ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 119 



must have a deep, rich soil, and well drained withal. It is a deciduous 

 tree, which means that at a certain time each year it encourages the 

 presence of the sun's rays on its trunk and limbs. The prospective 

 planter should, therefore, pick out land that is covered with a growth 

 of soft, rather than hard wood trees, as the latter points to a gravelly 

 soil instead of clayey loam. It should be rolling land, or at least land 

 that is naturally well drained. It should be soil that will give the tree 

 plenty of moisture during the dry season and yet that will not be soggy 

 during the wet season. For a running rule, there should be at least 

 four feet of drainage soil. In the clearing of the land, if there are not 

 natural windbreaks, a certain amount of forest should be left standing 

 to act as such. Referring again to the long taproot of the Castilloa, 



HOTEL PALOMARES, MAN1TITLAN. 



[Copyrighted Photo by C. B. Waite, Mexico.] 



it is said that as the tree grows older it often disappears, its place being 

 taken by large laterals. 



I struck the Tier r a Calient e just at the beginning of the dry season, 

 and therefore was curious to know exactly what constitutes the rainy 

 and dry seasons in the tropics. Of course, no general answer could 

 be given, as in different tropical regions these seasons have their own 

 idiosyncrasies. I believe I had but little idea of what the weather was 

 in the rainy season, whether it rained all the time, or was partly rainy 

 and partly clear, and this is what I learned : In the state of Vera Cruz, 

 the dry season runs roughly from February to June. During the latter 

 part of May there are about three weeks of genuine hot, dry weather. 



