22 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 
[July i, i8go. 
LIBERIAN COFFEE IN S. INDIA. 
A Planting Correspondent writes to us: — Whatever 
may be said to the contrary by owners of specially 
favoured properties, I think it is generally admitted 
by those who have been longest at the business, and 
have the widest experience of districts other than 
their own, that the ‘'good old times” have jjassed 
away probably forever. Almost any planter you meet 
is quite willing to admit this sad fact for other districts 
or even for his neighbours : but it is naturally hard 
for a young, sanguine man to force himself to believe 
that he is not to be the exception that proves the 
rule. His property, on which a lot of money, we will 
say, has been laid out is just at its prime, and has 
been liberally manured, prices are tremendous, ex- 
change is much in his favor, and he fondly hopes 
that 26 per cent, on his capital can always be made 
at coffee “ by a man who knows bis work, and does’nt 
mind spending a little money.” But some how, gene- 
rally, the crops begin to fall off in sp e of the 
liberal treatment, and of even greate expendi- 
ture in manure than was ever dreamed of in old 
days. ‘‘Next year” like the bird in the fable 
leads him on until at last he gets sick and weary 
of it, and instead of retiring from business with a 
small fortune as he fondly hoped in ten years, he 
heaves a sigh of relief which he sees what he thinks 
will be his bare expenses in the form of crop set upon 
the trees. Of course there are estates, even districts, 
which have been mines of wealth to their owners, 
and long may it be so. I am only writing of the 
general course of things which the statistics of coffee 
exportation will I fear show to be steadily, even if 
unevenly downward : like an ebbing tide, alternate 
years being better than the one before, but worse 
than the one before that. We all know what has 
happened to Ceylon and Java and it is believed 
that ^America about which it is extremely diffi- 
cult \o get any certain information) is keeping up 
her figures from the yield of large new districts which 
have been opened up of late years. 
In India the beet land was taken first, and is now 
exhausted, or nearly so, new clearings on inferior 
land though opened with far more knowledge and 
skill, and expenditure of manure, shaded too when 
necessary are as a rule nothing like the old estates in 
quality, and not likely to last one quarter of the 
time. There can be but one reason for this, viz., that 
coffee Arabica is so deteriorated in health and strength 
by the continuous attacks of leaf disease during 
the past 20 years that, except under peculiarly 
favourable circumstances it is practically dying 
out, the only effect of heavy manuring being 
to put on a new crop of leaves which are 
promptly swept off by our enemy as fast as they are 
formed. It is sadly true that instead of passing away, as 
we fondly hoped at one time, this pest seems now more 
vigorous than ever, anything like even a very moderate 
crop is invariably followed by a specially severe attack, 
and sanguine indeed must be the man who really believes 
that the end of vastatrix will come while there is a leaf 
of coffee left to feed on. We know that in Europe an 
almost identical fungus has attacked the vines, and in 
some countries utterly destroyed the old European kinds. 
The American variety, however, I am told, is now being 
planted with success as it is found able to grow and 
Sourish in the ground from which the other had been 
dug out and burned because its constitution is sound 
and strong, and it is able to resist the foe. After watch- 
ing the thing for some years, I have come to the con- 
clusion that a similar state of feebleness has been broubgt 
upon our Arabian coffee and that as regards low lying 
districts anyhow it will be necessary to replace it with 
the strong African variety called “Liberian” if we are to 
grow coffee at all. Now at this stage I know it will be 
said “why that wretched fraud was tried and abandoned 
long ago in the low country of Ceylon ; not only did it 
get leaf disease but it gave a very bad sample of coffee 
and very little of that oven. No one now believes in 
it.” To this 1 reply that various sorts of bad Afri- | 
can coffee were palmed off on the unfortunate 
planter at the time when attention was first called 
to this giant kind. These are somewhat similar in 
appearance at first, but are really very different to 
the true Liberian which is practically free from 
fungus (only the delicate seed leaves getting it) is a 
tree not a bush, a heavy cropper and yielding a 
good sample with no hollow beans. 
Some 15 years ago I received a couple of Liberian 
plants from a number presented to a Planters’ Associa- 
tion by Government. These had come out to the 
country, I believe from Kew direct, in a wardian 
case. Planted in a back garden and almost unnoticed 
and uncared for, they grew broad and high till now 
they are about 26 feet and have apparently no inten- 
tion of stopping. In the evil report soon after prevail- 
ing regarding Liberian coffee, I supposed there was 
nothing in it till at length I began to notice that the 
trees were bearing very well, and that there was no 
trace of leaf disease. Then I planted out 2 or 300 
seedlings in a new clearing along with Arabica, and 
these, now 7 or 8 years old and in a more sheltered 
position than their parents have done even better. 
Planted 10 by 10 over Arabica they have now run up 
to 16 or 18 feet, all exactly of one type, and are 
bearing exceedingly well ; the crop on them 
for this season cannot well be taken at less- 
than 3 lb. of clean coffee per tree. The Arabica under 
path them has suffered frightfully from fungus regu- 
larly every year, yet I challenge anyone to find a sign 
of it on them. A few of the old leaves every year turn 
yellow and tumble off as was the natural way of our 
old staple before the days of leaf disease as I well re- 
member before 1868- AVe know that Liberian coffee 
will grow at the sea level ; the ones above referred to 
are at 2,500 feet in sheltered bamboo land : whether (hey 
will do well at higher elevations remains to be seen, but 
as far as I can see I am satisfied, and only regret that 
I did not do eight yea s ago what I am doing now, 
viz., plant Liberian all over my clearings vith the Arabica 
and let the best win. To sum up the points of difference 
between Liberian and Arabica 1 find as advantages : 
1st. That it does not get fungus or only in such a 
way that the health of the tree is in no wsy affected 
2nd. That it is a tree, not a bush, running up to 
30 feet in height before 15 years old and in conse- 
quence is not injured by drought. 
3rd. That judging by the trees in evidence and the 
way they go on growing, and by the fact that they 
do not come into bearing till 4 or 5 years old, this 
variety may be taken as much longer lived. 
4th. That it is a heavier bearing tree when once 
fairly started ; these in evidence now yielding 10 to 20 
cwts. per acre, calculating on the clean coffee yielded, 
and admitting that only some 700 trees to the acre can 
be grown instead of at least double that number of 
the old kind. 
6th. That being a deep-rooted plant, it is not affect- 
ed by drought, -while a very slight shower is quite 
sufficient to bring out and set the blotcom ; which 
moreover has the further advantage of fading and fall- 
ing off within the day of its opening so that it is hardly 
possible that it can be injured by rain or hailasisso 
often the case with the delicate Arabica blossom. Even 
in the very driest season, when the other plants appear 
on the point of destruction, these look cool and green 
and not turning a leaf. 
6bh, That the cost of cultivation is comparatively 
little. There is no pruning to do beyond pulling off 
the suckers for 2 or 3 years to prevent the tree from 
running up into too manystems, the crop is carried on 
the same wood (and extensions of it) year after year, 
and there is therefore no old wood to cut out. The 
shade of a thick, tall tree like this where they pretty 
well cover the ground, would effectually prevent weeds 
from becoming troublesome, and as the roots are deep 
down the debilitating effects of weeds even if they did 
grow, would be very little felt. 
7th. The berries (of the size of a walnut) remain 
firmly fixed on the tree for many weeks after they are 
ripe enough to pick, eventually they fall off, and may be 
gathered off, the ground. In case of a scarcity of labour 
this might be an advantage, 
