Robbing The Palm Of

Its Fronds

By Elizabeth S. Williams

T™n haS t been comment about X the practice m Tonga of the cutting of coconut fronds.

The blame, if we can call it '’blame,'’ lies with the Tonga Copra Board.

In the early days > the Ton san people built their houses of “kaho” a reed, and thatched the roofs with coconut leaves. Later, when the Kaho died out, and our Tongan t h e i r houses.

At present, when about one third of the Tongan houses are built of European timber and galvanised iron, and their Patos (kitchens) are

constructed of old galvanised ir or Tongan timber, only half of t quantity of leaves are used.

Before the Copra Board start there were in each village two three trading stations weighing cc ra, mostly green and the poo] made copra in small lots. In rec( years—l am speaking of Haapa there is only one copra-weighi station, and one day per week allotted to each Island. The: fore, Copra is weighed in larger I and, as the Copra Board does r weigh by the bag, but in bask only, A.B.C. grade takes ma baskets.

The cutting of coconut fror does not harm the palm if it is dc within reason. Each leaf mal two baskets; and if only four are cut from each palm no hai is done. But if the party who ci the leaves climbs several palms i stead of one, and cuts the you centre leaves for making floor ma it will do the palm harm.

Mrs. Hennings, of Fiji, is corn when she states; “When ma fronds are removed, the palm h to produce more leaves before be£ ing more fruit. Without the suppi of its leaves, the growing bunch nuts will gradually lose hold, a is torn off by its own weight.”

Mrs Cameron spoke about pru ing. Pruning means cutting, think she meant “cleaning” aw the old dry leaves and other c substances hanging near the nuts