1878.] 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



•1\\ 



Literature, Travels i Personal Notes. 



COMMUNICA TIONS. 



SCRAPS FROM A BRAZILIAN JOURNAL. 



BY E. s. ija>;l», jk. 

 It is ditRcult for one whose winters have always 

 been spent in a northern clime to realize that these 

 glorious, balmy da} s are December and Januar}'. 

 In front of the large open veranda upon which I 

 write, is a large orange tree loaded with ripen- 

 ing fruit and just bursting into blossom. Nearer, 

 a huge Calabush tree, Crescentea Cvjete, hangs 

 full of the immense green fruit, showing most 

 conclusively that thoutih nature has placed the 

 pumpkin on the ground, and the acorn on the 

 tree, it was not from ignorance how to suspend 

 the pumpkin. Plants that with us are purely 

 greenhouse specimens, here grow into great 

 bushes, and are covered with a wealth of flowers. 



One of the surest ways of becoming familiar 

 with the fruits of a country is to visit the markets. 

 Here (in Para) the market opens at day-light ; 

 so immediately after cotfee we walked to the 

 lower market, a long, low, ambling structure, 

 and not especially clean ; but the display was 

 most interesting. Although not the season of 

 fruit, there was no lack, and great piles of 

 oranges, baskets of limes, bananas, such as one 

 never sees out of the tropics, and many other 

 fruits left us in doubt which to try first. 



The oranges are of medium size, generally 

 dark colored or greenish, very sweet and very 

 cheap ; a few cents will buy a basketfull. To 

 tliose who have tasted oranges fresh from the 

 tree no words of description are necessary ; to 

 those who have not, no words will convey an 

 idea. The banana probably suffers less from 

 transportation than any other tropical fruit, but 

 there is a delicate flavor to those ripened under 

 a tropical sun which those we get in temperate 

 zones never attain. There were many varieties, 

 generally 5"ellow, though the large I'ed were not 

 uncommon, and there were many of the long 

 slender yellow, but the greater proportion were 

 very small varieties, about as long as the middle 

 finger, and deliciously sweet and melting. The 

 limes, Cifrvs limetia, were small, round, bright 

 yellow, and very fragrant ; strange to say lemons 

 are not grown ; I have not seen one in Brazil ; 

 I was told that the climate was too hot, but can 

 hardly believe it. Leaving the market we 

 walked along the quay, shaded by a magnificent 

 line of palms (Oreodoxa regia) and pjvssed the 



custom house, within a stone's throw of which 

 we found large clumps of t"he showy orange milk- 

 weed (Asclepius curassaviica) which we grow in 

 greenhouses. In a narrow ditch near at hand a 

 light purple Pontederia was in full bloom, and 

 some tall Colocasias had a showy, but ill-smell- 

 ing white flowers. A few steps further there was 

 plenty of a beautiful white Pancratium or more 

 properly n3-menocallis, a tangle of liglit purple 

 Lantana, and a wilderness of strong growing 

 Convolvulus with a light purple flower. The tall 

 Assai palms (Euterpe caulis) are very beautiful, 

 and the strinss of purple fruit very ornamental. 

 This fi'uit, whicli we saw in great quanties in the 

 market, is about the size of a marble ; when ripe 

 the purple pulj) is rubbed oft" of the seed In water. 

 is sweetened and drank as a beverage or taken 

 with farina. In appearance it resembles elder- 

 berry tea ; to most tastes it is not at first agree- 

 able, but one soon learns to like it. Some tall 

 fences were a mass of bright scarlet cypress 

 vines (Quamoclit coccinea) the air was heavy 

 with the fragrance of masses of jasmine (Jasmi- 

 num Sambac). Castor oil beans (Ricinus) grew 

 into trees aud orange Lantanas formed huge 

 bushes. * * * 



We visited the old Botanic Garden, which has 

 for years been neglected and allowed to grow to 

 a mass of foliage. There were many large 

 palms, but all Brazilian species ; a hedge of the 

 pink and white Clerodendron in full bloom and' 

 scenting the air ; Cape Jasmines (Gardenia), 

 and Taberna?montana coronaria, large enough 

 to sit under. A large pond was full of 

 Pontederia crassipes in full bloom, the tall 

 spikes of light purple flowers are very orna- 

 mental. 



All through the garden and by the road sides. 

 Caladiums in many varieties, with bright leaves, 

 were weeds. 



There were tall Papaw trees (Carica citri- 

 formis) full of yellow fruit which is edible, but 

 insipid. It is called by the Bvazilians, "Mamma 

 or Papa," as the plant is dioeious. There was 

 also a tall tree of Plumiera rubra in abundant 

 bloom. * * * * 



On a second visit to tlwj market we found a 

 most meagre display of vegetables-, tomatoes 

 about the size of a large walnut, a few small 

 turnips, cabbage leaves, for in the tropics cab- 

 bage does not head ; onions, little bunches of 

 Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) and a profusion 



