792 
iittpplment to the '^Tropical Agriculiurkt.'' 
[April I, 189s. 
From all accounts “ ifalignant Sore Throat,” a 
Tcrj fatal aiul highly contagious diphtheretic 
affection, is prevalent in tlio North-Central 
Province. 
Mr. n. D. (iooneaekere has been appointed 
Agricultural Instructor at Balangoda. lie is in 
charge of the Inipulpi and Bowatha School.s. 
THE CULTIVATION OF THE 
COCONUT PAL.\1. 
In dry seasons, generally, it very often hap- 
pens that the manager of a coconut property, 
in walking along his boundaries, will notice the 
jiortions nearest to any jungle, presenting a very 
strange appearance. The dmoping fronds of the 
palm will be covered with a greyish substance, 
and in a few days the greater jiortion of the 
leaflets will disappear, leaving Ixdiind only the 
midribs. As time goes on this Hp])enrance will 
be assumed by other trees, and the ‘disease’ 
will be found to bo spreading, till the major 
portion of the estate is in the condition above 
described. This is due to the coconut fly nr 
coconut worm attacking the palms, and it is 
well if the attack be noticed early and re- 
medial measures be taken, for an estate thus 
affected will lose its young nuts, and the pro- 
prietor get no returns from his property for 
one or two or even three years to come, ac- 
cording to the severity of the attack. An 
estate 'affected by this insect jiresents a sorry 
sight — the grtien leaflets turned to an ashen hue, 
the ground strewn with young nuts. The mode 
of dealing with the pest (namely by smother 
burning with the object of smoking out the 
in.sects) has been referred to already in my 
contribution which appeared in the February 
number of the Magazine. I will add that it is 
indeed well to smoke not only the infected 
lines but also the unaffected rows for some dis- 
tance, so ns to make sure there are none of the 
insects left alive in a yet dormant state. The 
conformation of the leaflets of the ])alm favours 
the security of the enemy, which safely e.s- 
conces itself on the under side of the leaflet, 
firmly lodged in the apex of an inverted V, 
unaffected by wind or rains, feeding as it grows 
on its loaf covering. But when the acid smoke 
ascends from below, its domicile is invaded, 
and it cannot do otherwise than drop help- 
lessly to the ground under the influence of the 
smoke. It will thus be seen that the heaping 
up of dead branches along each second row — 
and keeping up thesujiply — in districts liable to 
attack from this insect, becomes a paramount 
■ecessity, and a foreseeing manager will 
always leave a well here and there to supply 
water for sprinkling the buniing heaps, in ease 
of necessity. If the pest does not make its 
appearatice, the hoops of withered and dead 
leaves will soon decompose into a mould, which 
is ns good ns any manure for a coconut tree. 
Mr. Munro, whom 1 have before referred to, 
after liriuid-mnnuring his trees, covered over 
the manured parts with this deccm]>()sed stuff 
and earth, and laid dry brunches over the 
heaps. This was done to keep the roots 
cool and prevent evnporstioi from the liriuid 
manure. 
In the Eastern Urovince there is another visit- 
ation to -which coconut trees are liable, known 
as “ Colni Thoiigi " among the natives, meaning 
“ dropping bunch.” (juite suddenly a remark- 
ably fine cluster of nuts is seen to hang, inert, 
from the brunches, and the nuts liegin to look 
sickly. On muny e.states the bunches were sup- 
porterl artificially by rattans, -which are attached 
alw)ve to (he crown of the trees, but this was 
found an expensive method. Nuts, nft'ected thus, 
either full off without properly maturing, or 
they shrivel up to half their natural size. 
E.states surrounded by high jungle will, in 
their early stnge.s, be damaged by monkeys and 
large reii or grey squirrels as well as the 
small striped ones. Hundred of nuts are found on 
the ground with large holes bitten into the 
crown by monkeys. The only remedy is frightennig 
away tlie auimals, or sh6oting them, with a gun. 
Trees which die under attack of red beetle 
should lie cut down, burnt and buried, as their 
remains harbour worms and their eggs. The 
black beetles can be imi>aled on needles made 
for the purpose, the process doing no harm 
to the trees. There are hundreds of trees ex- 
isting that have been drilled in the proce.ss of 
beetle extirpation, and these bear ns well ns 
ever they did. 
Some trees never bear nuts, and others bear 
only light nuts called “ollies.” The late 
Kev. ,f. Kilner informed me that in the fJorlhern 
Urovince, such trees were rendered fruitful by 
cutting out a ring out of the stem with a 
chisel. 1 have never put this remedy to the 
test, but bnve succeeded in making bad trees bear 
by having them tapped for toddy. It is possible 
that by inducing the outflow of an inferior sap 
during the process of drawing toddy, the tree is 
given an opportunity of elafjorating a superior 
sap afterwards. 
Coconuts are hero plucked by means of long 
bamboo poles t o which a hooked knife or “ cattie” 
is fixed ; but as this cannot be done in the case 
of very tall trees, the nuts of these are allowed 
to fall naturally. Picking may be said to go 
on constantly and copi)erah manufactured, except 
in the rainy months, November to February. At 
these seasons, however, the nuts keep fulling 
from the trees at the rate of several hundred 
every day. 
R. Athkbton. 
INDIGENOUS FOOD PRODUCTS; 
CULTIVATED AND WILD. 
Bv IV. A. De Silva. 
Amuruntactae. 
(JCriatum. Read Aniarantus Spinumis. L. for 
A. Specioetts In Section 6(i, p. (U.) 
C7. Amarantm Vulygonoidet L. Sin. Kiira- 
tampalil. 
Is an annual low herb growing in waste and 
cultivated lands where the .soil is fertile. The.se 
plants have an ubunilance of .small green leaves 
-with pinkish midribs and petioles on their stero.s. 
The leaves and the tender parts of the stem 
are used as a food in the form of a curry, 
and is much relished ; but the plant cannot bo 
easily obtained in any large quantities, and it is 
seldom that it is exposed for sale in the markets. 
