The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1896-08-25
Experienced Planter Writes of
Hawaiian Coffee Growing.
COFFEE DISTRICTS COMPARED.
Quite Marked Difference Betwee II
Kona and sOlaa-When and How TO
Prune Instruments to be Used.
Suggestion to small Planters.

Although every intelligent man inter
ested in the cultivation of coffee in these
Islands is familiar with the object OF
pruning a coffee tree, many of them,
will venture to say, have never had
any practical experience in the work
| itself May l ask you, therefore, to
grant me the favor of little space in
your valuable paper, to give brief de-
| scription as to how the works which
| form the heading of this article were
carried on in Ceylon, with some hints
as to the manner in which such opera
tions should be modified to suit the re-
quirements of the coffee tree in Ha-
waii.
What little knowledge 1 possess on
the subject was derived from practical
illustrations in the field, from compe-
tent coffee planters of many years
standing in that Island.
must add, however, that there is as
much diversity of opinion among cof-
fee planters in some of the details of
their business as exist among the medi-
cal profession.
At the same time, the principals upon
which all their works were based are
sound, and are the outcome of many
failures and long years of patience and
perseverance. 1t must be duly consid-
cred, however, that the experience of
one country cannot be applied to an
other without certain notifications be-
ing made to suit the altered and local
conditions of a new district.
No hard and fast rules can be laid
down for either pruning or handling,
for no two districts are alike. There
is as much difference between Kona and
Olaa, in conditions as affecting the
growth and development of a coffee
tree, as would be found on drawing a
comparison between Ceylon and Ha-
waii.
With an experience in both districts
l am convinced that the mode should
adopt for pruning and handling tree
in Kona would not be suitable to Olaa
and vice versa For instance, in the
former district from two to three hand
Iings in the year would be sufficient,
whereas in the latter the trees would
require from five to six. l know of one
place which I pruned where new sec
ondaries were reproduced so rapidly,
and such clusters that they required
removing regularly once month. The
manager at present on that plantation
can corroborate this statement.
A great many, if not all of the plan
ters, possess some work on coffee plant
ing, and it is a singular fact, that the
greater number of such books, while
referring to coffee in other countries,
treat on the industry in Ceylon in par
ticular Among some 1 have seen L
may mention E. P Hull, Sabonadiene,
Lock, Arnold, Walsh and the Coffee
Planters Manual. +,
Although these works are all very
good in their way, and afford many
useful hints, mere books knowledge by
itself is of little value to the would-be
coffee planter. The old saying, "a little
knowledge is a dangerous thing" ap-
plies with equal force in the present
case A man might read up all the
books PUBLISHED on the subject and yet
make failure of coffee planting in
Hawaii. Ordinary intelligence with