THE CUBA REVIEW 



17 



Tliree vai'ieties of trees are used largely for 

 fence-posts — the almasaoa, cienella, and jobo. 

 All of these posts when stuck in the ground as 

 fence posts take root and branch out into 

 trees, and it is a common sight to see wire 

 fences with growing posts. 



Taking them as a whole, the woods of 

 Cuba are wonderful. Their lasting qualities 

 are remarkable. Some varieities seemingly 

 never decay. I saw jucaro and jique wood in 

 an exposed place in Moro Castle, Havana, 

 said to have been there over 300 years, that 

 was sound, apparenth*, as ever. 



There are few mills on the islend and very 

 little timber. What timber there is, I was 

 told, is in Oriente Province and Cainaguey 

 Province. The tracts that I looked at are 

 said to be the best tracts on the island. 



THE CUBAN WALNUT 



The Cuban walnut is a very interesting 

 species, of which we have heard off and on for 

 several years, but have never had the pleasure 

 of seeing any of the nuts or trees until recently 

 when an excursion was made imder the aus- 

 pices of the Cuban Agricultural Experiment 

 Station, in the interests of horticulture. 



The nuts are found in the mountain region 

 north of Taco-Taco, where there are appar- 



ently only a few trees scattered along the 

 river beds. The habits and general contour 

 of both the tree and the nuts resemble very 

 much those of the black wahiut of the United 

 States; the botanical differences, however, are 

 many 



The horticultural value of the Cuban wal- 

 nut is intrinsic and promises to Ije of economic 

 importance to the countrj', principally as a 

 stock on which to graft imported varieties of 

 walnuts, pecans, etc., etc. 



The nut, in its wild state, compares favor- 

 ably with the black walnut; the kernel is 

 much more mild in flavor than that of the 

 American species. One of the most encourag- 

 ing featm-es about the Cuban walnut is that 

 it covers a wide fiekl of variation in size and 

 shape of the nut; also in the thickness of the 

 shell. This matter of variation shows that 

 the species may easilj^ be improved by selec- 

 tion. 



As a timber tree the Cuban walnut grows 

 to an immense size; we have seen specimens 

 from two to three feet in diameter and eighty 

 or more feet in height. The wood is fine 

 grained and is in demand for cabinet work. 



Juglans Insularis Cinera should be plantetl 

 on an economic scale in the mountain regions 

 where it also would make an excellent shade 

 for the planting of coffee and cacao. 



Caimito tree (at left), loaded w-ith fruit. The Caimito is one of the native Cuban fruits, very common and very 



much in favor with the natives. Strangers do not "take" readily to many of the native fruits at 



first, but some of them improve on further acquaintance. 



