IHE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
[Oct. r, 1897. 
24b 
CEYLON EXPORT TRADE IN 
COCONUT OIL. 
Our Export of Coconut Oil to the United 
Kingdom and tlie Continent of Europe has 
been reduced, it is believed, owiti" to its great 
abundance in tlie.se markets, and consequent 
low prices ; and, relatively to Coconut 
Oil, the cheap co.st of Tallow during the hast 
few years, and also of Cotton-seed Oil, both 
of which can be used instead of Coconut Oil 
for many purposes, although a certain quantity 
of Coconut Oil must be employed with them to 
obtain the best results in soap and certain other 
manufactures. 
■With regard to America, it is believed that, 
in addition to the above causes, the Silver troubles 
of the United States have had much to do with 
the falling-off in our Export of Coconut Oil to that 
Continent. 
Up to the middle of 1894 there had been a 
gradual increase of our Export of Coconut Oil 
to India; but the Import Duty of 5% ad valorem, 
which was placed on all Imports into India 
about March 1894, had the elfect of piitctically 
putting an end to the trade in our Oil, as it 
handicapped us to the extent of R17 or R18 per 
ton as against Cochin Oil which, of course, is 
not subject to tiie Import Duty. 
About two years ago drought in Cochin caused 
Coconut Oil tiiere to rise in price, and to such an 
extent that it again began to be possible to 
ship Ceylon Oil to India with advantage, and 
our Oil being much cheaper to lay down than 
Cochin Oil, and the facilities of shipment from 
here being very great, this trade has continued 
until now to expand to quite a remarkable ex- 
tent, as the following figures will show, viz : — 
EXPORT OP COCONUT OIL PROM CEYLON TO INDIA. 
Tons. 
Tons. 
1890 . 
. 4,94B 
1894 . 
. 1,115 
1891 . 
. .5,346 
1895 . 
737 
1892 . 
1893 . 
. 5,810 
. 5,734 
1896 . 
. 4,339 
And for the 74 months of 1897 to 17th August, 
the Export has been 4,087 tons against 1,997 
tons for the same 74 months last year. 
In India the Oil is used for burning and other 
domestic purposes only, and not in manufactures, 
and it has not to compete with Tallow and Cot- 
ton-seed Oil, &c., as in Europe and America. 
Cochin Oil continues to be much dearer than 
Ceylon Oil, and as the consumption in India 
seems to be capable of great expansion, it ap- 
pears as if the Export for this year, 1897, might 
reach the unprecedented total of between 7,000 
and 8,000 tons. 
Manuring of Tea.— An Estate proprietor 
writes There is one thing in Ceylon not half 
attended to and that is when applying manure 
either artificial or bulk, to be careful not to 
let the coolies cut the roots of the tea, the 
main side roots I mean. I have seen a lot of 
careless work done in this respect. The tree 
will expend its energy in making fresh roots 
using up the manure in the attempt, instead 
of its going to strengthen the whole tree, and 
make it flush more freely. For this work 
mamoties should be forbidden, and forks or a 
blunted short scraper used. I think it folly 
manuring tea too when old coli'ee stumps with 
feeding rootlets are allowed to remain in the 
land. °These should all be removed if manuring 
is to be done.” 
“SOOTY MOLD ON ORANGE TREES” 
—LESSONS FOR TEA PLANTERS. 
Mr. E. E. Green writes from Eton, Pundaluoya, 
on the 20th August, as follows ; — 
Thanks for the paper (Bulletin No. 13, U. S, 
Department of Agriculture) on the “ Sooty Mold 
of the Orange and its Treatment.” It has a 
certain amount of interest to us — as it deals with 
the black fungu.s that follows an attack ot “ bug,” 
and its efi’ect upon the plant. The following 
points may be noticed : — 
1. The author confirms other observers in the opi- 
nion that the fungus is quite superficial, vegetating 
solely on the “ honeydew ” excreted by the insects. 
2. Injury is however found to occur through 
interference with the process phyto-syntax (the 
elaboration of carbon compounds under the in- 
fluence of light). This fact has been demon- 
strated by Btisgen : — “He removed the fungous 
membrane from a small portion of a leaf and 
exposed the leaf to the sun. In the evening, 
after a sunny day, the leaf was plucked and the 
chlorophyll extracted with alcohol. After this 
the leaf was treated with iodine, and the parts 
from which the membrane had been removed in 
every case .stained a dense blue, indicating the 
formation of an abundance of starch, while the 
surrounding portions of the leaf which were 
protected from the sun by the fungrius membrane, 
remained entirely uncoloured, showing that no 
starch was formed.” This has a direct bearing 
upon the practice of growing tea under old coffee. 
When the latter is infected with “ scalebug,” 
the “ honeydew ” and accompanying sooty fungus 
will be communicated to the tea leaves below, 
and though not actually penetrating their tissues, 
will interfere with their proper function. 
The author includes “ blighted and shrivelled 
leaves, and small and dry fruit ” in his account of 
injury due to “sooty mold.” But the larger 
part of this effect is surely attributable to the 
attacks of the insects that precede the fungus. 
In treating of remedial measures also, the author 
writes as if the “sooty mold” were the main 
disease, instead of being one of the consequences 
of a more serious malady. He evidenfly under- 
stands the facts himself, as his proposed remedies 
are insecticides and directed ag.ainst the insects ; 
but the case might have been made more clear to 
the' general reader. Such expressions as, — “ the 
treatment of sooty mold by fumigation with hydro- 
cyanic gas” — “ kerosene emulsion, which has been 
recommended for sooty mold” — “resin wash for 
sooty mold,” &c.,&c. — are most misleading. 
The Amherstia Nobilis.— We see an “En- 
quiring Globe-trotter ” writing to a contemporary 
to ask if the Amherstia nobilis is indigenous to 
Ceylon. No, of course, it is not. It was intro- 
duced from Burma to Ceylon. The Treasury of 
Botany refers to it as follows : — 
Amherstia. — A genus of the Pea family {Leyuminosce) 
named in honour of the countess Amherst. A. nobilis ia 
the only species. It grows near Martaban, in the Mala- 
yan peninsula, and attains a height of about forty feet. 
When in flower, it is said to be ‘ one of the moat superb 
obiects imaginable, unrivalled in India or in any other 
part of the world.’ The leaves are equally pinnate, 
large, and, when young, of a pale purple colour. ‘ The 
flowers are large, scentless, and of a bright vermilion 
colour diversified with three yellow spots and disposed 
in gigantic ovate pendulous bunches.’ The tree is cul- 
tivatsd in some ofthe larger English gardens ; but, re- 
quiring so much space, is seldom met with in collections. 
The Burmese name of the plant is Thoca, and handfuls 
of the flowers are offered before the images of Buddha, 
