272 
Vanilla  Production  in  Mexico.      4  Amx  Jo-^r-1?Jharm- 
(      April,  1921. 
VANILLA  PRODUCTION  IN  MEXICO  * 
By  Trade  Commissioner  Charles  H.  Cunningham. 
At  present  Mexico  employs  over  50,000  people  in  the  cultivation 
and  extraction  of  vanilla— one  of  the  most  important  of  the  minor 
extractive  industries  of  that  country.  Vanilla  is  indigenous  to  the 
soil  of  Mexico.  It  is  principally  cultivated  in  the  districts  of  Pa- 
pantla  and  Misantla  in  the  State  of  Vera  Cruz,  the  most  productive 
region  lying  southeast  of  Tuxpan,  between  the  Rivers  Nautla  and 
Tuxpan. 
conditions  favorable  for  growth  of  vanilla  plant — misantla 
varieties. 
Vanilla  grows  more  or  less  in  a  wild  state  in  the  low  hills,  and 
with  such  abundance  that  it  perfumes  the  air  in  the  vicinity.  For- 
merly this  wild  vanilla  was  considered  common  property.  A  French 
colony  established  on  the  banks  of  the  Nautla  River,  which  engaged 
in  the  cultivation  of  vanilla  on  a  large  scale,  met  with  very  satisfac- 
tory results.  The  vanilla  grows  best  in  rich,  sandy  soil  not  drained 
too  thoroughly.  When  growing  wild  it  is  usually  sheltered  by  the 
trees  of  the  forest,  and  in  the  state  of  cultivation  it  is  protected  by 
trees  planted  for  that  purpose.  The  temperature  most  favorable  for 
its  production  is  about  85 0  F.  It  grows  best  at  an  altitude  of  1000 
feet  above  sea  level.  The  character  of  the  soil,  the  temperature, 
humidity,  etc.,  influence  the  quality  of  the  vanilla,  its  aroma,  and 
its  strength. 
There  are  different  varieties  of  vanilla  in  the  vicinity  of  Mi- 
santla, known  as  the  Misantla  beans,  whioh  have  a  coarse  bark. 
They  are  not  so  plentiful  nor  are  they  considered  so  good  as  the 
Papantla  bean.  These  indigenous  varieties  are  the  cimarror,  the 
mestiza,  and  the  mansa.  When  they  are  cured  only  an  expert  can 
distinguish  between  the  various  classes.  There  is  also  a  wild  bean 
known  as  the  vanilla  platano,  which  the  Indians  eat.  This  differs 
from  the  ordinary  vanilla  above  described  (planifolia)  in  that  the 
plant  is  much  smaller  but  has  larger  leaves. 
HARVESTING  PERIOD. 
Vanilla  ripens  most  extensively  in  January  and  February. 
However,  there  is  so  much  demand  for  the  fruit  that  for  many 
*  From  Commerce  Reports,  Nov.  20,  1920. 
