COTTON PROBLEMS IN LOUISIANA. 13 



these should prove adapted to the summer tropical conditions found 

 in Louisiana. Southern China is a region with a variable continental 

 climate, not unlike that of Louisiana, where many of the more hardy 

 types of tropical plants have been cultivated for long periods of time 

 and contribute to the support of enormous agricultural populations. 



Even among the tropical plants already established in the United 

 States there are some that are capable of much more extensive utili- 

 zation than at present. The chayote and the dasheen may serve as 

 illustrations of tropical crops now available for use in Louisiana. 

 The chayote, or '' mirliton," as it is usually called in the New Orleans 

 markets, is a member of the squash family, producing a large climb- 

 ing vine and an edible fruit with excellent possibilities of finding a 

 place in northern markets. The reason why the chayote has not 

 attracted more attention in Louisiana may be that the variety now 

 grown about New Orleans is of only indifferent quality in com- 

 parison with others that are known to exist in Central America. 

 Throughout the table-lands of Central America the chayote is the 

 favorite garden vegetable and is grown in larger quantities than 

 any other.^ 



The dasheen is a superior variety of the taro, a plant used very 

 extensively on the Pacific islands and other tropical countries. 

 It is a starchy root crop, corresponding roughly to the potato, 

 and in some respects actually superior. It grows m moist, rich land, 

 and there are varieties that thrive even in swamps. The chief prob- 

 lem here, as with the chayote. is one of utilization, that is, of an 

 effective introduction of the plant to the consuming public.- 



The possibility of developing a stable and profitable system of 

 agTiculture in Louisiana is of more than local interest, on account of 

 its relation to the national problem of control of the Mississippi 

 Eiver. The value of land for agricultural purposes is a very impor- 

 tant factor in determining the feasibility of developing an effective 

 system of river control. The introduction and establishment of more 

 profitable crops might change the situation completely. Lands used 

 for the production of cotton in the valley of the Nile are valued as 

 high as $1,000 an acre. Any approach to such values for agi'icultural 

 lands in the Mississippi Valley would place the problems of river 

 control and reclamation on an entirely different footing. But time is 

 required for the realization of any such possibilities. Any new crop 

 must pass through an experimental period. The habits of the plant 

 and its reactions to the local conditions must be learned, cultural 

 methods must be devised, and superior varieties must be bred or 



1 Cook, O. F. The chayote : A tropical vegetahle. U. S. Department of Agricnltnre, 

 Division of Botany. Bulletin 28, 31 p.. S pi., liiiil. 



- Youn,sr, R. A. The dasheen, a root crop for the Southern States. U. S. Department of 

 Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry. Circular 111", p. 1!5-:;G, '-i lig., lOlo. 



ICir. 130] 



