The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1880-04-14

coffee or tea. The best climate IS
one which has moderate winds and
rains, and the tree does best on rich
soils. 1t is reported that the Cincho-
ma plantations made by the British
Government at Hakgalla, Ceylon,
suffered last year from too much
rain. An unusually wet season in
jured and destroyed a large part of
the grove. This was partly owing to
destructive floods, and partly to the
water standing about the roots of the
young trees, but many Of these trees
have grown again from the base.
In India much has been done in
the way of successful cultivation of
the chichona. A few years ago
the Indian Government sent bota
mist TO New Grenada for the purpose
OF procuring plants of those species
OF Cinchona which yield the SOFT
Columbian" and the Hard Carvha-
gena" oarks OF commerce. He was
to take these to England first, Tor
propagation, thence to be transmitted
to India. He procured FIVE wardian
cases and 600 plants. Bark OF the
SOFT Columbian (CaIisaya) when
Analysed yielded 6.24 per cent. OF
alkaloids, OF which 1926 per cent.
was quinine. The only variety of
the Hard Carthagena Cinchona con-
sidered valuable was a species from
Coralis INA, in the Magdalena
Valley, which yielded 4.75 per cent.
ofalkaloids. These varieties were
procured on the head-waters Of the
Amazon, and were conveyed to Kew
Garden, London, where they were
cared for, and propagated as fast as
possible, by both root and branch
cuttings.
In Jamaica, also, much has been
done with Cinchona. In the parish
OF Manchester there are trees now
seven years old, growing at an eleva-
ton OF 1000 feet above the sea, and
they are OF an average height Of 70
teet. The largest are 30 feet high,
With a trunk feet III circumference.
These trees are growing in ordinary
SOIL A few hundred pounds of bark,
stripped from these trees, was sent to
England in 1878, and sold Tor As
cents per pound. The report OF the
English Government, from which we
CLEAN these facts, states that the best
altitude tor Clnchdna i'll that island is
1000 teet. 1t woald certainly seem
as ii the eeunts-pskt--eo- the. climate
OF Il 5000 feet height in Jamaica
could be found i'll our State.
We are also informed that bark OF
CincItOna Succirubra, grown on this
island, sold in London last year as
high as "a cents. per pound. A gen
tlelnan Ill charge Ut some Cnchona
plantations i'll Jamaica writes TO Sir
Joseph Hooker, the eminent bolanist,
and states that he cut down 100
trees Of l0-year-old q. succru6rd.
They yielded 1860 pounds OF green
bark, which dried TO 4l5 pounds, and
sold for Two hundred and torlytour
dollars Three hundred trees were
planted each acre, SO that Cinchona
culture has been proved to be quite
profitable. The wood is of course
valuable for fuel, and the trees, when
cut down, sprout from the stump.
Returns once ill ten years OF over
, seven hundred dollars per acre, OF
seventy dollars per year, are worth
attention. The plantation on which
these results were obtained is to be
extended by one hundred acres.
A recent letter from Willis
Weaver OF Bogota to Commissioner
lie Duo, urges Cinchona culture
upon Calitornians. 1t stated that
profits Ut $4,000 per acre had been
| yielded in a few authenticated cases,
the bark being Of most valuable
species, bringing $l.75 per pound i'll
the English markets. In Bogota,
altitude 1860 feet, temperature 6O
degrees Fahrenheit, and where there
are heavy trosts, Csnchoo0 Cor1!to-
tia grows, and even thrives l 900 feet
higher up the mountain side. The
true Clncaona region varies from
800 to 6Oo, according TO the
species, but G. Succirat6rG is not sue
cesstul i'll temperature below CO.
and 700. The Cinchona belt evil
IDENTIFY covers AZ , extreme variation,
and some single varieties have a
range OF over 3Oo. On the Andes
The oak and walnut grow alongside
the Clnchona, and the apple, peach
and wild cherry occupy the same
range. The plantations Of India are
about the latitude OF Los Angeles,
and at d considerable elevation.