Edible Products. 



416 



[November, 1911. 



eating the public taste to the proper 

 value ot the best kinds of tropical fruits. 

 It is said regarding some that if you 

 don't succeed at first, try again ; it being 

 considered necessary in the case of the 

 durian, for example, to make three 

 attempts before one can command real 

 success. There is obviously no ground 

 for casting aspersions on tropical fruits 

 as a whole, as is sometimes done, — 

 usually by persons who are imperfectly 

 acquainted with the best of them. It 

 should be remembered that an acquired 

 taste is sometimes essential in order to 

 properly enjoy these. A visitor whom 

 I have recently introduced to the 

 Mangosteen remarked that, if this was 

 one of the best fruits of the tropics, he 

 did not wish to see a less superior one- 

 But it transpired that, in ignorance, he 

 had tried to eat the thick purplish rind 

 and discarded the edible portion as the 

 seeds ! The pineapple, cheriraoyer, and 

 mangosteen have been described as the 

 three finest fruits in the woild, and 

 have long been the envy of people who 

 live in temperate countries. To these 

 fruits might be added others, perhaps of 

 equal merit, such as the best varieties of 

 mangoes and bananas. There is no 

 denying the fact, nevertheless, that 

 much can and should bedone to improve 

 the quality and thereby the reputation 

 of our tropical fruit? as a whole ; that is, 

 by better cultivation, more careful 

 selection of the best varieties, and by 

 weeding out many of the inferior sorts 

 which occupy space to the exclusion of 

 more valuable kinds. 



These remarks apply, of course, to 

 fruit grown and consumed locally, there 

 being no export trade hitherto from 

 Ceylon, though it is hoped the recent 

 flotation of m local enterprising company 

 for canning fruit will be the means of 

 promoting systematic fruit-growing. 

 As is well-known to those who have 

 tried, fruit cultivation in Ceylon on 

 commercial lines has so far failed to 

 meet with sufficient inducement, owing 

 largely no doubt to difficulties of trans- 

 port and of reaching consumers who 

 will pay remunerative prices. These 

 are obstacles, however, which only 

 time will overcome. There i? no doubt 

 that the demand for fresh fruit is 

 increasing, but the supply is at present 

 so limited and irregular that profitable 

 prices cannot be relied upon to accrue to 

 the grower. 



We are all fruit-eaters by nature, and I 

 have read in a local paper the other day 

 that fruit is a great aid to beauty, 

 " preserving an indescribable look of 

 youth, bright eyes, living hair and a 

 fresh vital complexion." Few people in 



Ceylon would not grow some fruits 

 or other around their bungalow, but 

 many are prevented from doing so by 

 want of a proper knowledge of what 

 kinds to plant and how to grow them. 

 In making a selection for planting, one 

 should consider, in addition to other 

 special qualities, the seasons of fruiting, 

 so as to secure a crop during as great a 

 part of the year as possible. It should 

 also be remembered that, as in small 

 gardens, though space for trees cannot be 

 afforded, this can hardly be too limited 

 for growing a few pineapples, papaws 

 and plantains. In addition to the fact 

 that they require but comparatively 

 little space, these have also the advant- 

 age of producing a crop in from one to 

 two years from the time of planting. 

 Permanent trees, on the other hand, 

 have the advantage of providing shade 

 and ornament, whilst they require less 

 care in cultivation when once well 

 established. 



A selection of the best kinds would 

 include the following, omitting the more 

 fanciful sorts, viz :— 



Fruits for the Low-Country, 

 (a) Herbaceous, quick growing kinds, 



including pineapples, plantains, and 



papaws. 



(6) Woody, or permanent trees :— 

 Mangoes, oranges, mangosteens, 

 avocado pear, sapodilla, rambutan, 

 and litchi, to which may be added 

 durian according to taste. 

 All these thrive in the low country, 

 and all are worth growing as fruits, 

 either for one's private needs or for the 

 local markets. 



Pineapples 

 should of course find a place in every 

 garden. They can be grown to per- 

 fection in the low-country, and moder- 

 ately well up to 1,000 feet in sheltered 

 valleys. Well-drained loam or jungle 

 soil, under the partial shade of trees 

 produces the largest aod most luscious 

 fruits. The variety known as " Kew- 

 pine," or " Smooth Cayenne," has a large 

 and very juicy fruit and spineless 

 leaves. A similar variety called " Bra- 

 comorensis," recently - established at 

 Peradeniya, also bears large juicy fruits, 

 but is not an improvement on the Kew 

 pine. 



Plantains or Bananas. 

 Though most of these are generally 

 looked upon here as an article of food 

 rather than as a fruit, some varieties 

 are delicious, and probably few bun- 

 galows would ever be without them if 

 they could be regularly procured. THe 

 " Suwandale " and •' Kolikuttu " varieties 



