Plantation & Spice Tour

Vanilla

The Vanilla Orchid (family - Orchidaceae) also known as Vanilla Planifolia or Vanilla Fragrans, is a variety of vine endemic to Mexico. Vanilla is best grown as an indoor plant. The famous navigator Hernan Cortes was the first to discover and bring back the vanilla plant to Europe. Prior to his discovery, the Aztecs used vanilla to flavor a chocolate drink. Vanilla was cultivated domestically for the first time in the middle of the 19th century by Edmond Albius. Albius was a slave who lived on the French island Reunion, near Madagascar. Albius was the first to manually pollinate the vanilla flower. The flower develops into a "bean" which is used as a spice. The "Bourbon", from Reunion Island, is well known as the most intensive and balanced variety of vanilla in the world. Madagascar was the first producer of vanilla.

Vanilla is the only orchid that can produce edible fruits. The process of converting vanilla into a spice is very long and complicated; hence, vanilla is one of the most expensive spices in the world. Pollination is only possible through manual manipulation. The pods must be blanched before drying. The vanilla plant can be reproduced with cuttings. The cuttings must rest for a week, possibly two, in a shady area before repotting.