93 



and would be obliged to you for some plants for trial. Also would be glad to know 

 something about its cultivation and preparing the crop for market. 



Answer. The vanilla beau ( Vanilla planif olio) is a native of tropical countries. It 

 is produced in the warmer parts of Mexico, and not by any means in cool places: in 

 fact its area of profitable culture is said to be limited to certain favorable localities 

 near the Gulf coast. It is very doubtful, indeed, whether the plant can be grown 

 profitably in any part of Florida. 



The vanilla is a climbing orchid, or air plant, having a fleshy stem and succulent 

 leaves. It is progagated by cuttings of the stem planted close to the tree upon which 

 the plants climb. They usually receive but little cultivation further than to keep 

 down growths which might interfere with the gathering of the fruit, the plants re- 

 ceiving their nourishment mostly from the atmosphere. 



The peculiar odor of the bean is developed during the process of curing, and much 

 of the commercial value of the article depends upon its preparation for the market. 



The fruit is gathered before it is quite ripe. If allowed to remain on the plant the 

 pod splits and becomes black ; when drying it exudes a dark-colored unctuous liquid, 

 and when quite dry becomes brittle and devoid of perfume. 



In Guiana the pods are cured by placing them in ashes until they begin to shrivel, 

 when they are wiped, rubbed over with olive oil, then huugin the open air to dry. 



In Peru the pods are dipped in boiling water, then hung out in the open air for a 

 month, afterwards smeared with castor oil and tied in bundles for sale. 



In Mexico the curing process is more elaborate and varied. The pods are placed in 

 a heap under protection from the weather until they begin to shrivel, when they are 

 submitted to a sweating process. This is accomplished by wrapping the pods in 

 blankets inclosed in tight boxes; afterwards they are exposed to the sun. They are 

 now tied into small bales or bundles, which are first wrapped in woolen blankets, 

 then in a coating of banana leaves, first sprinkled with water, then placed in an ovon 

 heated up to above 140 F. Here they remain for from 24 to 48 hours, according to 

 the size of the pods, the largest requiring the longer time. After this heating they 

 are exposed to the sun daily for 50 or 60 days until they are thoroughly dried and 

 ready for the market. 



In the valley of Mazation the vanilla abounds in a wild state and the article is of the 

 finest grade. The curing is thus described: "To cure properly requires about 90 

 days, and the manipulation is almost infinite, each beau being handled critically from 

 three hundred to five hundred times in the procets by the Indians. The beans, as 

 gathered, are disposed of in layers, first a layer of beans and then a blanket, and so 

 on till a pile is formed. This is called the sweating process, and during its contin- 

 uance the piles are turned two or three times a day until most of the water is sweated 

 out. This process is followed by drying in the sun, and here the natives exercise the 

 utmost care and attention. When finished the beans are to be the color of a very 

 dark cigar. The attendant picks up each bean occasionally for examination, and if 

 he observes any part of the pod is coloring more rapidly than another lie twists a bit 

 of the leaf around the spot until the action of the sun shall have affected all alike." 



MAHOGANY TREE. 



J. S., Eastern Shore, Maryland. I inclose a few seeds of the mahogany tree which 

 grows in this part of the State. Since I learned that this tree was the mahogany I 

 am saving the seeds and mean to plant all I can get, and would ask you where I can 

 get a supply, as I suppose that the tree is in other parts of this country. 



Answer. The seeds sent are those of the Kentucky coffee tree (Gymnocladus cana- 

 densis), and has no botanical relation to the tree which yields the mahogany wood 

 of commerce. 



It is called coffee tree for the given reason that the early settlers in Kentucky, 

 where the tree grows in the forests, used the beaii as a substitute for coffee. 



The timber of this tree is of a fine compact grain and is sometimes used in cabinet 

 work, hence it is in some places called the mahogany tree. 



