The History of Cuba Volume V Part 19

There are probably twenty varieties of bananas cultivated in different parts of Cuba. Some twelve or more of these may be seen growing at the Experimental Station at Santiago de las Vegas. The variety preferred for local consumption and always in constant demand is the large cooking bananas, known in the United States as the plantain. This banana is not eaten in its natural state, but when cooked, either green or ripe, it finds a place on every table in Cuba.

The plant is tall and the fruit at least twice as long as that of the ordinary banana of commerce. It is not as prolific as other varieties, seldom bearing more than 30 or 40 to the stem, but it is found on every farm on the Island and is relied on as a source of food, even more than is the potato. The bunches under normal conditions command in the market prices varying from 20 to 60, dependent upon the number of "hands" or bananas to the stalk.

The banana plant reaches a height of twelve or fifteen feet and is reproduced from the sucker or offshoot of the original bulb. About 400 hills are set out to the acre. In twelve months the first comes to maturity, producing a single bunch of fruit, whose price, dependent on variety and size, varied from 20 to $1. Each main stalk during the year sends up six or eight suckers, that are used to increase the acreage as desired. Bananas for export are grown profitably only on or near the edge of deep water harbors, where transportation to northern markets is a.s.sured.

A description of all of the many varieties of the banana grown in Cuba would be perhaps superfluous. The most commonly cultivated for the table, and eaten without cooking, is known as the Manzana or Apple Banana. Its flavor may suggest the apple, although the choice of name is probably accidental. The bunch is rather small, and the fruit is bright yellow, only about one-half the length of the banana of commerce, and stands out more or less horizontally from the stem on which it grows.

The average price of these when found in the market is about 35 per bunch.

Some three or four varieties of the red banana are grown in Cuba, and while quite hardy and easily cultivated they are not prized in the Indies as in the United States. The dwarf banana, or Platano Enano, has a very pleasant flavor, not unlike that of the Johnson, or banana of commerce, and may be found in almost every garden in the Island. The plant reaches a height of only five or six feet, and the bunches of fruit are long and heavy, filled almost to the tip, and often supported by a forked stock, caught under the neck of the stalk so that the weight of the fruit will not break or pull over the plant itself.

Another very choice banana is called the "Platano Datil," or date banana. The stalks are relatively small and hold but little fruit in comparison with other varieties, seldom having more than two or three hands to the bunch. The fruit itself is from two and a half to three inches in length, round and plump, with a thin skin that can be slipped off, like a glove, but with a flavor that is probably the most delicate and delicious of the whole Musa family.

Approximately 125,000,000 pounds of bananas are exported from the Island each year, valued under normal conditions at a little over a million dollars. The great bulk of bananas grown in Cuba are for domestic consumption.

Agriculture, although rapidly a.s.suming as it should the dignity of a science, still has its caprices or apparent contradictions. And so it happens that the choicest flavored and highest priced bananas of the world are grown in the waterworn pockets of almost barren dog-teethed rocks--"los dientes de perro" of the extreme eastern end of Cuba, just back of Cape Maysi.

Here the coast rises from sea level in a series of four or five steps or comparatively flat plateaux, each some four or five hundred feet above the other, until an alt.i.tude of two thousand feet is reached. The rocks are soft limestone and in the millions of waterworn pockets, the leaves and dust of the forest jungle have left their deposit for ages. In this shallow soil bananas not only grow luxuriously but have a remarkably delicate and delicious flavor, essentially their own.

The secret of this wondrous growth and par excellence however, lies not alone in the rocky soil, but in the fact that generous nature at this point, contributes an abundant shower of rain almost every day in the year. The low, heavily waterladen clouds of the West Indian seas, driven by easterly winds strike this series of table lands, one rising above the other, and shower the lands with daily rains. Hence it is that while the average rainfall of Cuba is 54 inches, this series of table land of Cape Maysi has an annual rainfall of 125 inches.

The result is that in spite of difficult access and a cultivation confined to the hoe, millions of bunches of choice bananas are grown and shipped from the mouth of the Little Yumuri every year. United Fruit steamers on their way north from South and Central American banana fields stop at the above landing to take on a top dressing of fancy fruit.

Owing to the fact that the banana has practically no season, or rather that it may bear in any month, four suckers of varying ages are set out in each hill, from which four bunches of fruit, some three months apart, will result during the year. With four hundred stands or hills to the acre, the annual yield should be, approximately 1,600 bunches, and whether the crop is disposed of in the local markets or converted into banana flour, the growing of bananas may be made one of the important industries of Cuba.

Patient toil and judicious selection have made the modern pineapple one of our most delightful of all fruits, in addition to which, in those countries not too far removed from markets, it has a.s.sumed an important place as a commercial industry. The fruit of the pineapple, like that of the strawberry, is a strange compound or consolidation of hundreds of little fruits, in one symmetrical cone, tinted when ripe with shades varying from greenish yellow to golden red or orange. Like the strawberry, it is a ground fruit that must be planted and cultivated along the lines that bring best results with ordinary field crops.

Pineapples have been grown in Cuba since the beginning of the Spanish occupation, perhaps even before, although no mention is made of them as being cultivated by the Indians. As a commercial product the growing of the pineapple on a large scale began during the first Government of Intervention, although they were shipped abroad to some extent before that time. In point of money value, the industry ranks next to that of the citrus fruit. Although up to the present time most of the pineapples intended for export are grown within fifty miles of the city of Havana, over a million crates are annually shipped to the United States.

Pineapples may be grown on any rich soil in Cuba, and are considered one of the staple crops. The slips or offshoots from the parent plant are set out in long ridges some four feet apart, with intervening s.p.a.ces averaging a foot. These produce fruit in one year from planting, and from each original stalk an average of six suckers may be taken for planting in other beds, so that with a very small start the acreage may be easily increased five or six-fold each year.

About 8,000 plants are considered sufficient for an acre of ground; and the cost of them when purchased averages about $30 per acre, while the preparation of the land for pineapple culture will amount to somewhat more. The net returns under favorable circ.u.mstances will vary from $75 to $100. The average net profit from pineapples grown near Artemisia and Campo Florida is said to be about $50 per acre. The high price of sugar, since the beginning of the European War, has, however, caused much of the former pineapple acreage to be converted into cane fields.

The profit derived from pineapple culture, as in all fruits or vegetables of a perishable nature, depends very largely upon the shipping facilities of the locality selected. Pineapples cannot long be held on the wharf waiting for either trains or steamers. In this connection it may be mentioned that the daily ferry between Key West and Havana, by which freight cars can be loaded in the fields and shipped to any city in the United States without breaking bulk, has been very beneficial to growers.

The Red Spanish, owing to its excellent shipping qualities, is preferred to all others for export, although many other varieties, such as the "Pina blanca" or sugarloaf, which will not stand shipment abroad, are used for local consumption and bring an average price of ten cents retail throughout the year.

The largest pines grown for commercial purposes include the Smooth Cayenne, a beautiful fruit, varying in weight from five to fifteen pounds. Unfortunate is he who may have partaken of the rich sweet, juicy Sugar Loaf of Cuba, since it will discourage his fondness for the Smooth Cayenne, the much advertised Honolulu and other cone shaped products, whose flavor is not in keeping with their appearance.

So delicious in flavor is the sugar loaf pine in comparison with those large varieties suited only for canning or cooking purposes, that the latter have never become sufficiently popular in Cuba to induce cultivation. In the Isle of Pines, however, as well as in Florida, the smooth Cayenne is grown and shipped to the nondiscriminating who live abroad. With care in packing, however, the sugarloaf may reach northern markets.

The pineapple more than any other fruit appeals to the canning industry, especially in Cuba, where hundreds of thousands that have ripened too late for the northern markets are left to rot in the fields. There are no better pineapples grown in the world than in the Island of Cuba, and the excess or overproduction of the fruit within the next few years will undoubtedly be handled by properly equipped canning factories and thus add another industry to the revenues of the Island.

The Anon is a small shapely tree seldom growing over twenty feet in height and common throughout all Cuba. The fruit of the Anon, sometimes called the sugar-apple, resembles a small round greenish white cone, about the size of the ordinary apple. Its delightful pulp suggests a mixture of thick sweetened cream, adhering to smooth black sunflower seeds. Although delicious to eat fresh from the tree, and very useful in making ices, it does not readily endure shipment, and is thus confined commercially to the local markets of the larger cities in Cuba.

The Chirimoya, belonging to the same family, is undoubtedly the queen of the Anones. It is larger than the Anon, reaching the size of an ordinary grape-fruit. Its pulp is white, soft and very delicate, while the skin, unlike the Anon, is smooth, yellowish in color, with a blush of red.

The Zapote, Nispero or Sapodilla, as it is variously termed, is a beautiful ornamental tree of the forest, indigenous to tropical America and the West Indies. The tree, with its trim shapely trunk and branches, its crisp, dark green foliage that never fails, adds greatly to the beauty of parks and lawns. The wood is hard, reddish and very durable.

From the trunk exudes chicle gum, used in the United States for making chewing-gum. In England, since it is more plastic than caoutchouc, and more elastic than gutta-percha, it is employed as an adulterant to these products. The fruit in size and color resembles somewhat a small russet apple. It has a delightfully sweet juicy pulp, not unlike a persimmon touched with frost. The small glossy seeds are easily removed, and the fruit is very refreshing when left on ice, or in the early morning hours. Only with extreme care in packing could zapotes, like many other fruits of Cuba, stand shipment to foreign countries.

The Tamarind is a tall, beautiful tree frequently 70 to 80 feet in height, with a soft, delicate, locust-like foliage, and purplish or orange veined flowers in terminal cl.u.s.ters. The Tamarind probably originated in Abyssinia or some other part of eastern tropical Africa, but at the present time it is scattered throughout the entire tropical world, and is very common in Cuba. There is perhaps no tree known whose fruit furnishes a more refreshing fruit than the Tamarind. It is said to have been brought to Cuba from Southern Europe more than a century ago, whence it has since been scattered throughout the forest, through the medium of birds. From its branches, after the flowers have disappeared, hang cl.u.s.ters of brown colored, bean-like brittle pods. These when ripe are filled with a sweet yet pleasantly acid pulp, which when mixed with water makes a refreshing, slightly laxative and healthful drink.

The Mamey Colorado is another giant tree of the forest, belonging to the Sapodilla family and indigenous to tropical America. Its fruit is oval in form, some six or eight inches in length, covered with a tough brown skin, and filled with a rich peculiar dark red pulp, inclosing a long, smooth, coffee-colored seed, that is easily separated from the edible part of the fruit. In consistency and flavor, it suggests slightly a well-made pumpkin pie. Those unaccustomed to the fruit would probably find it unpleasantly rich. The yellow or Mamey de Santo Domingo is a true Mamey, entirely different from the Mamey Colorado. The tree is large, tall and quite common in the forests of the Island. Its fruit is round, russet yellow in color and equivalent to a large grapefruit. It is used only as a preserve, and in that capacity serves a useful purpose.

The Guava, or Guayaba, as it is known in Spanish countries, springs up unwanted in almost every field of Cuba. Its nature is that of a shrub, spreading out with little form or symmetry. If permitted to propagate itself, it soon becomes a pest difficult to eradicate. A few choice varieties, one of which is known as the Pear Guava, imported from Peru, are very palatable. The meat of the latter is white, rather juicy and free from seeds. The common Guayaba of the field, while sometimes eaten raw, is always in demand for jellies, Guayaba paste and marmalades, which have a ready sale in Cuba and in the United States and are very popular in the latter country. Animals of all kinds, especially pigs and horses, are very fond of it.

The Mamoncillo is another beautiful forest tree indigenous to Cuba, that spreads out like a giant live-oak or mammoth apple tree. Its round, russet green fruit hangs from every branch, and is refreshing to the traveler who stops a moment beneath its shade. Its slightly acid pulp covers a rather large round seed, the whole resembling a tough skinned plum, although the tree belongs to an entirely distinct family.

Figs of all varieties, green, black and yellow, may be found in almost every garden in Cuba. No effort has been made to preserve them for commercial purposes, but when ripe they are very refreshing taken with "desayuno" or the early morning meal.

The Aguacate is another valuable product of the Caribbean Basin, and seems to be indigenous to nearly all its sh.o.r.es, including Mexico and Central and South America. It extended south along the Pacific Coast also, as far as Peru, where the Spanish conquerors found it in use among the people of the Incas. Oviedo, in his reports to Charles I of Spain in 1526, stated that he had found this peculiar fruit on the Caribbean sh.o.r.es of both South and Central America.

It was also indigenous to Mexico, where the Aztecs called it the Ahuacatl, whence came the Spanish name of Aguacate, by which it is known in Cuba. The name Avocado has been adopted by the Department of Agriculture of the United States, in order to avoid the confusion resulting from the many local names under which this fruit is known in various countries.

The aguacate of Cuba is a tall handsome tree of the forest, scattered more or less throughout all portions of the Island. It frequently reaches a height of 70 or 80 feet, and although of an open spreading nature, nevertheless furnishes grateful shade. There are many types, although systematic efforts to cla.s.sify them botanically have not been very successful. The distinction between them usually made is dependent largely upon the shape of the fruit or its color.

The most common variety in Cuba is probably the long, pear-shaped aguacate, although trees bearing round and oblong fruit are often met, especially where they have been planted in gardens or orchards. In color the fruit is usually bright green, or greenish red. Some types again will vary from greenish red to a reddish purple.

The pear shaped aguacates vary in length from five to ten inches, and will average probably a pound and a half in weight. The round or oblong types are usually green in color, with a diameter of five or six inches.

The skin is about 1/16th of an inch in thickness, smooth and bright, and peels freely from the inclosed meat. The meat is rather difficult to describe since it resembles in flavor and texture no other edible fruit known. Its color is golden yellow, resembling both in consistency and shade, rich, cold b.u.t.ter, and is used sometimes as a subst.i.tute for this product of the dairy. Close to the skin the meat has a slightly greenish tinge. It is very rich in oil and has a pleasant nutty flavor, that evades all description.

The aguacate may be eaten just as it comes from its thin sh.e.l.l-like covering. In the center of the fruit is a large hard seed some two and a half inches in diameter. This never adheres to the pulp, and may be lifted out readily so that the fruit can be eaten with a spoon.

The aguacate forms the finest salad in the world. When used for this purpose the pocket from which the seed was removed is usually filled with broken ice, over which is poured a dressing of salt, vinegar and mustard or pepper, as fancy may happen to dictate. When filled with small cubes of sugar loaf pineapple and mayonnaise dressing, you have a "salad divine." When taken this way, the aguacate is cut in half, the sh.e.l.l-like covering forming the bowl from which it is eaten. Owing to its content of oil, and other nutritious elements, the aguacate will probably go further towards sustaining life and producing energy than any other fruit known. It is also excellent when removed from the peel, cut into cubes and eaten in soup.

The tree is a prolific bearer, the fruit ripening during the months of July to October inclusive. Other varieties recently introduced come into bearing in October and remain in fruit until January, some occasionally holding over until the month of March.

In the development and improvement of the aguacate, it is the aim of the horticulturist to lengthen the bearing period as much as possible, and through selection to eliminate any s.p.a.ce between the pulp and the seed; for the latter, if loose, will often bruise the fruit in handling and shipping. Since the aguacate, like most fruit trees, is not true to seed, this work can be accomplished only through grafting, and although successful, requires care and experience. The ordinary aguacate of the forest bears the fourth or fifth year from the seed, while the grafted varieties will bear the third year. A tree of the latter type, when five years of age, will bear from one hundred to five hundred aguacates, that will average two pounds in weight, and will sell in the fruit markets of the United States at from $1 to $3 a dozen.

The tree may be grown on any well drained land and under conditions similar to those of the mango. On hillsides that have sufficient depth of soil, it does very well, and as the demand for fancy fruit in the palatial hotels of the United States increases, the growing of aguacates for commercial purposes will undoubtedly be undertaken in Cuba or a still larger scale.

CHAPTER XXII

GRAPES, CACAO, AND VANILLA

In spite of the fact that the Grape is indigenous to Cuba, prohibitory laws on the part of Spain discouraged its culture in all of her colonies, so that vine culture in the Island has had no opportunity to thrive. The few isolated specimens found occasionally in gardens have produced excellent fruit, especially in the neighborhood of Guantanamo, where French refugees from Santo Domingo introduced a few plants in the beginning of the 19th century.

Realizing the importance of grape culture in any country where possible, Dr. Calvino, Director of the Government Experiment Station, in the first days of his administration, sent into the forests of Cuba for healthy specimens of the wild grape, indigenous to the country, known as the "Uva Cimarron." These were brought to the Station and set out in soil especially prepared. After less than a year had elapsed, four or five lanes, several hundred feet in length, for which trellises of wire have been provided, showed wonderful growth. This native sour grape has simply covered the supports with a wilderness of leaves, vines and fruit.

Correspondence with Professor Munson of Texas, one of the most noted grape specialists of the United States, resulted in bringing to Cuba a dozen or more varieties of choice grapes from that section. These, together with others brought from France, Spain and other European countries, have been planted at the Station, where, in spite of the change of climate and conditions, they seem to thrive. The Director is planning to bud the wild stock of the Cuban grape with all of these choice imported varieties, in order to ascertain which may give the best results in this country.

Several acres are devoted to this experimental grape field and have been supplied with convenient trellises and facilities for irrigation. The Director and those interested with him are much encouraged with the present stage of the experiment and have great confidence in their ability to establish successfully in Cuba many of the choice grapes of the world, although the medium of the vigorous Cimarron grape of the island. If these experiments prove successful, there is no reason why many of the hillsides of this country should not be converted into immense vineyards, and the cultivation of grapes become a prominent and permanent source of agricultural wealth.

Although intoxication among the inhabitants of Cuba is almost unknown, the drinking of wine, as in all other Latin American countries, has been a custom from time immemorial and the annual importation of wine, most of which comes from Spain, approximates $2,500,000 a year. Should the culture of grapes in Cuba meet with the success expected, there is no reason why this industry, together with that of wine making, might not be carried on in connection with coffee growing in the mountains, since the soils of the fertile hills throughout the Island are adapted to the culture of both at the same time.