A Garden In Tahiti

Introduction of Melons, Citrus and Pineapples

By W. W. Bolton

I WRITE of a garden not of the present day, but in the Long Ago; not of flowers, but of the homely vegetable.

Those first white men and women *who arrived in Tahiti in 1797 and had taken up their residence at Matavai (Cook’s Point Venus) wanted green food other than the taro, yam and sweet potato of the natives. The time would come for roses and dahlias, for carnations and the rest that they loved, but had left behind.

Just now, it was green foods they needed, not alone for health, but to make more palateable the endless round of pork, the staple meat alone to be secured.

An orderly garden, with its trim beds set in rows, was unknown to Tahitians, and great was the interest shown by them at this fresh peculiarity of the new comers. That interest, however, soon be came more than a mental one, and those poor gardeners had a sorry time.

Let them speak for themselves. Their successes and their failures, their hopes and disappointments, their worries and their woes, are to be read of in their daily Journal; and surely should interest all who to-day find pleasure and, in measure, occupation, in nursing to maturity both seeds and fruits for their table.

The beginnings were over; five years of labour had passed.

1802. February:

“Cabbages, melons, pumpkins and cucumbers we have had in great abund ance. Several bushels of Indian corn have been gathered in. Many of the European vegetables will not come to perfection or produce seed. The vine and fig tree brought from Port Jackson are doing well. Potatoes are good for nothing.”

But, with November, comes another story. They chronicle:— “During the months of April, May and June all we had in the garden went to ruin in consequence of taking down the fences in the time of the late disturb ances. Since the restoration of peace, the fences have been repaired and the garden digged and sown. Water melons have succeeded, but were destroyed by the natives, who are very fond of them and commit frequent depredations. Several pineapples are in a very thriving state.”

1803. February:

“Though there has been much wet, yet it has not been a good season, through the heat of .the sun. In November were sown a few cabbages, mustard and turnip seeds, but they came to nothing. In December, sowed some Bengal radish seed; some succeeded. In January, sowed some Indian corn and French beans; these promise middling well. We have had some fine water melons and pumpkins.

The season for the former is over.”

1803.—March 5:

“Brother Scott brought from Oparre to day a quantity of fine oranges. A tree there has had some hundreds of fruit on it this season, but the natives have not the patience till they are ripe. They do the same with pineapples and have even baked them in their ovens to make them more eatable.”

1803.— April:

“In the beginning of February, planted several pineapples, also a piece of ground with this country’s sweet potatoes, and two other pieces with the Sandwich Island and New Zealand sort. In March sowed some hundreds of orange seeds, also limes and citrons. The greatest part of our garden is planted with Indian corn, sweet potatoes, tarro, pumpkins, pineapples and above. The method used in the Sandwich Islands of multiplying cabbage by slips taken from the stock of the plant does not answer in our garden.”

1803. August:

“The seed remaining from those of the cabbage and brocoli brought from Port Jackson, kept too long, did not germinate.

Removed some fig layers and put some cuttings of the grape vine in the ground; most of these are growing. Captain Simpson, having brought here from the Sandwich Islands some seeds of the papaya or paw paw tree, they were sown about November last. Most of the trees in blossom; the greater part seem to be of the male kind; all the flowers are fall ing off and no appearance of frjuit; on the few that seem to be female the fruit begins to form in the shape of a cucumber.”

1804. July:

“Near two-thirds of our garden is now covered with sweet potatoes; but, the bread fruit being plentiful, we have not yet begun to dig them. Our apricot plants in blossom; some fruit appearing on the old trees.”.

1805. February:

“In November last, the weather very dry, the afternoons uncommonly hot and scorching; yet our pumpkins prospered and the melons partly recovered the destruction by the caterpillars. Planted some peas, calavances and lentiles

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brought in the Spanish prize from the coast of Chile, but soon died. Several attempts were made to raise cucumbers, but without success. Through the whole of January mostly rain. Many of our papaya trees died through the excess of wet, the heat scalding their roots. Gath ered a great many water melons, pump kins and pineapples, notwithstanding the

frequent depredations committed by the natives. We have of late not only had our garden much plundered, but also have had taken several pigs; likewise our goats are frequently destroyed by the dogs of the natives.”

1805.—May:

“Several more of our papaya trees died through excess of wet. Gathered a great number of pineapples. Our melons all done bearing. We have to complain of the depredations committed by goats and hogs breaking in during the night, so that we enjoy but a small part of the fruit of our labours. Great quantities of melon and pumpkin seeds, with several hundreds of pineapple plants, have been given away to different parts of the island.”

1805.— October 28: ;

“Our garden was again robbed, but stealing from us is reckoned a matter of little consequence, and our losses afford the Otaheiteans a subject to laugh at.

Not so their own.”

AND so the story goes on, until that fatal year, 1808, when both gardeners and garden were wiped off the map of Tahiti.

Years later, a handful of those gard eners returned and once more that garden was laid out. When Ellis saw it (he of the “Reminiscences”) it was a wonderful orchard, rich in bearing; but that was its last bright day.

What was Tahiti’s first garden is a coconut plantation to-day. Oft has the writer walked over that site where the pioneer white gardeners “digged and sowed.” Their labour and their day are passed, but their gallant efforts are surely worth recall.