396 QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. {1 Nov., 1897. 
Whatever may be the mode of preparing the land or of planting, the 
width between the rows, growing the plants to single or more stems, manuring, 
or any other system, I consider disbudding to be the mainspring of success. 
Keeping the bushes in good form and in a condition to bear large crops of 
fine cherry will depend entirely upon this process being carried out. I do not 
know whether or not this is recommended in any of the books extant on 
coffee cultivation.* Anyone who has cultivated peaches on walls in the old 
country can see the reason for this disbudding. Coffee, cherry, and peaches 
are borne on last season’s wood ; the peach shoot may be 10 inches long, and on 
if, there are as many buds besides its flowers. If there is no more wall-space 
to cover, there is only one of these buds required, and that is the one at the 
base of the shoot now bursting into flower and wood. All the buds are 
therefore pulled off, except the one at the base. There may be as many fruit 
“set” as there are buds to be pulled off. These are also reduced to one; as 
this undisturbed shoot grows, it is laid close to the wall, and at the winter 
pruning the shoot that has borne the fruit is cut away and the new one takes 
its place. If there is wall-space to cover, the terminal bud is allowed to grow; 
if not, the point is pinched out at four leaves. Now this is just about what iy 
required to be done with the coffee-bush. To-day I measured a bearing 
shoot for this season; it was 2 feet 3 inches long, and had twenty-one joints, 
That means forty-two leaves. The axil of each of these leaves is crowded with 
flower-buds and also with shoots, so that there are forty-two shoots. As only 
one or three of these at the farthest is required, it follows that there will be 
about forty shoots in the way, and these must be removed, and the same 
mode of procedure adopted as in the peach. The bud at the base must be 
saved; and as there are generally more than the two laterals at the base, 
by all means save the one that is on the top, and that will grow out in a line 
with the shoot upon which it is growing; but if there is not a starting bud 
either above or below them, one of the lateral ones must be saved, but they 
have a tendency to grow across the other branches. If the bush is large 
enough to occupy its allotted space on the ground, the point must be pinched 
out of the bearing shoot, but, if the bush is not full-sized, then the point must 
be allowed to grow and a lateral to fill up the widening circumference. Tt will 
be very plain that, if all the forty-two were allowed to grow, there would be 
little chance of any of these shoots growing to a length of 2 feet 3 inches; 
indeed, there would be a thicket of tiny useless “ wood.” It may be thought 
they can be removed at pruning time, but what a waste of energy, and what 
would be the strength of those left? Indeed, when disbudding is followed, 
little or no pruning is required; the whole vital power of the plant has been 
engaged in producing the “ wood” required, and there has been no waste of 
power. It may be thought that this would involve a large amount of labour, 
but it does not require so much labour as pruning at what is called pruning 
time. Again, the tyro may think that is an operation requiring a good deal of 
study and experience, but the thing so explains itself that any intelligent man, 
woman, boy, or girl may learn it in a few minutes; and the farmers’ boys and 
girls when they return from school, by spending a half-hour or so, will doa 
great deal towards it, and they must be paid for the job, and by the job. 
Now, a few words about doing the work. If the shoot has “ broken’’ its buds, 
a glance will satisfy the operator as to the one, two, or three which are to be 
left. If they have only two young leaves, they will break off easily ; but if 
they have got four leaves, they must be cut—the finger and thumb only are 
required to pinch off, so that a knife can be held by the rest of the fingers. A. 
penknife is the best. In pinching they must be all bent downwards, for, if 
bent upwards, some of the flower-buds will come with them, but when bent 
down no buds will be destroyed. As all the shoots do not “ break” their buds 
at the same time, the bushes must be gone over several times. In rich scrub 
*The practice is recommended by H. A. A. Nicholls, M.D., F.L.S., in his “ Text-book of 
Tropical Agriculture”; also in the ‘‘Coffee Planter’s Manual” (J. Ferguson, editor of the 
Ceylon Observer and Tropical Agriculturist), under the head of ‘‘Handling.”—Ed, Q.4.J. 
