70 CLIMATE AND VEGETATION OE {^Mavch, 



The Almond [Amygdalus communs) is met with in Barhados, 

 but I never detected it in St. Lucia. Numerous species of Cacti 

 grow in Barbados, particularly on the dry rocky eminences over- 

 looking the eastern coast. 



Barbados Flowerfence {Poinciana pulcherrima) is plentiful in 

 Barbados, and its seeds are much employed in the construction 

 of purses, satchels, and other trinkets, by the natives. 



The Sensitive-plant [Mimosa sensitiva) is abundant in St. 

 Lucia ; its wiry branches, covered with delicate prickles, extend 

 over the ground in every direction. So sensitive are the leaves of 

 this plant, that the slightest touch of the finger ensures a sudden 

 collapse. It is likewise an individual of that extensive Order 

 Leguminiferae. 



The Carolina Pink [Spigelia marylandica) is an occupant of 

 the sandy shores of Barbados, and is in the Nat. Ord. Logania- 

 ce<B, a highly poisonous family. It is used in medicine as a 

 vermifuge. 



Bryopliyllum calycinum is a plant much like our Orpine [Sedum 

 Telepliimii) . It is, like it, a succulent plant, and belongs to the 

 Nat. Ord, Crassulacece. So tenacious is it of life, that a leaf 

 detached from the stem and suspended from the ceiling of the 

 room, instead of dying and shrivelling up, will from its margin 

 send out new leaflets in abundance; — this fact I have witnessed. 



The Bamboo Cane [Bambusa arundinacea) is remarkable for 

 its rapidity of growth, frequently attaining the height of sixty or 

 seventy feet in three months. I observed a shoot to stretch 

 seven feet in one week. It is a very useful plant, and its stems, 

 though hollow, are stronger than the finest English Oak of like 

 thickness and size. 



The Sugar Cane is cultivated to a large extent in both islands, 

 and yields employment to thousands. Indian Corn [Zea Mays) 

 and a species of Millet are grown abundantly in Barbados. 



Aloes, in Barbados, are cultivated for medicinal purposes. 



I only observed two plants in these islands indigenous to the 

 British Isles, viz. Plant ago [major] and Urtica dioicaj the latter 

 certainly is abundant, and as much at home as in my native 

 land ; the former not so abundant, and under somewhat suspici- 

 ous circumstances, but growing freely in localities similar to 

 those it occupies in Britain. 



I have now given a list of the more common and economical 



