Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 30, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 February 1917 — GROWING OF COCA LEAVES [ARTICLE]

GROWING OF COCA LEAVES

•vt*-"'*-Maintenance of an Extensive Plantation Demands Much Care - and Work. The cultivation of coca leaves Is very similar to that of tea. The bushes ate kept at a height of four to six feet by severe pruning. Under the most favorable conditions of growth, such as the island of Java affords, it is possible to Collect the leaves at short intervals throughout the entire year. Nevertheless the maintenance of an extensive coca plantation demands much care and-~-wprlc keeping out weeds and pests, thereby raising the production price of the leaves consld-. erably. r-- — The general view of one of these plantations is especially pleasing. The light-green luxuriant foliage of the coca bushes, that carpet the rolling hillsides for miles around, contrasting with the dark green foliage of the trees of adjoining rubber estates, while all is surrounded by dark depths of virgin forests, makes a landscape that is beautiful Indeed.