Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
in hand, serving foreign masters.''
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Prisiónverde was both a literary and
political project written to expose what its author viewed as unjust social
conditionsonbananaplantations.The''GreenPrison''wasametaphorfor
asystemofexportagriculturethatsubjugatedworkingpeopleandunder-
mined Honduran sovereignty. Therefore, the image of a fieldhand dying,
spray gun in hand, should not be interpreted literally. At the same time,
Amaya Amador's depiction of spray work bears a strong resemblance to
the procedures outlined in Dunlap's research bulletin.This is not surpris-
ing considering that the author worked brieflyon Standard Fruit's banana
plantations where he experienced Bordeaux spraying first hand. Equally
significant is the fact that both Prisiónverde—part novel, part primer on
labororganizing—and Dunlap's bulletin on Sigatoka control were largely
prescriptive narratives: both texts sought to present the meaning of spray
work in unambiguous terms.
The memories of former Bordeaux spray applicators simultaneously
resonate with, and complicate, scientific and literary depictions of Siga-
tokacontrolwork.CantalisioAndinoworkedfortheStandardFruitCom-
pany during the 1940s in the Aguán valley—not far from the birthplace
of Amaya Amador. First hired by the engineering department to assist
with land surveying, Cantalisio later switched to Bordeaux spray work
in order to earn higher wages.
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He recalled earning 3 lempiras ($1.50)
per eight-hour day, significantly more than the 2 lempiras he had been
makingasalandsurveyor.Eachsprayteamwasassignedtoafarmsection
(calle) consisting of five valves. Workers proceeded from valve to valve,
making designated entries (entradas) into side paths designed to ensure
that plants were thoroughly sprayed. Cantalisio noted that close coopera-
tion was required between the escopetero (sprayer) and the manguerero
(hose-hauler): a skilled hose-handler could anticipate where to place the
hose so that spraying would be more or less continuous. He also stressed
thatforemencloselysupervisedsprayteamsinordertoensurethatproper
techniques were employed. For example, escopeteros had to spray with an
arc-likemotion(medialuna)abovetheplantssothatthesprayfellasarain
onto the leaves: ''If they saw you spraying the leaf directly, the foreman
or spray master reprimanded you.'' Foremen also watched to ensure that
manguererospulledtheheavyhosefullyintotheentradainordertoensure
thorough spraying.
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If a foreman was unhappy with the effort, he might
get off of his mule and give the worker a lecture. According to Canta-
lisio,supervisorswerelessinclinedtoassistescopeteros: ''The thing that
thecapitánhated to dowas help onewith the nozzle. Because it splattered
andstained;itleftone'sbodysplatteredwithblue.''Cantalisiolearnedhow
