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Brother  Marie-Victorin on the Varadero beach, with his sisters and a friends, 1939
Exposition Sous le soleil de Cuba [Jardin botanique de Montréal]
Under the Cuban Sun Cuba Marie-Victorin Itineraries Cuba's Provinces

Homepage >> Cuba's provinces - Matanzas >> [1 of 2] Français

Farther north, in the Matanzas plain: agaves and sugar cane


It is commonly believed in America that agaves flower every one hundred years. This is where the name "century plant" comes from.

The truth can be summed up as follows: these plants flower only once, and take many years to build up the reserves they require for this supreme exploit, after which they are exhausted and die.


A plantation of Agave sisalana, whose fibres are used to make sisal rugs, string and rope.
 

UdeM: E01185FP11476

UdeM: E01185FP11444

Here we are in Matanzas. Around us the soil is a lovely red.

While monoculture - sugar cane - is largely the rule in Cuba, that is mainly because of the incredibly fertile soil. Some parts of the Matanzas plain have been cultivated for over 100 years, with no fertilizer of any kind.


Weighing a load of sugar cane.

UdeM: E01185FP11447

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Under the Cuban Sun with Marie-Victorin [Jardin botanique de Montréal]


Last Update: 2014-06-18
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