CULTIVATION  OP  VANILLA  IN  MEXICO. 
41 
north  winds  occur,  accompanied  with  heavy  rain,  beating  oft' 
the  blossoms,  nor  if  the  dampness  of  the  season  is  too  great  or 
long  continued.  Excessive  dryness  also  injures  the  growth  and 
value  of  the  vanilla. 
On  account  of  the  glutinous,  milky  juice  which  the  green 
pods  contain,  they  are  not  attacked  by  worms  or  by  insects. 
The  season  of  gathering  begins  at  the  end  of  March,  and  lasts 
generally  to  the  end  of  June.  The  Indians,  who  remain  about 
eight  consecutive  days  in  the  forests  for  this  purpose,  mostly 
sell  the  fresh  and  yellow  pods  to  the  settlers,  who  make  a  busi- 
ness of  drying,  bundling,  pressing  and  otherwise  preparing 
them  for  sale.  In  Misantla  the  usual  way  of  drying  the  vanilla 
is  to  spread  the  yellow  pods  upon  a  linen  cloth,  and,  when  the 
weather  permits,  to  expose  them  to  the  sun,  and  allow  them  to 
sweat  for  a  few  hours.  As  soon  as  they  are  sufficiently  heated, 
they  are  wrapped  in  woolen  cloths,  upon  which  they  immediately 
assume  a  dark  copper  color,  when  they  are  again  exposed  to  the 
sun's  rays  from  morning  till  evening,  until  entirely  dried. 
Should  long  continued  rain  make  it  impossible  to  expose  them 
to  the  sun  until  they  assume  this  blackish-brown  color,  and  be- 
come covered  with  silvery  spots,  it  is  necessary  to  have  recourse 
to  artificial  warmth.  For  this  purpose  the  natives  weave  a 
frame,  or  a  kind  of  four-cornered  sieve,  of  the  Spanish  cane  or 
split  bamboo,  to  spread  the  pods  upon,  which  they  hang  up  by 
cords  and  cover  with  a  woolen  cloth.  This  frame  is  then  placed 
over  a  fire,  which  does  not  smoke,  and  a  gentle  vibrating  mo- 
tion given  to  it.  This  operation,  which  is  called  "  el  beneficio 
del  Poscoyal,"  is  by  far  more  difficult,  and  requires  long  expe- 
rience and  great  care  that  the  waste  of  the  product  is  not  too 
considerable. 
In  Misantla  the  prepared  pods  are  packed  in  bundles  of  50 
each,  which  are  divided,  as  follows,  into  four  different  classes ; 
since  the  nature  of  the  soil,  the  dampness  of  the  air  and  the 
sun's  heat  exert  an  essential  influence  upon  the  bulk  and  weight 
of  the  parts  which  are  charged  with  oil  and  with  the  aroma : 
(1.)  The  best  vanilla,  la  vainilla  fina,  with  the  subdivisions  of 
the  large  best  and  small  best,  la  grande  fina  and  la  chica  fina,  or 
la  mancuerna  ;  (2.)  el  Zacate  ;  (3.)  el  Bezacate  ;  (4.)  la  Basura, 
