Big Interest

In Spices

Prom a Rabaul correspondent Such has been the interest in the series of articles on spices that has appeared in the Practical Planter section over recent months that planters in NG have asked for reprints of the series. And now investi

gations by the P-NG Depart

ment of Agriculture have shown that spices can be use ful in areas where the more common crops cannot be grown.

The department is currently working on the development of cardamom, nutmeg, vanilla, cin chona and pepper.

While these crops are not ex pected to have the multi-million dollar potential of tea and oil palm, there are still satisfactory market prospects for moderate scale production.

Cardamom, which would be a useful subsidiary crop, is growing well in the hill areas of Samarai Milne Bay District; at Morobe District, and is now be ing planted at Sogeri in the Central District. The crop, which takes between two and three years to bear, grows at altitudes between 2,000 ft and 3,000 ft. Cardamom’s current market value is $3 a lb.

Nutmeg has done particularly well at Murua, near Kerema, Gulf District, where the first worthwhile harvests have been made.

New vanilla planting material, introduced five years ago, has proved much better than the strain previously used.

Vanilla is being grown at Budia, Murua and Keravat, New Britain. Cured vanilla beans are worth up to $6 a lb.

There is a considerable potential in P-NG for cinchona, which is much in demand as a flavouring for soft drinks.

Pepper, which grows from the lowlands to 2,000 ft, is now planted in the Morobe, New Ire land, Milne Bay and Northern Districts.