BOTANICAL GARDENS OF JAMAICA MAXON. 531 



to Kingston led eventually to its development in part as a pleasure 

 garden for the inhabitants of that city, but a more immediate cause 

 of its establishment was the need of a drier locality than Castleton 

 for the propagation and experimental study of many plants of eco- 

 nomic importance to the island, particularly sugar cane, of which 

 upward of 60 varieties had been received from Mauritius and Mar- 

 tinique in 1872 and 1873. During the two following years the cane 

 varieties were all removed from Castleton to Hope and planted in 

 plots totaling 5 acres; 10 acres was planted to teak. Gradually dur- 

 ing the next few years, and coincidentally with the development of 

 Hope as a pleasure garden, the more utilitarian phases of purely 

 tropical agricultural work were transferred from Castleton, and all 

 similar activities were at length (1879) combined under a department 

 of public gardens and plantations, with Doctor (later Sir) Daniel 

 Morris in charge. Morris, upon his appointment as assistant direc- 

 tor at Kew in 1886, was succeeded by Hon. William Fawcett, under 

 whose direction, and with the able assistance of the late William 

 Harris, subsequently superintendent of public gardens, the possi- 

 bilities of Hope were brought to full realization. Within recent 

 years Hope Gardens and agricultural experimental station, and the 

 other botanical gardens in the island, have been placed under a 

 newly organized department of agriculture, Hon. H. H. Cousins, 

 director. 



The influence of Hope Gardens and of the work there directed has 

 been pronounced, and effective over a much wider area than con- 

 tained within the narrow limits of Jamaica. Experimental work 

 on tropical crop plants has consistently remained the leading fea- 

 ture, and experimental grounds and nurseries very naturally occupy 

 the greater part of the Gardens. Here may be seen extensive plant- 

 ings of sugar cane in many varieties, coffee, numerous varieties of 

 banana and cacao, kola, mangoes, pineapples (" pines ") of many 

 varieties, ginger, rubber-yielding trees, oranges and other citrus 

 fruits, spice plants of several kinds, tobacco, vanilla, cassava (Mani- 

 Jwt utllissima), plantations of forage and fiber plants, and, per- 

 haps as interesting as any to the tourist, the ippi-appa "palm" 

 (Carludovica), the source of so large a percentage of the cheaper 

 " Panama " hats. 



From the nurseries are supplied, at a merely nominal price, many 

 thousands of young plants annually to the inhabitants, who other- 

 wise could secure no such service, since there are no private nurseries 

 in the island. The plants are grown and readily distributed in small 

 pots made by cutting the hollow stems of the common cultivated 

 bamboo {Bambusa vulgaris), 3 or 4 inches thick, into sections of 

 appropriate length, the solid partition at the joints forming the 

 bottom of the pots. In the same way very large numbers of herbaceous 



