the first named and render it less subject to 
disease, etc. 
Tl ese experiments are in course of observation, so 
no conclusion can be drawn at present, but it would 
be wise, htre, to start a mixed cultivation ; at the 
same time we must bear in miud that we lying much 
nearer to the equator, and almost forming part of tho 
mainland of America, have very different cliniatio 
conditions to either Jamaica or Ceyloo, and it is pos- 
sible that with full and appropriate shade such as the 
Caohiman, (Grands bois) Poixdoux, Avocado, etc., we 
may have no cause to mistrust the Arabian or Mocha 
Hylsrid (the latter is a most promising plant). 
Baron Eggers thinks the altitude a matter of 
secondary importance with us, and states that the 
best coffee estates in Venezuela have not an altitude 
of mote than 300 or 400 feet above the sea level. 
The same thing obtains in the Brazils I am informed, 
where coffee grows nearly down to the sea shore in 
some places. 
Coffee has nearly died out in Southern India, Java 
and Ceylon, and men who recognize the importance 
of this great staple bnvo been hoDting ont NoKh 
