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delicate plant for bouquets; the white is a beautiful, very fragrant cluster of blooms of the “Crinum Americanum,” six large, pure white, waxy lilies.The other bouquet is composed of this same “California Fern” and blossoms of the Butterfly Orchid, that are also very fragrant and pretty. By the way, have you tried this simp'e little Orchid. If not, got some; it is very easily grown, and sure to bloom. Will attach itself ti a piece of bark or rough board. I sent a few to a friend last winter, she had a small piece of block sawed from rough lumber, moistened t’ie little bulbs and with a string tied the Orchids to this blcck ; in less than a month she says the little bulbs sent out little roots that attached themselves to the block, and she removed the string. I received a letter from her tc-day (June 5th) saying she “did wish I could see those Orchids in bloom.”“Crinum Fimbriatulum,, is in blotm and how it calls forth an exclamation of pleasure at sight of its tall, wine colored spike on the top of which are twelve magnificent striped white and carmine lily-like blossoms. This one has bloomed twdce this winter, and is in bloom again now, something unusual I think as it never did it for me before, but has often had two spikes of bloom. Gypsy.Manatee Co., Fla.An Indian Toddy Palm-The Phoenix sylvestris, or Wild Date Palm, of India, thrives there in almost any soil or situation, and lives in dryer regions than other Indian Palms. It is perfectly hardy in Florida and very fast growing, ultimately attaining a height of forty feet. Yon Mueller states that where this Palm abounds, much sugar is obtained from it by evaporation of the sap, w’hich flows from incisions into the upper part of the trunk—a process not sacrificing the plant, as for fifty years the sap can thus be withdrawn. This Palm-sugar consists almost entirely of Cane sugar. Each plant furnishes the juice for about eight pounds ofdate-sugar annually, but in some instances much more. About 50,000 tons of sugar a year are produced in Bengal alone from this and some other Palms. A kind of arrack is obtained by fermentation and distillation of this sap, and also from the young spikes. W. Goldring writes to The Gardeners’ Chronicle the following interesting account of this Palm, illustrated by a cut showing a native drawing toddy from one of the trees:A familiar and perhaps, to some people, a monotonous feature in Indian scenery, particularly along the coast region of Western India, are the groves of Phoenix sylvestris, one of the toddy Palms, the commonest of the wild Palms of the country, but a most valuable one to the natives. It is frequently seen in company with another noble Palm, Borassus flabelliformis, the Palmyra, and these, together with the CocoanutPalm, which, in the neighborhood of Bombay, is cultivated in extensive plantations, comprise the chief elements of that striking tropical scenery which always impresses travelers from northern regions when they first see it. This Phcenix does not differ materially in aspect from the Date Palm of Egypt, P. dactylifera, which one sees on the way out; and my impression is that the Date Palm, as well as such Phoenixes as P. rupiclt; la, tenuis, acaulis, canariensis, and possibly others, are but geographical forms of a widely distributed species, having a range almost as extensive as that of the Cocoanut Palm. Be this as it may, they all seem to me very much alike, and from my point ofviev produce the same effect, for in a natural grove of P. sylvestris one could select forms that to all appearances are identical with the species named.The Palm now illustrated is not the only one that yields toddy, as there are sev eral in India from which the enticing juice can be drawn, notably the Palmyra, Cocoanut and Wine Palm (Carvota urecs) but in Guzerat the Phoenix yields the bulk of the enormous quantity of toddy that is consumed by the natives. Toddy drawing is, in fact, an important industry, and moreover a source of revenue to the govennment, as a tax is imposed upon every tree in full yield, and to which an official number is attached. A large plantation of Phcenix is a valuable property, for the owners assess their value at from five to fifteen rupees a tree. If a plantation is near a town or a group of villages, or near a frequented highway, the drawing and distribution of toddy is always active, and keeps several people busy. The mode of drawing is admirably shown in the picture. The toddy man is in the act of fixing a “chattie” at the mouth of a notch that has previously been made in the succulent part of the stem, the incision being made so that the descending sap trickles into the vessel, a few strips of reed being placed so as to conduct the juice more readily. The chatties are emptied morning and evening, and, as they hold a quart or more, a great quantity of sap is extracted from each tree during the season; and the loss tells materially on the health of the tree, so much so that if the extraction were to continue year after year, the tree wolud soon die from exhaustion. After a tree has been tapped a full season, it is allowed to rest for two or three seasons, and that accounts for the inter-yals of the scars on the trunk, as may be seen in the picture where the man has his left foot and the scar lower down. The toddy drawer is possessed of surprising agility in climbing the perpendicular stems, which he does with the utmost ease, the only support being the iope he has fastened round his waist, which leaves his hands free. The fluid thus obtained is of the consistency of watered milk, and has a sweetish, and to some Europeans an agreeable taste, while to others it is nauseating. When freshly drawn it is most refreshing, and to quaff a bowl of it when excessively thirsty is one of the pleasantest incidents in Indian life. When, however, it is allowed to ferment, which it quickly does, it is sour and unpleasant, and becomes as intoxicating as Scotch nectar, but iu this state it obviously finds more favor with the natives.As a garden plant, the wild Phoenix is of great value for landscape effect when it occurs in natural groups, for in these you see are gradations of size, from the small seedling to the decrepit old trees, that have reached the length of their days, and lean leewards in a most picturesque way. The bluish-gray-green tint of a grove of Phoenix is perhaps too somber, but in a garden one can always introduce variety as aforegrouud, of intermixed in the group. It is a singular fact that the date bearing Palm does not thrive successfully in India, so as to produce edible fruit, and that ofP. sylvestris is valueless as food, though the leaves and stems, and the fiber and bark thereof, are of value to the natives in various ways.One truck farmer in this vicinity who ! i raised celery for the local market last j i season says part of his crop paid at the J ! rate $1,500 per acre, and he expects to ! do even better the coming season. That i is big money. There are few, if any, crops grown in any country that will pay Det- \ ter.—Tampa Daily News. ]
Newspaper Details
Deland Florida Agriculturist
Deland, Florida, US
Wed, Sep 06, 1893
Page 14
Full Page
Clipped by
Lance H.
NA, 07 May 2024
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