596 FIELD AND GARDEN PRODUCTS 



quantities are sent annually by express to all portions of the United 

 States south of the Ohio River and also to New York. 



No extensive guava orchards have been planted, as the market 

 has been somewhat uncertain. During the height of the season the 

 jelly factories usually take all the fruit offered them at 75 cents 

 to $1 a bushel. These prices are remunerative, since the fruit is 

 merely shaken from the trees, picked up, and delivered. For ship- 

 ping purposes the uniform charge for the fruit is $1 a crate. In the 

 southern extremity of Florida, in addition to the regular crop, there 

 are guavas ripening throughout the entire year. These find ready 

 sale in the local markets at good prices. 



The fact that the ripe fruit does not remain in good condition 

 for more than three or four days makes it also imperative that it 

 be sent only to customers who order it in advance. These people 

 find it the cheapest jelly fruit in the market, in spite of the fact 

 that the express charges are from $1 to $1.50 a crate. Even at a 

 cost of $2.50 to $3 a crate delivered, it is considered the cheapest 

 jelly fruit obtainable. (Y. B. 1905.) 



The guava is no longer cultivated in the islands. It was early 

 introduced, and finding a congenial soil and climate has grown 

 wild and has spread over the islands, forming dense thickets. It 

 bears fruit in great abundance (PI. XIII, fig. 2), which falling 

 and decaying upon the lava soils, assist largely by their acid prop- 

 erties in disintegrating them. There is here a fine field for the 

 manufacture of guava jelly on a large scale, thousands of tons of 

 the fruit wasting every year. Locally some of the progressive house- 

 keepers make annually a few jars of this jelly, which is of excel- 

 lent flavor and attractive color. P. cattleyanum, the cattleya or 

 Chinese guava, is cultivated to a limited extent. (Hawaii B. 95, 

 1901.) 



Cocoanut. About thirty years ago a consignment of cocoa- 

 nuts was received from Central America, and some years later a 

 small quantity was procured from the West Indies. These were 

 distributed in localities where it was supposed the plants would 

 flourish. At that time but little was thought about the profitable 

 culture of the plant, and it is presumed that no attention was given 

 to the few sent out by the Department. Of late years, however, 

 more attention has been given to this fruit in southern Florida. 



The cocoa palm is certainly the most characteristic object of 

 the Tropics, and its beauty is equaled only by its utility among 

 Tropical peoples. In commerce it appears in three forms. The 

 fresh nuts are shipped to Europe and America for eating or for 

 use in desserts and confectionery; the dried meat is marketed under 

 the name of copra for the extraction of the oil, and the fibers of the 

 husk are sold as coir, and used in the manufacture of brushes and 

 coarse fabrics. Although the cocoa palm exists in large numbers 

 in Porto Rico, few nuts are exported and no copra or coir is made. 

 Nearly all the nuts are picked while still green, and are bought in 

 the cities and towns for the sake of the milk, which is the most 

 popular beverage of Porto Rico. Copra and coir come largely 



