56 
PEPPER GROWING IN UPPER SARAWAK. 
The ground is now left for one to two months to dry 
and is kept quite free of weeds, etc., whilst good drains 
are made all round. 
Next the ground round the sticks is hoed to the 
depth of a foot and then piled up to form small mounds 
about one foot six inches high, and to these mounds 
is carried the burnt earth obtained from the burning of 
the stumps, etc. 
Planting. 
The vine is invariably propagated by cuttings, plants 
from seeds proving too unreliable, these cuttings are 
obtained from the terminal shoots of ij to 2\ year old vines; 
these vary in price but can generally be bought for £ cts. a 
piece. They are planted straight out, nurseries not being 
necessary, the cuttings are from i' 6 " to 2' long and 
when planted should have four to six joints covered 
by the soil; they are planted at an angle of about 
45 0 on the east side (as a rule) of the' centre stick 
at a depth of four to six inches, with the top of the 
cutting leaning up the stick; they are covered with 
fern leaves, or grass, as protection against the sun, 
and this protection is left on till the cutting has begun to 
shoot, say ij to 2 months. In dry weather the cuttings 
may need watering. The cuttings within a week or so of 
being planted receive a first small application of burnt 
earth which is afterwards applied regularly every 4 
months; in some cases, they apply one basket every 
month for the first year. After some eighteen months of 
the burnt earth treatment, ordinary or “raw earth” is 
substituted, and the vines show excellent growth after 
this application; if, however, it is continued for more than 
one application the vines immediately begin to fall off. 
The “ raw earth ” chosen is alternately the stiff yellow 
clay and the best top soil; the vines thus receive a 
dressing of either one or the other about every fifteen 
months. As soon as necessary the young shoots are tied 
to the stick with soft bark or twine, and after 4 to 
6 months the permanent posts which are of the hardest 
wood obtainable, bilian, sauwer, or resak, 12' long by 
roughly 4" square (minim.), are placed 2' deep in the 
centre of each mound, the temporary stick being 
discarded and the vine transferred to the post. 
