FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
Ill 
Banana, a kind of plantain, valuable for 
cooking, which is as hardy as the Hart’s 
Choice. The fruit of all bananas sells 
well in our local markets, but has not been 
grown to such an extent that shipping 8 
long distance has been found necessary. 
The Cavendish, or Dwarf, is more largely 
grown in extreme South Florida and is 
a valuable sort for the more protected 
coast regions, standing more severe winds 
than taller growers; its fruit resembles 
the Martinique variety so largely import¬ 
ed. There are but few others so far tried 
that seem to be valuable for Florida con¬ 
ditions, but testing is going forward. Ba¬ 
nanas may be grown in a large commer¬ 
cial way on proper soil in South Florida 
and the industry only awaits capital for 
further development. 
Guavas grow so readily in all parts of 
South Florida that they seem indigenous. 
The fruit varies in quality, but all are 
good to those who have acquired the taste, 
for cooking and for eating out of hand. 
The habit of the bush in bearing abund¬ 
antly for weeks, only eighteen months 
after being frozen to the ground, makes 
it extremely valuable for us. Orchards 
of the more acid sorts are being grown 
now for jelly making, an industry cap¬ 
able of great expansion. Selection of the 
best sorts should be encouraged, and 
every house lot should contain a number 
of bushes for home use. Cuttings of the 
guava may be rooted readily; use large 
wood, making cuttings a foot long in Au¬ 
gust preferably. In this manner the finer 
sorts may be raised. The Guinea guava 
seems to be the most free from seeds of 
any sort yet introduced, and is a thick 
meated, sweet fruit of good size. The 
Cattley and the Chinese are really semi- 
tropical sorts capable of standing consid¬ 
erable frost. They are fine evergreens 
and may be grown in hedges, being use¬ 
ful and ornamental. As a hedge plant 
the Cattley guava is superior to most sub¬ 
jects so far used in South Florida as it is 
free from insect pests; as a fruit its acid¬ 
ity causes it to be generally liked even by 
Northerners, but jelly made from it is 
not so fine as from the tropical forms. 
The Avocado has leaped into popular 
favor during the past few years and its 
fruit is the most valuable of any grown 
in Florida at present. The tree is a na¬ 
tive of Mexico and the West Indies, and 
stands a little more cold than the Mango, 
byit seedlings require from six to fifteen 
years’ time to produce their first crop and 
so their planting has been neglecteu. 
Large old trees are now producing won¬ 
derful returns all over South Florida and 
as the trees may be readily budded to 
fine varieties of known quality, ripening 
from early summer to January, a great 
impetus has been given its cultivation 
along our coasts. The budded trees bear 
in from two' to four years from the bud, 
and hence a planter may soon realize 
from his investment. The culture of the 
Avocado is bound to be one of our lead¬ 
ing industries very soon. 
Among the uncommon fruits that have 
proved to be a success in South Florida 
and which may be grown very easily are 
the following:—Kai-apple, (Aberia Caf- 
fra) of South Africa, and its relative (A. 
Gardneri) from Ceylon; both bearing 
when young and as with the guavas 
sprouting up when frosted down and 
bearing within a year. The Sapodilla 
(Achras Sapota), Cashew-apple (Ana- 
cardium occidentale), Custard-apple 
