Important agricultural districts are, besides the Central Highlands about one hundred and fifty kilometers in length by sixty kilometers in width, the great valleys of Talamanca, Santa Clara, Tortuguero, San Carlos and Rio Frio. Along the Pacific the great valley of Térraba and the plains of Golfo Dulce and Guanacaste are fertile regions, which, if properly tilled, would offer advantages equal to the Central Highlands, where nearly the entire population of Costa Rica is concentrated.
Plants characterizing fertile lands, rich in humus, on the Atlantic slope, are Piper, especially that with large leaves, Loaseæ, and certain Acanthaceæ. On the Pacific side such characteristic plants are Piper, with smaller leaves, the Pacaya Palm, and some ferns. Especially are the Aspidium and Polypodium found in large quantities.
Considering the future of Costa Rica, the question of farm labor is of vital importance. There are only a few Indians, and they are rapidly decreasing. It looks as though the fertile lowlands on the Atlantic and Pacific sides, as well as those in the extensive and fruitful San Juan valley, must be turned over to the Negro race as the only one capable of enduring so inhospitable a climate. These regions are the richest of all and could sustain a large population.
The live stock of Costa Rica, though in general superior to that of the rest of Central America, is not yet sufficiently large to supply the local demand. Although there has been recent improvement in breeding cattle and horses, yet the high grade animals, which could be easily introduced into a country of so many natural advantages, are still lacking. At different times the development of this industry has been attempted. Costa Rica has vast pasture lands splendidly adapted to cattle. It has very nutritious forage plants, like arrocillo, cola de venado, zacate de guinea, zacate de castilla, zacate pará, zacate ancho, grama, guate, caña de azucar, gamalote, sabanilla, teosinte, lengua de vaca, guácimo, jengibrillo, platanillo, etc.
The live stock of Costa Rica in 1892 was distributed as follows:
| Cattle. | Horses. | Sheep. | Swine. | |
| San José | 51,884 | 17,542 | 1,538 | 23,628 |
| Alajuela | 62,410 | 16,774 | 159 | 16,185 |
| Cartago | 48,555 | 9,900 | 715 | 5,109 |
| Heredia | 35,391 | 6,380 | 57 | 13,241 |
| Guanacaste | 134,567 | 24,458 | 296 | 2,180 |
| Puntarenas | 9,667 | 1,721 | — | 1,128 |
| Limon | 3,191 | 268 | — | 857 |
| Total | 345,665 | 77,043 | 2,765 | 62,328 |
The consumption of cattle in Costa Rica is exhibited by the following data:
| 1894. | 1895. | 1896. | First half of 1897. | |
| San José | 12,851 | 12,824 | 13,467 | 6,942 |
| Alajuela | 7,402 | 7,184 | 7,180 | 3,493 |
| Cartago | 5,207 | 4,881 | 5,297 | 2,506 |
| Heredia | 4,864 | 4,942 | 4,249 | 2,438 |
| Guanacaste | 2,701 | 1,990 | 1,928 | 882 |
| Puntarenas | 1,472 | 1,471 | 1,302 | 770 |
| Limon | 804 | 789 | 798 | 488 |
| Total | 35,301 | 34,081 | 34,221 | 17,519 |
Further official reports disclose that in the capital the consumption of meat is quite uniform during the entire year, while in the country it is greater from August to January than from February to July.
The total value of the natural, agricultural and live stock products of the country has been calculated at 19,000,000 pesos.