GERMINATION OF HARO SEEDS. 
A writer in Le Jardin (xxii 155) gives a note as to the best way 
of germinating hard seeds, such one might instance as Ceara rubber 
seeds. The seeds are placed in a small sieve or pocket of wire gauze, 
a few at a time and plunged into boiling water for a period of 10 to 
20 seconds, depending on the hardness of the seed. In the case of 
small seeds, the sieve is plunged into cold water immediately after 
being taken out of the boiling water. The object of dealing with a 
few seeds only is to ensure that the boiling water shall have a full 
effect. By this means seeds were germinated in ten days. 
RUBBER NOTES. 
Rubber Planting in Zanzibar. 
Both Ceara rubber and Para have been tried in Zanzibar, and it 
is reported that the former gives the best results, as indeed one 
would expect, and 200,000 trees have been planted. According to a 
writer in the Bulletin de V Association des Planteurs de Caoutchouc, 
Ceara is ready for tapping in three years, Para not till seven or eight 
years. Presumably he means in Zanzibar, for rather the reverse is 
nearer the facts in places suited for Para rubber. 
Production According to Age. 
The report of the Cicely Rubber Estates gives the following ac- 
count of the production of Para rubber as compared with the age of the 
trees : — Thus of 6,919 old trees at first the average was 1.32 lb a tree, 
next year 8,020 trees gave an average of 2.37 lb., the third year 9,000 
trees gave 4.85 lbs. a tree, and the fourth year 9,000 trees, of which 
3,000 had been rested, and 3,000 had not previously been tapped, gave 
6 lbs. per tree. 
AGRICULTURAL PROGRESS IN PERAK, F.M.S. 
The following notes on the Rubber planting situation are 
extracted from the Annual Reports of Government District Officers 
in Perak for 1908. 
Mr. E. J. Brewster reports that nothing very exciting took place 
in the way of planting during the year and says that the growth of 
Para rubber trees in the Kinta District is not to be compared with 
that on low country land. This would be expected in most parts of 
the Kinta valley where the chief industry is Tin Mining in a rather 
poor sandy soil. 
Mr. A. Hale, in his report cm the Larut and Krain District, says 
that the Rice crop was the best which he had known since he had 
been in charge of the District. The very dry weather, which continued 
