164 
Here again waste coconut fibre or Jadoo might be tried, as it would 
be a great advantage to obtain plants bv this means. 
The best material for cuttings is that from straight, healthy, and 
well-matured shoots of the current year’s growth, about to §" in 
thickness and 6 " to g" long. The cuts should be clean and just 
below a joint to form the base of the cutting, this being a point of 
great importance. 
The beds for cuttings should be similar to those for seeds, and 
may have a layer of charcoal and sharp sand an inch thick on the 
surface. 
To insert the cuttings an opening is made with a spade, the cut- 
ting put in, and the spade withdrawn, allowing the earth to fall back 
into its place and then pressing it firmly down. They should be 
planted as soon after removal from the tree as possible, and the 
beds well shaded, gradually allowing them sunlight as they became 
rooted, which takes place from 2 to 3 months. 
Camphor may also be propagated by layers, where the branches 
are low enough for the purpose; and this will probably be found 
one of the best means of obtaining good plants and possibly of 
selection for yield. The branches should be bent down, laid in a 
trench in the soil after being cut or twisted to break some of the 
fibres and encourage root development, then covered with soiJ, small 
pegs being inserted to keep them in position. 
A Susceptible Tree. 
In planting out care should be taken to see the holes are large 
and deep, and the soil well loosenred at the bottom, and surface soil 
should be used for filling them up. From the present growth on 
various estates it is evident that the tree is very susceptible to its 
surroundings, as it is rare to see 3 or 4 trees planted together of 
uniform appearance. This may, of course, be due to differences in 
the vigour of the seedlings, but is more probably owing to physical 
variations of the soil in which it is planted. The difference in growth 
and vigour is sometimes so great that a small area of the prunings 
obtained from the same aged trees have varied from over 100 lbs. 
to about B lbs. per tree, the latter amount being quite unprofitable. 
The importance of a careful selection of soil and situation is, there- 
fore, most apparent. As regards the latter, the trees will not stand 
exposure to rough winds, so that more or less protection during the 
S. W. monsoon is essential for luxuriant growth. Probably 8' by 8' 
would be the best distance for planting, and the trees are to be kept 
in the form of bushes, and this distance would give about 680 bushes 
per acre; 
They can be planted amongst tea with little risk of harming the 
latter in the factory, as an experiment has shown that a high pro- 
portion of camphor leaf, mixed with the tea leaf, was not detected 
in the linished article, the quantity added being far more than could 
possibly occur accidentally. 
In poor tea-soil the growth is very slow, and much better results 
will be obtained by planting in virgin soil ; the amount of such soil 
