The Fruit & Spice Park, formally known as the Preston B. Bird/Mary Heinlein Fruit & Spice Park, is a 37-acre park located in the heart of

Redland, Florida Redland, long known also as the Redlands or the Redland, is a historic unincorporated community and agricultural area in Miami-Dade County, Florida, located about southwest of downtown Miami and just northwest of Homestead, Florida. It is uniqu ...

, and is the only botanical garden of its kind in the United States. This park is operated by Miami-Dade County Parks and Open Spaces Department. The park in itself attracts more than 50,000 visitors a year because of its unique agricultural environment. The garden features more than 500 different types of international exotic fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. Visitors are allowed to sample fallen fruits, enjoy lunch at the Mango Cafe, or schedule a tour of the park.

History

The Redland area, part of southern Miami-Dade County, has always been known for its many farms, unique ability to grow fresh fruit, and its reddish soil. Mary Calkins Heinlein was the daughter of pioneer sub-tropical farmers and had always had a passion for fruits and gardens in South Florida. She had a goal to showcase the Redland and its rich agricultural environment. In 1935, she got in contact with county commissioners and pioneer Parks Director to begin multiple transactions to purchase 18 acres in the Redland. County commissioner Preston B. Bird finalized the deal in 1943 and received ownership for the land with Heinlein. South Dade County's Park Development Department signed a contract with William Lyman Philips to develop the vision that Heinlein had for the garden. In 1944, construction began and Heinlein was named Superintendent. The garden featured many different fruits and agricultural developments that Heinlein had hoped for. It even showcased two historical structures: the original Redland Schoolhouse and a coral rock building. After inspiring the creation of the garden and naming it the Redland Fruit and Spice Park, Heinlein's 10-year reign ended in 1959 when she retired as Superintendent. She continued to stay an active garden club member and develop insights on the different fruits that should be planted until she died in 1979. In memory of her and Preston B. Bird, the county renamed the Redland Fruit and Spice Park to the Preston B. Bird/Mary Heinlein Fruit & Spice Park in 1980.

Exhibits

Mangoes - Fruit and Spice Park - Homestead, Florida - DSC09058

The park contains more than 500 varieties of fruits, nuts, and spice trees. It also includes more than 80

banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...

trees, 160 varieties of

mango trees ''Mangifera indica'', commonly known as mango, is a species of flowering plant in the family Anacardiaceae. It is a large fruit tree, capable of growing to a height of . There are two distinct genetic populations in modern mangoesthe "Indian type ...

, more than 40 varieties of

grapevines ''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 79 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus is made up of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, ...

, and 70 varieties of

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, bu ...

trees. It also features

guava Guava () is a common tropical fruit cultivated in many tropical and subtropical regions. The common guava ''Psidium guajava'' (lemon guava, apple guava) is a small tree in the myrtle family ( Myrtaceae), native to Mexico, Central America, the ...

jackfruit The jackfruit (''Artocarpus heterophyllus''), also known as jack tree, is a species of tree in the fig, mulberry, and breadfruit family (Moraceae). Its origin is in the region between the Western Ghats of southern India, all of Bangladesh, ...

canistel ''Pouteria campechiana'' (commonly known as the cupcake fruit, eggfruit, zapote amarillo or canistel) is an evergreen tree native to, and cultivated in, southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador. It is cultivated in other countries, ...

sapodilla ''Manilkara zapota'', commonly known as sapodilla (), sapote, naseberry, nispero or chicle, is a long-lived, evergreen tree native to southern Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. An example natural occurrence is in coastal Yucatán in the ...

longan ''Dimocarpus longan'', commonly known as the longan () and dragon's eye, is a tropical tree species that produces edible fruit. It is one of the better-known tropical members of the soapberry family Sapindaceae, to which the lychee and rambu ...

lychee Lychee (US: ; UK: ; ''Litchi chinensis''; ) is a Monotypic taxon, monotypic taxon and the sole member in the genus ''Litchi'' in the Sapindus, soapberry family, ''Sapindaceae''. It is a tropical tree native to Southeast and Southwest China (t ...

, mamey and

black sapote ''Diospyros nigra'', the black sapote, is a species of persimmon. Common names include chocolate pudding fruit, black soapapple and (in Spanish) ''zapote prieto''. The tropical fruit tree is native to Mexico, Central America, and Colombia. The c ...

, miracle fruit,

jaboticaba Jabuticaba is the edible fruit of the jabuticabeira (''Plinia cauliflora'') or Brazilian grapetree. The purplish-black, white-pulped fruit grows directly on the trunk of the tree. It is eaten raw or used to make jellies, jams, juice or wine. The ...

, and

coffee bean A coffee bean is a seed of the ''Coffea'' plant and the source for coffee. It is the pip inside the red or purple fruit often referred to as a coffee cherry. Just like ordinary cherries, the coffee fruit is also a so-called stone fruit. Even thou ...

s. Visitors are allowed to sample these fruits once they have fallen on the ground, but they are not allowed to pick them up off the trees. The park also features guided tours that will take you around the park and show you all that it has to offer. The tours are available every day at 11 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 3 p.m. Private tours are also available for school or club field trips.

Facilities

Entrance requires an admission fee of $10 per adult and $3 per child, but the entrance has a store open to the public where many fruits from the park can be sampled for free. A yearly pass is also available for $50. A tram is available with a guide for free once inside the park. It leaves from nearby the spice garden. The park includes a cafe. The entrance hall has a large library of gardening books, spices, honey, jams, jellies, and souvenirs for sale.

References

External links

Park WebsiteMiami-Dade County Website for Fruit & Spice ParkClose-up aerial color photo of Fruit & Spice ParkVirtual Tour of Fruit & Spice Park
Botanical gardens in Florida Parks in Miami-Dade County, Florida 1945 establishments in Florida {{US-garden-stub

History

Exhibits

Facilities

See also

References

External links