196 
FIRST BOOK. 
falls off when the fruit is ready to form. The fruit grows in large 
clusters, and is good for food. 
The Plantain is very similar to the banana. Its fruit is a 
useful vegetable ; but it requires cooking. 
THE PINE-APPLE (p. 133). 
The Plant- — Its stem is very short, and its leaves stiff, 
with strong spines on their edges. Its flowers are blue, and 
crowded together on a spike. From them grows a large fruit, with 
a tuft of green leaves above it. The seeds are very small, and lie 
close under the skin. 
How Grown. — The green tuft or fruit-crown may be planted. 
Or suckers may be cut away from the plant. Many pine-apples are 
grown in the Bahama Islands. 
The Crop. — The fruit should be cut before it becomes ripe 
if it is to be shipped. It must be gently handled while being cut, 
wrapped up, and packed, as bruised fruit very soon rots. 
THE MANGO (p. 136). 
The Tree is large, with simple, shiny leaves and small flowers. 
It readily grows from seed, and is common throughout the island. 
The Fruit is a "drupe", having an outer skin, a very juicy 
pulp, and a large " stone It is often picked while green, and 
is then preserved before being shipped off. 
THE COCOA-NUT PALM (p. 139). 
The Tree. — The cocoa-nut palm is tall and without branches, 
and has a crown of large feather-like leaves. It grows best on the 
sea-shore. The stem is usually curved and twisted ; its outer part 
being hard, and its centre soft. 
Cocoa-nut palms are reared from seed, and are about five years 
old before they flower. When they begin to bear fruit, they yield 
it all the year round. 
The Fruit has (1) the outside rough fibres, or coir\ (2) the hard 
shell; (3) the white hollow kernel, which holds the cocoa-nut milk, 
a sweetish liquid furnishing, before the fruit is ripe, an agreeable 
drink. 
