VANILLA 75 



and later a good deal was grown in European planta- 

 tions, notably near Dumbara, where a native gardener, 

 from a small vanillery, obtained pods to the value of 

 100 to 150 per year. The plant was introduced 

 about 1853, or probably earlier, and both Dr. Thwaites 

 and Dr. Trimen strongly urged its cultivation. Samples 

 to the amount of 64 Ib. were sent home in 1866 from 

 the Peradeniya Gardens. In 1884, eight packages, 

 valued at 1245 rupees, were sent to England and 

 Australia. 



In 1885 . . . 284 Ib. valued at 3370 rupees 



1886 ... 333 1715 



1887 . . . 130J 310 



1888 . . . 1300 4710 



The cultivation, however, has never been very 

 extensive. 



Malay Peninsula. Both Vanilla planifolia and 



V. pompona have been cultivated at the Botanic Gardens 



in Singapore, and good pods produced. The region, 



however, seems to be too wet for successful plantations. 



V. planifolia produces its fruit during the wettest 



part of the year, and when heavy rain-storms occur 



during the ripening period most of the pods fall. 



There have been no successful commercial plantations 



in Malaya. 



India. Comparatively little seems ever to have 

 been done in the cultivation of vanilla in India. Mr. 

 A. J. B. Gisseleire, Superintendent of the Agri-Horti- 

 cultural Society's Gardens in Calcutta, in a paper 

 quoted in Planting Opinion (June 16, 1900, p. 419), 

 said that the cultivation of vanilla had been taken in 

 hand more than once, but had never had a thorough 

 trial. The experiment was not continued long enough, 

 although it was shown that this plant grows and fruits 

 in Bengal without any difficulty. "The experiments 

 in the Alipore Gardens have not been carried out 

 on such an elaborate scale as was attempted in several 

 places in Bengal some years ago ; in fact, the plants 



