Millheim Journal. [volume] (Millheim, Pa.) 1876-1984, 1885-05-14
FLOATING GARDENS.
How They are Secured and
Kept in Place.
Places Where Indian Corn, vegeta-
bles and Flowers Grow Lux.
urantly. N

I'VE visited the celebrated floating
gardens writes q correspondent in
Mexico. when tract OF vegetation
composed of reeds, water plants and
busher, intervoven and laced together,
becomes so dense that it will bear O
superstructure, strips of turf twenty to,
30 yards long by two yards wide are
cut from some suitable firm place, float
ed to it down the canal and laid upon
it; this is repeated several times, and
thus an island is securely raised two
or three feet above the leYel of the wa
ter, little soil is spread over it and il
becomes chinampa, or floating gar
den, on which Indian corn, vegetables
and flowers are grown. The gardens
vary in size from,1O0 to 200 feet in
length and from twenty to, 100 in
width, according to the nature Of the
vegetation which supports them.
ITO secure these gardens in their
proper places long willow poles are
driven through them into the ground
below, where they soon take root. The
poles also throw out roots into the
beds of the floating gardens, and so
hold them steady:
we took line of street cars and
were landed near an old Spanish
bridge, alongside of which we found
number of miserable fat boats covered
with awnings, with a seat on each
side, covered with red calico. We
held our noses, as well as our breaths.
Upon leaving the city the canal is
lined on both sides with beautiful
trees of the species of the weeping
willow, only that they are quite tall.
The city gate, or local custom house,
is then passed. Here are to be seen
many boats laden with lumber, fire.
wood, vegetables, fruit, flowers, etc.,
waiting to pay toll. A large daily
revenue is derived from this source by
the government. The stalwart In
dians swiftly pole the boat up the
stream for about ten minutes more,
and Santa Anita is reached. This is
an old Indian village, which has un-
dergone few or no changes for the last
800 years, if we except the public
school for boys and girls and small
church. 1t is a fayorite pleasure re-
sort for the inhabitants of Mexico,
especially during the summer months,
and it is rendered doubly attractive
by the numerous chinampas or float
ing gardens found in its vicinity, on
which are grown In remarkable abun-
dance vegetables of all kinds and beau
tiful flowers, which are sold for mere
trife.
The water in the canal was the col
or of dishwater. At Santa Anita we
entered a narrow ditch just wide e.
nough for our boat. The little boy
who pulled the. boat with long pole
worked manfully. We passed by
number of women washing clothes on
the banks and using a fiat stone as
washboard. The gardens surprised
and pleased us. Here was a small
strip of land of, say, 20 feet wide by
100 deep, surrounded by water, pro-
ducing the finest of onions, another
cabbages, another radishes, another
carrots, another flower, and so on, for
at least mile-a succession of the
finest cultivated gardens / ever saw.
These Mexican Indians are the best
gardeners in the whole world aside from
the Germans. Their methods are rude,
but they know how to cultivate their
garden patches. On our return we
met boat loads of boys and girls sing
ing and laughing as they slowly glid-
ed along. It was not Venetian
scene, but it showed that the brown
shouldered, black-eyed Indian girl
could talk and dream of love-
The 'thought-reader' placed his