THE PINE-APPLE. 261 



cited, the triumph has been complete, and gardening art 

 can now boast that the pine-apple can be procured in 

 Britain in as high perfection as in almost any tropical 

 climate, and nearly as rapidly, most kinds being brought 

 to maturity in from 15 to 18 months, some sorts even, 

 such as the Queen, being ripened within a year of their 

 setting. The Providence Pine still requires two or three 

 years, or even longer if the largest fruit be desired, but 

 in this case flavour will be sacrificed to size, for the best 

 fruit rarely weighs more than from 4 to 8 Ibs ; and the 

 tediously ripened 12 or 14-pounder for even this weight 

 is sometimes attained may, as a showy ornament, please 

 the eye, but must never be expected to afford much delec- 

 tation to the palate. These giants are, however, quite 

 the growth of modern days, for in 1821, when a Provi- 

 dence Pinegrew to such magnitude as to weigh 10^ Ibs., the 

 monster was thought a marvel so unique as to be worthy 

 of being formally presented by the Horticultural Society 

 to his Majesty the King, at whose coronation banquet it 

 was served up in state. 

 Miller, writing in 1737, enumerates but five varieties of 



Eines, yet a table compiled a few years ago mentions no 

 ?ss than 52 ; but the Queen (believed to have been the 

 first sort introduced here), the Providence, and one or two 

 others, are still the most usually grown and the most 

 esteemed. One of the most curious is the Striped Suri- 

 nam, which has leaves beautifully variegated with stripes 

 of dark green and delicate white, tinged with a fiery red, 

 and a cylindrical fruit variously marbled with red, green, 

 yellow, and white. Both leaves and fruit are very beau- 

 tiful, but the latter is worthless save as a curiosity, for it 

 has little flavour, and is not produced until the plant is 

 at least eight or nine years old nay, sometimes 20 years 

 elapse, and still it " lives and makes no sign." The Blood- 

 red Pine, an import from Jamaica, has purplish-red 

 leaves, lilacflowers, and fruit of a reddish- chocolate colour, 

 while the variety called the Green Pine, unfit to be eaten 

 while it remains green, is of an olive colour when fully 

 ripe. 



As regards cultivated pines, reared m countries where 



