VARIETIES OF VEGETATION.
In the Barbary States, which border upon the Mediterranean Sea, there is
an extensive cultivation of grain. Wheat, barley, maize, rice, and a
variety of corn called Kaffir corn, are found in considerable
quantities. Figs and olives thrive luxuriantly, and pomegranates,
grapes, and melons abound.
Tobacco has been introduced and has been cultivated to quite an extent.
The white mulberry tree is also cultivated, for use in the silkworm
culture. Here, too, are found the indigo and cotton plants, together
with the sugar cane, while most of the kitchen vegetables of Europe are
easily cultivated.
South of the Barbary States, in the mountainous districts of the Atlas
range, is found a peculiar kind of timber growth. It bears the name
sandarach, and is almost imperishable. It is generally supposed to be
the same species of wood mentioned as the shittim wood in the
Scriptures. The ceilings of the Mohammedan mosques are largely, if not
exclusively, built of it.
Passing beyond the chain of the Atlas Mountains, the vegetation changes.
There are now but few trees, and there is a noticeable dryness in the
atmosphere. It is in these regions that rain seldom falls, while such is
the heat of the winds that it is scarcely bearable even by the natives.
Here, the palm, by divine Providence, affords a grateful shade. The mass
of foliage formed by its fan-like leaves is almost impervious to the
scorching heat, and beneath its towering yet graceful form the orange,
lemon, pomegranate, and vine flourish. Strange to say, their fruits,
grown thus in the cooling shade, seem to acquire a peculiar richness of
flavor not noticeable in those grown in the ordinary way.
The vegetation of Egypt may be said to be somewhat of an intermediate
character, for it partakes of the characteristics of the several
sections we have already had described.
In the parts watered by the Nile there are found rich productions of
grains of all kinds, while in the southern and drier portions are found
only stunted, miserable-looking bushes and shrubs. These dispute with
the drifts of accumulating sand for the possession of the native soil of
these sections.
Indigo and tobacco are found in the parts of Egypt which have the
richest soil. Cotton has been cultivated to some extent, by means of an
expensive and laborious system of irrigating the soil.
Along the Senegal the cotton plant flourishes, in its rich,
well-watered soil, almost without care or cultivation. One can scarcely
estimate what quantities of cotton could be raised under careful and
painstaking labor. Coffee grows luxuriantly in all the fertile sections
of Africa, and is very abundant.
In the deserts of the interior the eye is greeted by very different
pictures from those which the other sections of Africa present. These
deserts are mostly destitute of plants, and the few they have are of
stunted growth. A very remarkable kind of grass covers entire districts,
to the great annoyance of the traveler, on account of its prickles.
Agoul, a plant peculiar to the desert, furnishes food for the camel.
In the equatorial parts of Africa all trees peculiar to European
countries are lacking. Even the date tree is seldom seen. While the
flora of these tropical regions resembles somewhat that of India, yet
there are peculiarities of vegetation which belong strictly to African
localities.
Here are found masses of the baobab trees of which we have read, and
whose fruit furnishes the refreshing drink so necessary to the natives.
Here, also, are found the cotton trees, the bases of which form great
buttresses; while shrubs in no inconsiderable variety and rich and
varied verdure cover the soil. Groups of palm trees, sago palms, and
other varieties of the same family bend down to the water's edge along
the great streams.
In the thickets climbing plants of every description twine among the
branches of the trees. One variety has recently been discovered which
yields a very good species of india rubber. These specimens of plant
life, with the masses of wild flowers, showing a brilliant coloring of
mingled scarlet, orange, and white, make a scene of rare beauty.
While there is so much that is new and strange in these tropical
regions, yet the absence of waving fields of grain and corn is strongly
noticeable. Here, too, the vine is quite unknown. The fig is of little
or no use, except in a few localities. Only the orange and the lime
remain to remind us of the usual fruits of the tropics.
Here and there may be found various kinds of apples and plums; but,
owing to the intense heat, they do not attain any perfection of size or
flavor. It is a curious fact that all the fruit is not only small and
undeveloped, but seems to lose, in a large degree, not only its peculiar
flavor, but its succulent juices as well.
In some places in the wooded sections pineapples are very abundant, and
seem to be as well established as in their native soil in tropical
America.
In the tropics, wherever a broad belt of alluvial soil is exposed by the
fall of the tide, as on the shores of the sea, in the estuaries of
rivers, and in the shallow lagoons, we may expect to find a dense
vegetation of mangroves.
These water-loving trees seem to seek the salt water sections in
preference even to other localities equally damp. Their growth is
peculiar and picturesque. The seeds germinate on the branches, increase
to a considerable length, and then fall into the mud. Here, with their
sharp points lying buried, they soon take root.
As the mangrove grows upwards, roots issue from the trunk and low
branches, and ultimately strike into the muddy ground, where they grow
and present the appearance of a series of loops and arches, from five to
ten feet high, which support the body of the tree like so many stakes.
Their matted roots interrupt the flow of the waters, and by retaining
the earthy particles that sink to the bottom between them, gradually
raise the level of the land. As the new land is thus built up, seeds
begin to grow in it, and thousands of roots descend, still further to
consolidate it. Thus, year after year, the mangroves extend the land
into the sea.
As we approach the southern portion of the great peninsula of Africa, we
find a wilderness of sand. This barren tract occupies the central
portion of the country. Here there is little or no vegetation to attract
the eye.
In the table-lands of Cape Colony there are numerous fleshy, leafless
tribes of aloes and other plants. These fix their hold in the sand by
means of a single tough, wiry root. For conveying nourishment to the
plants, these roots must be practically useless, since the soil affords
little food. Hence the main sustenance of these plants must come from
the dews with which a wise Creator supplies their needs. Many varieties
of heath are found here, among other plants.
Upon the hills and rocks of some sections of Africa is a curious tribe
of plants which seem partly of the nature of palms and partly of the
nature of ferns. They may be said to be of an intermediate family. These
fernlike palms literally cover the hills and rocky slopes. After a
rain, such portions of the country as have been watered by nature's hand
blossom forth into indescribable beauty; for the gladiolus, oxalis, and
other native plants are in brilliant bloom.
At Cape Town the American aloe tree has been introduced, and vast
impenetrable hedges have been formed by the interlacing of its spinelike
leaves, which are often six feet in length. Here, too, flourish the oak
and pine of Europe, for the climate is most favorable to their growth.
We have had occasion to speak of the thick-leaved, cactuslike plants of
the desert, which seem to prefer the arid soil of the naked plains,
where they are fully exposed to the burning rays of a tropical sun.
They furnish a great contrast to the delicately feathered mimosas of the
more fertile sections of the continent. Among all the lovely children of
Flora, the goddess of flowers, none can rival these plants in the beauty
of their foliage.
One can gain but a faint idea of the beauty these plants attain under a
tropical sun. In most species the branches extend horizontally, or are
umbrella-shaped, and the deep blue sky, shining through the light green
foliage, has a very picturesque effect.