, 1877-12-15
HINTS TO PLANTERS mo. 2.
From tie Barbados West Indian.)

Sir.-In our last I advanced the state
inert tina. we all are planting more land
in cares than we can pro6tably cultivate
in r~eliancs on our own farm-yard manure
alone ; and that foreign manure-grano
is my favourite-judiciously used, will
give a profit of cent per cent and the
inferencs is, t1at with such an auxiliary
there is no need to curtail our cane Gull
tivation. On the contrary, wish now to
show, how that we may be encouraged
while sugar commands not less than ELS
n cask, 10 increase our cane-bearing acre.
age, until all the lands at all capable Of
yielding the stap'e-crop to advantage, are
brought under cane cultivation. In doing
this | must necessarily measure either peo-
pies corn by my w busheI, for it ia the
only unit OF measul ement at my disposal {;
that 10 to say, | shall assume that what
can be acc pmplished on one estate, will
be found practicable, that end no more,
on another, in proportion to its area my
own rxpelienc. alone being responsible
for my statements and suggestions. On
an estate ofnear 500 acres, possessing
about the usual proportion OF good, in
dlf.,ens. aud poor land, ] 6nd that ! can
maxi up compost adequate only to ma
nure so acres 0! Canes. We mrke up our
manure urdpr cover in the yard, and it con-
aisrs "fevery soap of vegetable stuff that
can be ra ed nd scraped together, the
~droppings Of The sock. and occasionally a
little light drainage mould brought from
the lands most contiguous to the yard.
With my best endeavours exerted, enough
only can be had for GO acres, at the rate
of 60 lbs to the cane hole. Bat we
plart 100 acres in canes, and a moiety
therefore has to depend solely on guano.
l should be sorry to tre"t a field year
tfter year with guano alone, or even for
two years for it is my belief, that though
we throw over in this country. as a gen
eral rule, a rotation of crops, We who
u e cuano, must strictly observe a rota-
ton OF manure. My jnvariable plao
is 10 treat with compost for this
crop, the lards manured last season
vii guano, But it may be said
you eau do this on an estate when you
liant 1870 &C, es, and make up manu-
enough for 60 acres-just ha'f-but how
would the plan serve, il you increase the
cane bearing acreage as is suggested A
little cons lOefatlOn VIII SHOW lDdG tucIe ~
no real difficulty. If from my 100 acres.
1 an in the habit of reaping 24o hogsheads,
and / converted 40 acres of pasture to
cane land. giving me 20 acres more each
year than l now plent, that is to say a
planting area of 40 acres instead OF 100,
I would then reap $50 hogsbeads ; and the
decreased quantity Of canetops, green and
drv. and the increased field trash, from the
go cane-bearing acres, and The increased
weight 81 vegetable stuff procurable from
the 80 acres awaiting the next planting.
together with the increased profits accru-
ine from the augmented crop Of sugar,
would justify the purchase Of, and make
practicabla the maintenance Of additional
stock /; and with more money. more stock.
nbd more fodder, and more litter, there
Would Of course be more farm-yard man.
ufe : fodeed the one would 90 keep the
other company that there might, according
e ri. :yyssesas & aski5g oP SOD /. m e1s !.