xii INTRODUCTION 



from the work of hoeing, wheeling muck, digging and attending 

 to my garden. 



My experience in gardening in Florida is confined to the lower 

 part of the peninsula. In order to form some idea of what 

 could and what could not be grown in different parts of the state 

 I sent lists of plants to several growers of large experience in 

 various places, asking them to mark such as had succeeded or 

 failed and to give other data, also to add additional species to 

 the lists and their knowledge of how they had done. Mr. Frank 

 MacLaren of Fernandina, Mr. John Schnabel of Gainesville, 

 Mr. C. E. Pleas of Chipley, Mr. E. N. Reasoner of the Royal 

 Palm Nursery at Oneco, Prof. H. Nehrling of Gotha and Mrs. 

 Marian McAdow of Punta Gorda have rendered the greatest 

 assistance in this way. I have visited a large number of places 

 scattered throughout the state and made notes on the cultivated 

 ornamentals and asked questions. Mr. Charles Mosier of Little 

 River has given me great help on the chapter on insects and 

 plant diseases. 



I am indebted to Mr. Charles Deering who is developing a 

 wonderful garden here, to Mr. David Fairchild and Mr. Wil- 

 son Popenoe of the United States Department of Agriculture, 

 and to Mr. Paul Popenoe of the American Genetic Association, 

 for great and repeated favors and help in getting up this little 

 work. 



The American Photograph Company of Havana, Cuba, has 

 kindly permitted me to use the picture of the Cuban highway, 

 the splendid group of royal palms, and the great bamboos over- 

 looking the water. 



The chapters "In The Hammock" and "A Midsummer Morn- 

 ing at The Sentinels" were published in the Tropic Magazine. 

 While they do not strictly pertain to gardening they set forth 

 the beauties of an ornamental home in Florida. 



There are 100,000,000 people in the United States today, and 

 this number may be doubled within the lifetime of many of those 

 who will read this little treatise. The wealth of the country is 

 increasing at a remarkably rapid rate. A constantly augmenting 

 number of people are coming to Florida each year to spend their 

 winters or to make permanent homes. It is becoming a rich 



