oo PARTI 
Mr. WORTLEY observed that buckwheat had the advantage of 
regenerating itself under certain conditions. 
Mr. TRENCH said that they had found that buckwheat had 
choked Macdonaldi; it kept down weeds and cleared the shamba in 
two years. 
Mr. KIRKHAM asked if any study had been made of the rate of 
loss of nitrogen from soil. He experimented with the red soil at 
Ngong and Kyambu, and found that in a period of nine or ten years 
the humus and nitrogenous matter had been reduced by 509%; this 
worked out at a loss of humus equivalent to ten tons of farmyard 
manure per acre per annum on soil with no cover crop. Maize crop 
soil would have more cover than coffee shambas. He thought that 
this was an important matter, emphasising the necessity of soil cover 
in connection with the subject of manuring. He was especially 
interested in this question in connection with the soils of Zanzibar, 
where they had some light soils which undoubtedly wanted some 
introduction of humus. If the green manures which Mr. Beckley had 
been speaking about were suitable for an altitude of 4,000 ft., he would 
be glad to receive suggestions for the coast districts. 
Mr. BECKLEY said that experiments had been for the higher 
altitude; but velvet bean and pigeon pea might be most suitable. 
Mr. KIRBY stated that the bonavist or lablab bean did very well 
at sea level in Tanganyika. 
Mr. TRENCH said that an interesting experiment had been made 
during the year with bituminous paper mulch; this had been used for 
a crop of cotfee and in nine months 1t was at least 6 inches taller than 
the adjoining trees, which had no mulch at all. The mulch also served 
to keep the soil damp in dry weather. 
Mr. KIRKHAM observed that Mr. Beckley had told them that 
the soil was very deficient in phosphates. With regard to this 
question, he had been making enquiries concerning Seychelles guano, 
but 1t was very ditiicult to obtain information. Seychelles guano was 
supposed to contain approximately 609%, calcium phosphates; the cost 
denvered at Zanzibar tor 400 ton lots was £3 10s. per ton. 
THE CHAIRMAN (Mr. Holm) said that the position with regard 
to the transport of Seychelles guano was that the British India Line 
was not permitted to carry on its passenger steamers more than 25 
tons of guano at a time; this was insufficient, except for individual 
needs. 'I'ne Company had informed him that if there were sufficient 
trade with the East African territories they could organise the sailing 
of steamers to carry about 400 tons. In Kenya, at the present time, 
they had about reached the position when orders could be placed for 
these small ship loads, and he thought that Zanzibar's present 
requirements might be met by the 25 ton lots transported by passenger 
steamer. 
He would like to support the views expressed by Mr. Simpson as 
to the value which Mr. Beckley’s paper might have on conditions of 
agriculture in East Africa in the future. He did not think that there 
was any doubt in the minds of those who had looked into the subject 
that, despite the fact that the soils of those territories as a whole 
possessed high productive capacity, there were to be found soil 
problems which it was the duty of Departments of Agriculture to 
investigate. = The great difficulty in his experience had always been 
ple