The Hawaiian gazette., 1896-10-06

IL to 2 feet from the ground should
always be destroyed, and only in case
a big space is found between the
branches, should sprout be left, in
order to make up for this defect Prun-
ing should be done after the rainy sea-
son on such trees as have borne fruit,
and directly after the crop has been
gathered. This operation should be
resorted to once year, because other
wise twigs sprout everywhere, and it is
impossible for the sap to supply nour-
ishment to such numerous outlets and
at the same time be productive. To
obtain the largest and most constant
production is certainly the most i'm
portant object of pruning. The dry
twigs found on the trees after the crop
should be torn off with the hands only;
for the soft parts. shears must be used;
for the bark and smaller branches, a
sharp knife will do; but trunks and
strong branches are better pruned with
a fine, sharp, and small saw.
The pruning ought to be done with a
perfectly clean cut. as the coffee tree
suffers greatly from any wounds that
may be left by the instruments; for
this reason, close pruning is very dan
gerous
The careful planter will every year
observe whether the plants already set
out become diseased or withered, re-
placing these and those that have died.
For this reason, as stated before, the
nursery ought TO contain three times
the number of plants.
Generally. if the soil of the planta-
ton is originally of sufficient fertility,
little or no manure will be required, If
the leaves that fall annually from the
trees and the vegetation that grows
between the rows are turned under the
soil TO decay.
An excellent manure is made from
alternate layers of sugar-cane refuse,
of the hull and pulp of the coffee ber~
~. yard manure, and bone dust. Fer
tilizers should be applied only to those
plantations that show weakness and
decay, and, excepting animal manure,
should not be put on during the dry
season. The best time to apply all fer
tilizers is during the rains; about in
.ches in depth of manure will last three
years.
HARVESTING THE CROP.
In districts having the necessary fac
tors to make them first class, the plant
will begin to flower from eighteen to
twenty months after transplanting,
and the third to fourth year OF growth.
In districts less fertile, the plant does
net flower until the second year after
transplantingr and in very poor ones,
until the third year. In low places and
districts of an elevation less than 200
feet above the sea level, the trees begin
to flower in the month of January and
the Towering season lasts until March
In medium high places, as early as
February the coffee twigs begin to
break out into small, white blooms
and by July they will be in the green
berry.
In districts of about 1000 or $500
feet altitude the tree is still Towering
as late as June or July. In lower ele-
waited places the fruit begins to mature
about September and by the end OF
October all the berries are ripe, but in
sections of medium height the picking
usually begins in November and lasts
until the end of February or March.
When the berries have deep red color
or nearly red-black they are picked
separately by hand and dropped into
a small bag about Is inches square,
suspended from the neck of the picker;
when full the bags are emptied into
baskets measuring from so to rs
pounds, which are placed at intervals
in the path of the pickers. The quick
est and most preferable way to gather
the crops is to spread cloths beneath
the trees and have the berries shaken
into them. In wet weather the berries
should not be allowed to get overripe.
The crop is generally gathered by
women and children, who are paid %
cents per basket, each basket produc-
ing from 10 to Is pounds of clean COT
fee. About three bushels of berries can
be picked by a good worker in day,
and this quantity will yield about 80
pounds of dry coffee.
YIELD OF MEXICAN TREES.
The first yield of a tree cultivated in
a suitable location produces from to
4 ounces of merchantaDle coffee dur
ing the year; the second crop yields
twice as much, and the third crop,
when it has its full bearing, is double
the yield of the previous year, and
runs up as high as ~ pounds. Of
course this is fair average given, and
in many fertile districts of Chiapas,
Michoacan, Oaxaca, Hidalgo, Guerrero
and Puebla official reports give from 3
to pounds per tree in its full growth
and from four years after transplant
ing.
The yield OF coffee depends mainly
on the climate, soil and cultivation; in
in the hot zone, along the low sections,
the tree is apt to be very prolific but
the PRODUCTIVE bean-must necessari-
ly be light and shallow and the plant
short lived. A pound per tree on an
average would be a very good return.
The tree in some districts lives for
twenty years after reaching its full
bearing period, maintaining itself in a
vigorous state and giving the same
yield; but experienced planters assert
that after the twenty-fifth year the
plant begins to show symptoms of de-
cay, its crops decreasing gradually year
after year and ceasing altogether about
the thirtieth year.
Trees planted at medium distance
apart, having a fine quality of soil,
good care from time of planting, and
careful attention with them when seed
lings, will yield good crop at 80 years
of age The longevity of the Mexican