TORREYA 



Vol. 42 March-April No. 2 



A Botanist's Summer in Costa Rica 



M. A. Chrysler 



It was the writer's good fortune to spend July and August of 

 1940 in the little republic of Costa Rica, which has been character- 

 ized by Gunther^ as "one of the most delightful countries in the world 

 and one of the purest democracies on earth." It has moreover a par- 

 ticularly interesting flora, especially to the student of ferns. Accord- 

 ing to the North American Flora, it is headquarters for Gleichenia- 

 ceae, with an array of endemic species, hence a trip was arranged so 

 as to provide a two-weeks' stay in Jamaica, a week on Barro Colo- 

 rado Island, C. Z., and the balance of the season in Costa Rica. Dur- 

 ing most of the time the writer was accompanied by his colleague, 

 Dr. W. E. Roever, whose cooperation was invaluable. 



One gains a lasting impression of the vertical distribution of the 

 plant life by looking out of the window from the train which takes 

 him from Port Limon to the capital, San Jose — a trip of only a 

 hundred miles which nevertheless occupies about six hours. Starting 

 from the banana groves near the coast, the traveler passes through 

 real jungle with reappearance of bananas, coconuts and cacao at 

 every settlement — the tierra caliente. Presently the lower stretches 

 of the Reventazon River are reached, and the road begins a series of 

 sharp curves and steep grades as it follows the course of the rushing 

 river. By the time an elevation of 2000 feet is reached, coffee has re- 

 placed the banana as the leading crop, giving an entirely different 

 aspect to the landscape, for the coffee shrubs grow in the partial 

 shade of such trees as species of Inga, and during August are bright 

 by reason of the ripe red berries which contain the familiar coffee 

 "bean." The railroad banks are enlivened by the brilliant flowers of 

 Heliconia and Costus, representing monocotyledonous families quite 

 unknown to northern floras. 



^ Gunther, John. Inside Latin America. Harper & Brothers, New York, 

 1941. 



ToRREYA for March- April (Vol. 42: 33-64) was issued April 10, 1942. 



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