FRUITS AND NUTS 137 



of hand. There is a great range of flavor among the varieties 

 of carambola, but the two chief types are the sweet and the 

 sour carambola. The tree may be used as an ornamental on 

 account of its graceful habit of growth and its handsome pin- 

 nate leaves which are sensitive to the touch. The carambola 

 contains from 3 to 5 per cent, of sugar. A. bilimbi is a closely 

 related species of tree, bearing leaves with 13 to 35 leaflets 

 and a less acutely angled fruit which is extremely acid and 

 used for the most part only in pickles. The caramb'la grows 

 satisfactorily in Florida. Either the carambola or bilimbi may 

 be propagated by the shield bud method or by cuttings. 



BAEL FRUIT 



The bael fruit is borne on a small spiny tree (Aegle mar- 

 melos) which is native to India. The fruit is surrounded with 

 a green hard woody shell about 2 to 6 inches in diameter and is 

 composed largely of a sticky aromatic pulp which is sometimes 

 relished for its flavor but is used chiefly for its medicinal 

 value in dysentery. The bael fruit is propagated by seed. The 

 tree is deciduous and endures a temperature as low as 20 F. 

 The orange-colored transparent gummy pulp possesses an acid- 

 sweet flavor not liked by most Europeans and Americans ex- 

 cept when used with other fruits in sherbets. The bael fruit 

 is under experiment in some of the Southern States. 



OHELO BERRY 



The ohelo berry is the most important fruit-bearing heather 

 in Hawaii. Its botanical name is Vaccinium reticulatum. It 

 is therefore in the botanical sense a Hawaiian cranberry. On 

 the mountain slopes of the Hawaiian Islands the ohelo berry 

 occurs on wide areas at elevations of 4,000 feet or higher. It 

 is a low shrub with stiff crowded branches, densely covered 

 with leaves. The leaves are oblong or ovate and leathery 



