24 THE SELECTION OF A PLANTATION 



to yield a substantial revenue while the fruit is 

 maturing. Another advantage gained is that good 

 wide spaces between the trees or groves permit the 

 use of machines in tilling operations. 



While the coconut tree is found in many tropical 

 countries which furnish a sufficiency of water, it 

 yields the best results between the latitudes 17 N. 

 and 12 S., which are outside the hurricane zone. 

 It has been cultivated for many centuries in the 

 East, particularly in the islands of the Pacific 

 Ocean. It is believed by some authorities that 

 these islands were its original home, but it is 

 equally possible that it is, like all other species of 

 the genus to which it belongs, a native of tropical 

 America, although its value has never been so 

 highly appreciated in the West as it has been in the 

 East. The nut thrives best where the mean tem- 

 perature is from 75 to 85 F. and the mean annual 

 rainfall is not below fifty inches. It derives special 

 benefit by growing on the sea shore, as the palms 

 require constant and adequate moisture, and soil 

 that does not become sour and waterlogged, for their 

 highest development. Mountainous districts are 

 not favourable to the coconut, nor are localities 

 with a torrid and dry temperature. Most experts 

 agree that the best and most prolific estates are 

 located near the sea, upon fairly level land, where 

 rivers and torrents have brought down deposits of 

 rich, friable loam. ' ' The nearer the coast the better 



