The Commercial Products of the Vegetable Kingdom / Considered in Their Various Uses to Man and in Their Relation to the Arts and Manufactures; Forming a Practical Treatise & Handbook of Reference for the Colonist, Manufacturer, Merchant, and Consumer, on the Cultivation, Preparation for Shipment, and Commercial Value, &c. of the Various Substances Obtained From Trees and Plants, Entering into the Husbandry of Tropical and Sub-tropical Regions, &c.

by P. L. Simmonds

In limestone districts, where the tea has been tried, if the super-imposed soil has been thin and untransported, and this proved from the decomposition of the subjacent rock, the plant has generally failed; and this has been particularly the case where the limestone, by plutonic action, has become metamorphic. These districts, therefore, in forming plantations, are to be avoided.

From the writings of various authors, it appears that the districts where the tea-plant thrives best in China, have a geological structure very similar to that met with in many parts of the Himalayas, being composed of primitive and transition rocks.

Altitude above the sea best suited to the tea plant.—To state what altitude is best adapted to the growth of the tea-plant, and for the production of the best kinds of tea, will require much more observation. At present the tea-plant thrives equally well at Kaolagir, in the Deyrah Dhoon; at Russiah, in the Chikata district; at Huwalbaugh; at Kuppeena and Lutchmisser; and at Rumaserai, or at heights ranging from 2,200 feet above the level of the sea to 6,000 feet.

Moreover, the tea manufactured from leaves procured from Kaolagir, has been considered by the London brokers equal to that made from leaves procured from Lutchmisser and Kuppeena.

On the method of preparing ground prior to forming a plantation.—In forming a plantation, the first object of attention, both in the hills and in the Deyrah Dhoon, is a fence. In the former, to prevent the depredations of wild animals, such as wild hog, deer, &c., which abound in the hills, and though they do not eat tea leaves, yet hogs, in search of tubers, in the space of a single night will do much damage by uprooting young shrubs—in the latter, to prevent the straying of cattle. The first thing to be done, therefore, is to dig a trench three feet broad and two deep, and to plant a hedge, if in the hills, of black thorn (Cratœgus); if in the plains, the different species of aloe are best adapted for the purpose. The fence being formed, all trees and shrubs are then to be uprooted; this is very heavy work, both in the hills and plains, from the vast number of shrubs, allowed by natives (from indolence to remove them) to grow everywhere throughout their fields. Roads are then to be marked off.

After this has been accomplished, the land is to be drained, if necessary, by open drains—under drainage, for want of means and the expense, being impracticable—and then ploughed three or four times over. The beds for young tea-plants are then to be formed; these ought to be three feet in breadth, alternating with a pathway of two feet in breadth. By arranging beds in this manner much time and labour is saved in transplanting; in irrigation the water is economised, and in plucking tea leaves a road is given to the gatherer. In transplanting, each plant is allowed 4½ feet; this is at once gained, the beds and pathways being formed by placing in one direction the plant in the centre of the bed.

Trenching.—On the tea beds being marked off, they are to be trenched to a depth of from two to three feet, in order to destroy all the roots of weeds, which are to be carefully removed. The trenching is to be performed by the fowrah, or Indian spade.

In the hills, in many places the fowrah cannot be used, owing to the number of stones. The work is then to be done by the koatlah, a flat-pointed piece of iron, of about eight inches in length, which is inserted into a wooden handle. It is in form like the pick, and is much used in hill cultivation for weeding and opening up the ground. It is, however, not much to be commended for trenching purposes, as natives, in using it, never penetrate the ground beyond a few inches. For weeding, however, it is particularly useful, and to such soil is much better adapted than most other implements.

Formation of roads and paths.—In addition to the pathways of two feet in breadth, recommended to be formed between each bed, there ought, for general use, to be a four feet road carried round the plantation, and one of 10 feet through the centre. This applies to a limited plantation, that is, of from 200 to 400 acres. If, on the other hand, it was on a more extensive scale, several hackery roads of 10 feet in breadth would be necessary, in order to cart away weeds, &c., or carry manure to seedling beds.

On seeds when ripe, and method to be adopted to ascertain it.—In all September and October the tea seeds ripen, but in the more elevated plantations, as at Rumaserai, many do not ripen until November. The seeds are contained in a capsule, and vary in number from one to seven; to ascertain that they are ripe, open the capsule, although green, and if their color is a nut-brown, they are sure to be so. If they are not ripe, they are of a reddish-brown above, mixed with white. If the seeds are allowed to remain a short time on the bushes, after they are ripe, the capsules burst, and they fall out; it is necessary, therefore, to remove them before this takes place.