PINE LANDS AND HAMMOCKS. 97 



of vegetation of the tropical regions, those of South Amer- 

 ica, yet even there the rich, dense undergrowth of our gen- 

 uine Florida hammocks is not excelled. 



It is the high hammocks that are usually meant when a 

 ' ' Florida hammock " is referred to in a general way ; these 

 are on high ground, are often decidedly undulating, almost 

 hilly, in fact; their soil is a fine vegetable mold with a 

 sandy loam, and underneath, from two to five feet, is usu- 

 ally found a substratum of marl, limestone or clay — we 

 saw a piece of this substratum the other day — a hard, 

 rock-like substance underlying one of the finest (one time 

 wild) groves of Lake Harris, and had we not known other- 

 wise we should surely have declared it to be a fragment of 

 the famous coquina wall of St. Augustine. 



These soils seldom suffer from too much water, but they 

 are frequently aflected and their trees droop under a 

 di'ought that passes harmlessly over their piney-woods 

 neighbors. 



'* Hammocks" are very rich and fertile, no doubt; their 

 large trees, dense undergrowth, the luxuriant growth of 

 orange trees and splendid yield of sugar without the use 

 of manures proves this fact. 



Low hammocks may be said to be a cross between the 

 high hammock and the swamp lands, and in truth, this 

 fact is recognized in the odd kind of local name often used 

 to designate them, which is "swammocks;" they are not 

 less fertile than the swamp lands, but their good qualities 

 are not so durable ; the soil is deep and tenacious and the 

 surface usually level, so that ditching is sometimes a ne- 

 cessity — not often, however. 



Low hammock lands are not so plenty as the swamp 

 lands, and it was on these tracts that the great bulk of 

 the sugar plantations of the old regime were located. 



Let it not be supposed that all of Florida's rich lands 



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