Independent gardening advice for real gardens, balconies and windowsills.
A growing reference library of gardening terms, techniques and climate concepts explained in plain language.
The bamboo cane, a gigantic grass, cultivated in many tropical and semitropical countries. The Chinese use it in one way or other for nearly everything they require. Almost every article of furniture...
The Maloo-climber of India, where the gigantic shrubby stems often attain a height of 300 feet, running over the tops of the tallest trees, and twisting so tightly around their stems as to kill them....
This Mexican plant is remarkable for the large bulbiform swelling at the base of the stem. It is a plant of much elegance and beauty, resembling a drooping fountain.
The curry-leaf tree of India. The fragrant, aromatic leaves are used to flavor curries. The leaves, root, and bark are used medicinally. The wood is hard and durable, and from the seeds a clear, trans...
This furnishes the Trincomalee wood of the Philippine Islands and Ceylon, and is largely used for making oil casks and for building boats, for which it is well adapted, being light and strong.
This furnishes the well known Brazil nuts, or cream nuts of commerce. The tree is a native of South America and attains a height of 100 to 150 feet. The fruit is nearly round and contains from eightee...
A native of Mexico, where it is sometimes called Mariposa butterfly. The branches are said to be used in the adulteration of sarsaparilla. _B. chica_, a native of Venezuela, furnishes a red pigment, o...
Arnotta plant. This plant is a native of South America, but has been introduced and cultivated both in the West and East Indies. It bears bunches of pink-colored flowers, which are followed by oblong...
The akee fruit of Guinea. The fruit is about 3 inches long by 2 inches wide; the seeds are surrounded by a spongy substance, which is eaten. It has a subacid, agreeable taste. A small quantity of semi...