America's Crop Heritage


the trees in the winter by stacking pine tops around the plantings
located near warm salt water currents. The Department sent her
a number of young coffee trees in 1879 for her own use and for
other persons in her locality. In 1880 Mrs. Atzeroth forwarded
to the Department a pound of coffee grown outside a greenhouse,
and considered her plantation a success. That same year the
Department distributed a thousand plants, and many more were
raised from seed and distributed in Florida, California, and in
some parts of Texas in 1889. Coffee plants from Liberia were
introduced in Florida, but they proved unsatisfactory. After
1891 the plants were distributed only to encourage production
for home consumption.
 OTHER TROPICALS
 The government introduced many tropical plants for trial
between 1862 and 1889. Isaac Newton set aside an "apartment"
in one of the greenhouses to determine what tropical fruits were
worthy of greenhouse cultivation and wrote horticulturists for
new varieties. Dwarf banana plants and several pineapple and
guava varieties were transmitted to the most congenial parts of
Florida for trial. The government's collection of tropical fruits
included the mangosteen, tamarind, mango, Indian persimmon,
cherimoya, and other trees. In 1870 the Mamey apple, various
ornamental tropical plants, and three kinds of avocadoes were
received from Santo Domingo. A conservatory was built in 1870
to protect tropical plant collections, and assistance was given agri-
cultural colleges in the construction of such buildings. The
government assisted the citrus fruit industry by importing new
varieties until northern markets for the fruit became established.
 At the request of Commissioner Colman, Prof. J. B. Steere of
Ann Arbor, Michigan, secured seed and plants of the mango,
cherimoya, and bananas from the Philippine Islands. Guavas, six
varieties of bananas from the Philippines, and other tropical
plants were allotted to experienced growers. In 1889, growers
experimentally raised cocoanuts in Florida. The Department
distributed pyrethrum seeds for many years. Growers in Cali-
fornia reported that this plant had been profitably cultivated for
use as an insecticide.
 PASTURE, FORAGE, AND OTHER FARM CROPS
 The rapid settlement of the West emphasized the need for
plants especially adapted to subarid regions. Some of the prob-