388 
Supplement to the '^Tropical A^ncuUmist. 
[November i, 1890. 
&c. The wax is dark-coloured and softer than 
ordinary bees wax. The bee is stingless. 
So much for the different species of bees found 
iji Ceylon. Now we come to consider about the 
cultivation or management of liees. The first 
thing necessary to be done in the formation of 
an apiary is the providing of a stock of bee- 
hives. As to the fo"m and the materials out of 
which hives should be made opinions differ very 
widely both in theory and practice. In Engiand 
hives made of either straw or wood have al- 
ways been found the most profitable for bee- 
keeping, but those who wish to observe tlie move- 
ments of the bees employ glass hives or hives 
provided with glass-windows. Hives made of 
wood are neat in appearance and more durable 
than straw ones, but it is said that unless they 
are protected from the sun, the combs are liable 
to get melted and fall off. Eartlienware hives 
are said to be in use in Turkey and Greece, 
and in our own country, as my readers are aware, 
a useless earthen pitcher or pot is the only hive 
provided for a swarm of bees to settle in. 
The form of the hive may be of any shape, 
but it is important that there should be suffi- 
cient room provided for building combs, &c. 
At the Fairfield Apiary, Mount Barker, Austra- 
lia, where they have more than 200 hives, the 
hive in use is the “ Standard Langstroth,'’ an 
American pattern, simple in construction and 
producing good results. 
(To he continued). 
NOTES FROM A TRAVELLER’S DIARY. 
The country beyond Wahakotte is compara- 
tively free from hills, and the ^ullages are 
scattered irregularly amidst vast forests of timber 
trees. Each village has its own tank and grove 
of coconut palms close to which the dwelling 
houses are built. 
On my visit to the famous rock-cave at 
Dambulla, my attention was drawn to the con- 
tinual drip of water into the cave from a crevice 
in the rock. The water appears to be of the 
purest description, and is collected in an earthen- 
ware vessel left for the water to driij into. This 
water is reserved for the use of the priests. 
Palugaswewa, where I made a halt, is about 
20 miles from Dambulla. The village has its tank 
and a large tract of jiaddy land ; l)ut owing to 
a prolonged drought I found the tank dry, 
while the fields liad been uncultivated for 3 or 
4 years. From thisplace the Ritigala rock, reported 
to have been the Sanitarium of the Native Rajas 
who reigned in Aniiradhapura, is visible. Tlie 
summit of the rock is said to be occupied by 
some ruins as well as Ijy the King’s Garden. 
I touched at a place called Andiyngala, wliero 
1 lieard for (he first time of the experimental 
cidtivation of jjotatoes in the North-Ccmtral I’ro- 
\ince. The sclioohnaster of the i)laco first e.x- 
jjerimcnteil witli ])Otatoes on a very modest scale. 
1I(! took oidy a single tulxir, and having di\ ided 
it into foiii’ sets, phuitcal them during the rains 
of December. 'I’he ))hmts came u]i W(dl, and 
iil'ler 4 months, I uhiTH t,o (he weight of half-a- 
pound were dug up. The soil is rich in these 
parts, but the great want is rain. Arrowroot 
ought to be grown very successfully here, but 
ii]D to now paddy and kuralckan are the only 
crops cultivated by the natives. 
At Palugaswewa I saw for the first time the 
p>rocess of extracting lime from the kumbuk tree 
(Terminalia glabra). There is no limestone from 
which to obtain lime in the neighliourhood, and 
lime is much needed for chewing with betel. 
About two baskets of the ash of this tree give 
one of pure lime. The ash is obtained by burn- 
ing the stem and then sifting the residue to 
remove any impurities that may be mixed up 
with it. Next a iiaste is made by mixing the 
ash with the j nice of the Hinguru plant (Acacia 
concinnn ), and also that of the keliya ( Iretrig 
microcoft ). The ]iaste is dried into balls, or cakes 
like cabin-biscuits 'ind burnt in a heap of dry 
cowduug either by placing in coconut shells or 
after wrapping in plantain leaves. The heaps 
of dung are sometimes made so large that they 
continue to burn for over 8 hours. The residue 
from this second burning is put into hot water 
where it remains for several hours. The water 
is afterwards poured off and the re.sidual 
is lime. This lime is mostly used for chew- 
ing with betel-leaf, but in one place I actually 
found a house whitewashed with it. 
THE CULTIVATION OP TOMATO. 
( Lycopersicum Esculentum.) 
By W. A. De Silva. 
The tomato or the love-apple is a native of 
America, and was introduced to Europe at an 
early period ; from Europe its cultivation as a 
garden product has extended to the Eastern 
countries. 
It is at the present day grown to a large extent 
in Southern Europe as the climate is favourable 
there ; and as the demand is great both for 
daily use and the manufacture of preserves it has 
liecome a paying crop. 
The tomato is one of the common foreign vege- 
tables grown in Ceylon both in tlie lowcountry 
and the cold hillj^ districts. The demand is fairly 
large, as all classes are fond of this fruit. 
There are a great number of vaiieties of the 
tomato, known under different fancy names which 
are given to them by gardeners, and particularly 
l>y seedsmen ; but tbe varieties which can be 
grown with advantage in Ceylon are those known 
as “ the large red,” “ the yellow,” and the 
“red currant.” The last-named variety bears 
small oblong fruits, and the plants are hardy, 
grow well and produce abundantly, the only 
objection to this variety is the smallness of the 
fruit. 
The first two varieties, the red and the yellow, 
grow well and also produce good crops. These 
two varieties are generally the favourites of the 
cultivators. 
There are also varieties of tomatoes producing 
very largo fruits, for instance ‘ the giant red ’ pro- 
ducing fruits weighing from 4 to 6 lb., but such 
\ arit>ti('S are no( adopted for general growth as 
thoy]iroduco very few fruits. 
