The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-06-08
BANANA CULTIVATION,
Propagated from Shoots-Its Great Pl
ductiveness

Propagated from shoots-Its Great Pro-
ductiveness.
Among the staple fruits of tropical coun-
tries the banana and the plantain are every
where found, and their use is universal.
At one time they were considered great
detriment by the sugar:planters of the West
Indies, for the reason that they enabled the
negroes to subsist without the necessity
of doing much work. In Jamaica every
negro had a few planted in the small clear
ing around his hut, and bunch of the
fruit would feed him and his family for q
week. When SO provided he saw no need
to 90 out to work in the cane fields. But
improved c communication and an ever in
creasing demand for the banana gave, some
15 years ago, a great impetus to its Guilt
va ton, and instead of being product to
be hated, 1t was found to be one of great
profit for expectation. At first the banana
walks were made anywhere ON the
estate, generally on an abandoned
cane field, which cost less to clean, but
experience soon taught the planter that
certain sites suited the tree best. He
found that the best place for banana walk
was valley or a hillside, having western
prospect. In cultivation the banana plant
is peculiar. The large leaves attract the
dew, and in the early morning patch of
bananas looks as if 1T were encrusted with
diamonds. The drops of dew are soon evap-
are shaded the plant absorbs most of the
moisture. The ground for the intended
patch is thoroughly cleaned and "stubbed. .
Then suckers must be obtained, as the
banana is only known to seed in one small
spot on the earth, viz; the Andaman
islands. These suckers sprout from the
root of the banana tree when it is one year
old, they are torn from the parent tree and
may be shipped long distances, being
hardy and long lived. About 400 or 500
trees are planted to the acre. and now the
chief care is to see that the weeds, and es-
pecially the creeping ones. are kept down;
otherwise they will soon choke the young
plant. The banana tree bears fruit in its
first year. The bunch hangs down on a
stem which springs from the tree just under
its froud of leaves. This stem extends be-
yond the fruit. ending in purple cone. un-
flowers. As each bunch becomes full, but
while still green, the tree is chopped down
with one or two blows from a "machete,' =
great care being taken that the fruit is not
bruised. The bunch is then carried ON the
head of negro to dray that carries it
down to port. The punches are packed
between layers of trash and on being un-
loaded from the drays are sorted into "nines'
.eiehts,'' ETC.: that is to say, into hand
lunches of those numbers. A '.handf of
bananas is one of the small portions that
60 to make up bunch. Bananas are paid
for with ready money on the beach, accord
ing to the number of ..hands.o In January.
February and March they are cheapest, and
in April, May and June they bring about
quadrupple what they sold for in the three
earlier months. In good year bunch of
bananas costs from four to five cents to
land at the beach. all expenses included.
The planter, while he makes large profits
in barana raising. has his risks, however. A
hurricane will in an hour destroy every
tree, and for that year the cultivation is, Of
course. a dead loss. The thefts of the
negroes. also. form no small item OF loss in
Jamaica and Honduras. AS soon AZ the
banana begins TO give good shade the
spaces between the trees are planted with
the cocoa, a tree that must have shelter
from the sun. Almond trees and the
Hamboyant are also planted to give the
shade for the cocoa, when the bananas
have ceased to bear profitably, that is, in
three or four years. Within tbs past do
cade some of the Central American states
have become large sources Of our banana
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