The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1911-06-07


itself best to breeding and selection.
AS long as the dioecious type is used
one must depend upon cross-fertiliza-
ton, and the characters cannot be
fixed as readily as where close fertil-
ization can be carried on. Moreover,
when the dioecious type is used, a
certain percentage of trees will provo
to be males, and therefore sterile.
A large amount of space in the orch
ards is thus lost, as well as the time
which has been expended in cultivat-
ing the male trees. There is consid-
cradle evidence that ultimately a
strain of papayas will be produced
which will come true to seed. Since
seed is the only apparent practical
means of propagating papayas, It
seems wise to make every possible
effort to obtain seed with fixed char
acters.
, 1t was considered desirable to
learn the state Of the market in San
Francisco for sweet potatoes during
the season when sweet potatoes are
not to be had in that city from local
sources. For this purpose two ship
ments were made from the station,
with the result that all varieties, of
whatever color, II of standard size,
were accepted at cents per pound
in San Francisco. The market price
of sweet potatoes in Honolulu Is usu-
ally from 10 cents to 81 per hundred.
1t would be, therefore, obviously a
good practice to make at least one
planting of sweet potatoes for the
purpose of shipment to California
sometime during the interval be.
tween the first Of May and the mid
die of July.
chronological Investigations.
During the year the attention Of
the entomologist was directed to a
number of miscellaneous insect out
breaks, to the insects of the sweet
potato, and certain enemies Of for
age crops, and to the propagation Of
parasites, particularly for the alga-
roba bean weevil. A bulletin on
sweet potato insects has been pre-
pared and will be issued during the
coming year Considerable time has
been spent in studying the insect
enemies of corn, and it is proposed to
take up a study of the chief pests
of the principal forage crops in Ha-
wall as occasion may offer.
More than 1000 parasites of bean
weevils, obtained through the Bureau
of Entomology of the United States
Department of Agriculture, in mes
quite pods, were reared at the station
and turned out at various points on
Oahu, Maui, and Molokai. The result
of this importation of parasites is not
yet apparent, but one egg parasite
appears to have become quite effect
i've during the past season.
Rubber.
Opportunity was had during the
year to visit all Of the commercial
rubber paintings Of the Territory.
These are located on the windward
side of Maui and in the Puma district
of Hawaii. A satisfactory growth is
manifested everywhere in the rubber
between the lowest altl-
tudes and an elevation of l ,400 feet.
No commercial paintings have been
made at higher elevations. On all OF
the plantations Ceara rubber grows
much more rapidly than Hevea rub
her. The latter does not make as
rapid growth in Hawaii as it is re-
ported to make in the Straits Settle
ments and Ceylon. The question
whether Hevea should be extensively
planted in Hawaii seems to depend
on whether the ultimate yield will be
enough larger than that Of Ceara to
counterbalance the long waiting pc
Rod for the first tapping.
Wherever clean cultivation has
been adopted, the growth OF the trees
is incomparably more rapid than
where no cultivation has been prar-
ticed. Trees which have receive
clean cultivation since planting are
larger at two years of age than six
year-old trees which have not been