1698 ISLAND DEPENDENCIES 



ISLAND DEPENDENCIES 



to have been the eariiest form cultivated on the island. 

 Chotda Dama is similar and possibly identical to the 

 variety "Gloria" of the PhiUppines, which Blanco 

 refers to M. paradisiaca Icrnatcnsis. Chotda Manila 

 (M. paradisiaca einerca) has been introduced from 

 the Phihppines, where it is known as Letondal or 

 Latendan. This variety, though inferior in flavor and 

 subject to cracking and dropping from the bunch when 

 ripe, is a heavy-yielding sort and consequently a most 





1989. A native hut in Guam; roof thatched with coconut leaves. Soui-sop (.Annona 

 muricata) in left foreground 



popular one. Probably 75 per cent of the bananas 

 annually produced on the island are of this variety. 

 Chotda tanduque (A/, paradisiaca magna), a favorite 

 fruit of the plantain type, eaten both cooked and 

 uncooked, is also of Philippine introduction. Other 

 good varieties of recent introduction which may be 

 expected to assume leading places in the future are, 

 the Bungulan (.1/. paradisiaca suaveolcns) , the Lacatan 

 (A/, paradisiaca lacatan), from the Phihppines, and the 

 Brazihan banana from the Hawaiian Islands. The 

 Jamaica or Bluefields banana was introduced into Guam 

 during the fiscal year 1912 by the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture. 



The leaves and false stem of the banana are reUshed 

 by cattle and after maturing their fruit these consti- 

 tute a valuable by-product. 



Breadfruit {Artocarpus incisa) grows in great lux- 

 uriance in the warm humid climate of Guam, and 

 it is probably nowhere more abundant or more highly 

 esteemed. Uncultivated and uncared for, the copious 

 supply of nutritious food which it jields during its 

 long fruiting season from June to December is wholly 

 a gift of Nature. Both the seed-bearing variety and the 

 more highly improved seedless form of A. incisa exist 

 in extensive forests. The breadfruit is not a commercial 

 article, yet the important part which it plays in the 

 domestic economy of the people renders it worthy of 

 mention in a work of this character. In addition to 

 the value of the fruit for human food, the immature 

 fruits are fed to cattle and hogs and the ripe fruit also 

 constitutes a most valuable hog-feed. The leaves of 

 the breadfruit tree are largely employed as a fodder 

 for cattle and the fondness sho^\-n for them by the 

 native cattle is not acquired; for cows imported from 

 the United States manifest an equal relish for them at 

 the first feeding. In this connection the necessity of 

 providing the young plants with protection from cattle 

 is indicated. 



The coffee shrub (Coffca arabica), and to a more 

 Umited extent the Liberian species (C. liberica), are 

 successfully grown, and especially is this true in the 

 district of Yigo in the northern part of the island and 

 at Sinahaiia situated on an elevation south of Agana. 



It is said that during the latter part of the Spanish 

 regime when direct shipping means existed between 

 Guam and Manila, an export trade of considerable 

 importance was enjoyed and that the Guam product 

 was recognized for its superior quahty. Coffee is now 

 more sparingly grown than in former times and within 

 the past few years the output has not been sufficient 

 to supply the home demand. The absence from Guam 

 of the coffee fungus, Hemileia vaslatrix, so widely 

 distributed throughout the Old 

 World Tropics and so destruc- 

 tive to the coffee industry wher- 

 ever it exists is both interesting 

 and significant. Aside from field- 

 rats, which feed upon the sweet 

 pulp, dropping the naked berry 

 to the ground, there are no seri- 

 ous pests to contend with in 

 Guam. Even with the limited 

 acreage adaptable to coffee-cul- 

 ture, the industry is entirely 

 capable of development to the 

 extent of not only supplying the 

 home demand but also of furnish- 

 ing a considerable surplus for 

 export. 



The mango {Mangifera in- 

 dica), a most deUcious tropical 

 fruit, is grown in Guam in two 

 races, both of which come true 

 to seed, or at least practically 

 so, and are propagated only 

 by that method. The "Guam 

 mango" is of medium size, contains but little fiber and 

 is free from the disagreeable taste of turpentine, com- 

 mon to some of the inferior varieties, when it is prop- 

 erly ripened. It is identical with the common "Carabao" 

 mango of the Philippines. In the quality of its fruit this 

 variety is superior, but on the island of Guam it pos- 

 sesses the disadvantages of light and irregular bearing- 

 habits. Another feature in the cultivation of this species 

 that tends to discourage planting is the fact that trees 

 require from twelve to twenty years to grow from the 

 seed to a state of production. Owing to these habits of 

 slow development and Ught yields, the supply of man- 

 goes is insufficient to meet the demand for them and the 

 same conditions create an ever-ready market-price of 

 5 to 10 cents United States currency for a fruit. Large 

 trees claimed to be more than 100 years old, measuring 

 as much as 9 feet in circumference of the trunk and 

 from 50 to 60 feet in top diameter, are common. 



The "Saipan mango" introduced from the island of 

 that name, now seat of the German government in 

 the Marianas, is a small fruit weighing about four 

 ounces. It is full of a coarse fiber and is inferior in 

 flavor. The tree of this variety is of comparatively 

 small dimensions, comes into bearing in four to seven 

 years from the seed, and is a regular and heavy bearer. 

 As a fruit this race is of httle importance, but as a 

 stock upon which to inarch the "Guam mango" it 

 should prove valuable, as its less vigorous root-system 

 should result in dwarfing the tree of the Guam variety 

 and in rendering it more prolific. 



In addition to the more important fruits noted above, 

 others of more or less value abound in great variety. 

 Lemons and Umes of fair quality and oranges of an 

 inferior grade are plentiful. The bullock's - heart 

 (Annotm reticulata) grows spontaneously, and the 

 sour-sop (A. muricata) and sweet-sop (A. squamosa) 

 are common fruits. The papaya (Carica Papaya), in a 

 degenerate form, has escaped from cultivation and 

 grows in great profusion throughout the island. Excel- 

 lent papayas are grown from introduced seed of 

 improved forms, but hybridization between these and 

 the native papayas results in a reduction in the size 

 of the fruit with each successive generation. When 



