ENG-1976 — Page 85

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PRIMARY PRODUCTION

strains. The acreage of rice land has dropped from 23,353 acres in 1954 to 2,780 in 1976. Rice production continues to give way to intensive vegetable production, which gives a far higher return where there is adequate water and good road access.

The main vegetable crops are white cabbage, flowering cabbage, lettuce, Chinese kale, radish, watercress, leaf mustard, spring onion and chive. They grow all the year round, with the peak production period in the cooler months. Considerable quantities of water spinach, string bean, Chinese spinach, green cucumber and many other species of Chinese gourds are produced in summer, and a wide range of exotic temperate vegetables including tomato, sweet pepper, cabbage, celery, head lettuce, cauliflower and carrot are grown in winter. Straw mushroom is also produced, using industrial cotton waste as the growing medium. Among the common types of flowers, gladiolus and chrysanthemum grow all the year round; dahlia, rose, aster, snapdragon and carnation are grown in winter; and ginger lily and lotus flower in summer. A wide range of ornamental plants including philodendron, dieffenbachia, bamboo palm and poinsettia―are produced in commercial nurseries. Peach blossom and ornamental citrus are grown especially for the Lunar New Year. The area of land under vegetables and flowers has increased from 2,250 acres in 1954 to 12,410 acres in 1976.

Various types of fruit are grown on the lower hill slopes. The principal crops are longan, lychee, wampei, tangerine, local lemon, banana, guava and pineapple. Land under orchards in 1954 was 952 acres. By 1976 it was 1,520 acres.

Other field crops such as sweet potato, taro, yam and sugarcane are cultivated in the remote and drier areas where water and transport facilities are inadequate for growing vegetables or rice. Some 800 acres were under rainfed crops in 1976, com- pared with 3,480 acres in 1954.

To prevent the introduction and spread of injurious plant pests and diseases into Hong Kong, plant quarantine legislation was introduced in May 1976. Live plants excluding certain scheduled species may be imported if they are accompanied by a valid phytosanitary certificate and covered by an import licence. Importation of soil and plant pests is prohibited except under a special permit granted by the Director of Agriculture and Fisheries.

As there is insufficient land for extensive grazing, pigs and poultry are the principal animals reared for food. Pigs in Hong Kong are mostly crosses of local animals with exotic stock, and pure strains of the Chinese type are becoming difficult to find. Although locally produced pigs represented only 16 per cent of total pigs killed in 1976, their value was $147 million.

With an annual production value of $211 million, the poultry industry—including ducks, pigeons and quail-is continuing to develop on a more sophisticated basis. Farmers are adopting advanced methods of management and successfully adapting them to local conditions, taking the process through from locally bred chicks to table birds with both local breeds and imported hybrids.

While local cattle and buffaloes are used mainly for work, imported Friesians are kept by dairies—of which the largest is on Hong Kong Island and the others in the New Territories. Regular tuberculin testing is carried out on all dairy animals.