The vegetable plants consist of: cabbage, cauliflower, melons, asparagus, turnips, radishes, beets, egg plants, garlic, pepper, celery, carrots, cresses, onions, spinach, lettuce and artichokes.
The fruits of Venezuela, of which there are many different species, include: oranges, large sweet lemons, limes, plantains, pineapples, pomegranates, figs, grapes, strawberries, plums, breadfruit, chestnuts, mangoes, zapotes, parchas, medlars, tamarinds, cactus fruit, mandarines, and a great variety of bananas of a very high quality. There is a vast region available for the raising of bananas, but, up to the present no use has been made of it and there is a very small amount of capital invested in the production of this fruit ($100,000 in American gold).
COFFEE
The cultivation of coffee in Venezuela began in 1784. At the present time, it is estimated by experts that there are about 260 million coffee trees under cultivation, which place Venezuela second among the coffee growing countries, according to recent statistics.
Coffee is produced in the temperate climate regions of the Republic from five hundred to two thousand meters above sea level. It is estimated that coffee trees last from forty to fifty years, yielding an average crop of one-eighth of a kilogram of coffee beans per tree. Sixteen million dollars are invested in coffee trees in Venezuela at the present time.
CACAO
Venezuela possesses one of the choicest cacao zones of the world. The natural cacao (Theobroma edenda,—edible food of the Gods) is a seed from a tree indigenous to the soil of Venezuela. From this seed the chocolate of commerce is made. As the cacao tree requires for full development and good crops a temperature of 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and a moist air, therefore the Venezuelan lands along the coast of the Caribbean Sea, sloping from the mountain tops to the shore, and which are bedewed by the exhalation of the sea and irrigated by the many rivers coursing down the valleys, are found to be well adapted in all respects to the very profitable cultivation of cacao. It is, however, also found and cultivated in other parts of Venezuela.
About two hundred trees may be planted in one hectare (about two and one-half acres) and they must be protected from the sun by shade trees until they have acquired normal size. Five years after having been planted the trees begin to bear two crops a year, ripening in June and December. The average life of a tree is about forty years. The seed is similar to a shelled almond; about sixteen of these seeds are enclosed in an elongated pod ribbed like a musk melon. The pods are of a yellow and red color and when they become ripe turn purple. On being gathered and heaped in piles on the ground, after a few days they ferment and burst; then the seeds are shelled, washed and housed.
There are two grades of cacao grown in Venezuela, namely,—the criollo, which is the native cacao, and the trinitario, which was originally imported from the Island of Trinidad. The criollo, a very high grade, grows especially well in the valleys situated near the sea, where the temperature is warm and moist.
The demand for this product in Europe before the war was considerable and large quantities were exported annually. In Spain and Italy cacao is used in the form of chocolate, whereas in France, England and the former German Empire, it is chiefly used in the manufacture of sweets and confections, but its use is becoming so varied and extensive that it will soon be a staple article of consumption as universally needed as coffee or tea. Venezuelan cacao also finds a ready market in the United States where it is known as Caracas and Maracaibo Cacao.