Greetings From A Sub-tropical Fruit & Spice Park | Miracle Fruit, Coconuts, Jackfruit, Bananas & More! (DTube Video & Tons of Photos)

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Today we toured a spectacular 37 acre park dedicated to showcasing subtropical fruits, nuts and spices.

We got to see and taste a great diversity of fruiting trees and were enthralled by the incredible diversity of fruit and spices that can be grown in Southern Florida.

We have only just begun our journey into creating a food forest and our souls were fed during this field trip we took to such an inspiring place.

The Fruit & Spice Park was the realization of one woman’s vision to create a showcase for the rich agricultural bounty and heritage of the area known as Redland. Mary Calkins Heinlein came from a family of pioneer homesteaders in Redland which got its name from the reddish color of its soil. Redland became the first lasting settlement of South Dade County as its sub-tropical climate created a unique agricultural environment able to produce a wide variety of exotic fruit.

Pictured here is a banana flower. We learned today that any banana that has downward facing flowers is edible. This one is pointing up and is an inedible, although I'm not sure why anyone would grow a banana you couldn't eat!

An 1896 newspaper stated that farmers in South Dade were producing “avocado pears, mangos, sapodillas, pa paw (papaya), lemons, limes, etc.” These were just some of the sub-tropical fruits and plants Mrs. Heinlein felt would provide a unique garden display.

We were impressed at the collection of edible plants that were assembled here and happy to taste some of them.

We spent the day touring and walking the grounds, appreciating the notably tropical feel present in such a place.

Happy to be enjoying our vacation in an enlivening environment. The fruit and spice park in Homestead Florida boasts:

More than 500 varieties of exotic fruits, herbs, spices and nuts from around the world; 180 varieties of mangos; 70 varieties of bamboo; 40 varieties of bananas; 15 varieties of jackfruit trees.

Jackfruit is the largest fruit in the world, the world record is over 200 pounds! It is this sweet juicy fruit that the juicy fruit gum flavor was based on. It is such a delightful fruit, but I never thought it could be grown in the USA.

The only public garden of its kind in the United States, the park continues to be operated by the Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department.

It is the only public garden of its kind in the USA and is operated by the Miami-Dade County parks department.

Visitors can sample fallen fruit (no above-aground harvesting is permitted) and arrangements can be made with the management for collecting seeds and cuttings suitable for planting. A staff of experts conducts classes, workshops and botanical tours on a year-round basis.

Breathtaking lotus blossoms on small ponds around the park.

Fueled by passion

This park is the legacy of early pioneering fruit producers in the region. Mary Calkins Heinlein was the daughter of innovative fruit growers, and this part is an extension of her interest and passion for the wonderful foods that can grow in the subtropical climate of Southern Florida.

This is Moringa aka the miracle tree. It has oodles of uses and a long history of use. One thing we loved about today was the diversity of folks on the tour from many walks of life and a variety of levels of interest in plants all getting an opportunity to interact with plants. Spread the plant love!

She and her husband owned and operated a nursery that supplied a great deal of the plants for the establishment of the park. She was the first Superintendent of the park and served until her retirement. Today we are able to appreciated and witness the wonderful collection of edible fruits, nuts and spices because of the groundwork laid by Mary Calkins Heinlein (1903-1975) and others, many of whom are volunteers.

Mary Calkins Heinlein (1903-1975) served as Superintendent of what she named the Redland Fruit & Spice Park until her retirement in 1959. The daughter of pioneer sub-tropical farmers, Mrs. Heinlein was fascinated with the exotic fruits and flora of South Florida.

Passionflower

She was an active garden club member and she and her husband Herman owned a small nursery in the Redland. Following William Lyman Phillips’ landscape plans, Mrs. Heinlein and her husband led a team of laborers and park workers in laying out the plots of collected specimens to plant in the Park.

Ornamental pineapple

The collection grew and soon a variety of rate fruits, nuts and spices flourished. In 1980, as a tribute to Preston B. Bird and Mary Heinlein, the Miami-Dade County Park and Recreation Department gave the Park the official name of Preston B. Bird & Mary Heinlein Fruit & Spice Park, but due to the length of the name it is referred to as the Fruit & Spice Park.

A cut above most botanical gardens

This park is not like other botanical gardens. The plants here are attractive, but are chosen because of their edibility. What this park is showcasing is important and inspirational.

Soursop fruit (relative of the paw paw)

There are so many edible fruit trees in the world, and it's amazing to see the sheer diversity collected in one place.

Macadamia flowers

180 types of mangoes, REALLY? While most of these species are not relevant for us to grow in Southern Missouri, it is the concept and passion for growing a wide range of fruits that feeds our inner fire!

A plant we’re faniliar with and grow on our homestead, the elderberry. Fruiting in March!

This visit sparks our inner plant geek and lights our fire for all this phyto!

@birdsinparadise, my mom, hugging a Baobab tree, the widest tree on earth. She's trying to hear the water running inside of its trunk; if this tree falls it contains enough water inside to survive for 2 months!

A tour into the tropics

On an hour and a half tour we were guided through and educated about only some of the plants showcased here. We gazed on a very diverse collection of plants, smelled flowers and leaves and tasted fruits.

The areas were roughly grouped by geographical origin and represented American, Australian and Asian and African species.

Although this African sausage tree isn't edible, it provides an odd fruit that has been used extensively as an antibacterial wound dressing. The latex in the fruit is know to seal and protect wounds.

So many plants we haven't heard of and many others I never thought could grow in the USA (like miracle fruit, mamey sapote, coconut and jackfruit). This tree was known as the African sausage tree and is although is not edible it has a strange fruit that is used as as antibacterial wound dressing.

They even had a few cacao trees! It was a super fun day spent in the presence of an epic collection of edible plants.

The miracle fruit has a strange ability to make sour foods taste sweet. A chemical in the fruit changes the chemistry in your mouth and increases sensitivity to taste as well as making other foods taste sweet! It is used to mask the tinny taste during chemotherapy!

Source of history above:

http://redlandfruitandspice.com/what-to-expect/history/

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