By Colin Leslie Beadon
In the Barbados Advocate on Saturday February 25, 2012 the front page headline read: “Take More Risks”.
That headline says it all. The island of Barbados is an advanced one in so many ways, yet there are areas where it falters far behind.
I’ll take on two right here and now:
One: In no other island in the West Indies is there such a lack of fruit trees. It is as though people hate the idea of growing a fruit tree in Barbados. Go into any garden in other islands and you’ll find mango and avocado, oranges, limes, breadfruit, bananas, and usually at least one or two coconuts trees. The coconut trees can be of the dwarf kind, just a few feet tall, but bearing large nuts. In Brunei, I saw coconut trees in gardens about four feet high, with huge nuts touching the ground, so no winds could blow that down and destroy a home.
Two: We are being stupid and backward about the 50 000 highly important and healthful uses of industrial hemp. Hemp-made products are used in just about everything you can think of, including human and animal foods, and fuels. On top of that, we could get three crops a year, maybe four, instead of just one of sugar. Hemp-made shoes, clothes, and handbags last much, much longer than those made of other products. Hemp is a much stronger, longer lasting product than cotton and it can be mixed with cotton or anything else as a composite.
Read complete article here:
http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=letters&NewsID=23118