THE MANGOSTEEN AND ITS RELATIVES 403 



From the fragrant white flowers a liqueur is distilled in the 

 French West Indies which is known as eau de Creole or creme de 

 Creole. The wood is hard, durable, and well adapted to build- 

 ing purposes. It is beautifully grained and takes a high polish. 

 The resinous gum obtained from the bark is used to extract 

 chigoes from the feet. 



The fruit is sometimes sliced and served with wine or with 

 sugar and cream, but it is usually preferred by Europeans in the 

 form of sauce, preserves, or jam. Mamey preserves are manufac- 

 tured commercially in Cuba and a few other tropical countries. 



The mamey is tropical in its requirements, and cannot be 

 grown in regions which commonly experience more than two or 

 three degrees of frost. Large trees were cut back to the trunks 

 by a freeze of 26 above zero at Miami, Florida. While the best 

 soil for it is a rich, well-drained, sandy loam, the tree has made 

 good growth on the shallow sandy lands of southeastern Florida. 

 Little attention has been given to its culture in any region. 

 Seedlings do not come into bearing under six or seven years of 

 age ; when mature they usually bear regularly and abundantly. 

 The ripening season in the West Indies is in the summer. 



Propagation is usually by seeds, which germinate readily if 

 planted in light sandy loam. Some asexual method should be em- 

 ployed to propagate desirable varieties originating as chance seed- 

 lings. Inarching, which succeeds with the mangosteen, should be 

 applicable to this plant as well ; budding may also prove to be 

 successful, performed as with the mango; No named varieties 

 have been established as yet. It will be worth while to search out 

 the best existing seedlings in tropical America and propagate them. 



THE BAKURI 

 (Platonia insignis, Mart.) 



In northern Brazil, particularly in the Amazon region, the 

 bakuri occurs wild. It is scarcely known in cultivation, but 



