Redland, Florida
Encyclopedia
Redland, sometimes pluralized The Redlands, is an agricultural community in metropolitan
Miami, Florida
, United States
, about 20 miles (32.2 km) southwest of Downtown Miami
. Many farms, original clapboard homes of early settlers, u-pick'em fields and coral
rock walls dot the landscape. It is named for the red clay
that dominates the area, on top of a massive layer of oolite
rock. The entire area is nourished with pure water from the Biscayne Aquifer
.
It has been a source of amazement to agriculturalists, botanists, and naturalists around the world, including John James Audubon
and David Fairchild
.
Some are referring to the area as the "New Hamptons", since there are many people from the northern states buying property and moving into the area.
Many houses built in the area must be on a minimum of 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) of land, a law put into place to thwart development that has so far worked perfectly to preserve the area.
Peacocks live abundantly and freely within the many groves. Redland has also been designated a Wild Bird Sanctuary.
, many tropical fruit crops are grown in the Redland that cannot be grown commercially elsewhere in the United States
but South Florida, such as mango
, avocado
, guava
, passion fruit, lychee nut
, jack fruit, canistel
, sapodilla
, longan
, mamey sapote
, black sapote
("chocolate pudding fruit"), miracle fruit
, jaboticaba, cecropia
("snake fingers") and coffee bean
s, all of which can be sampled for free at the Fruit and Spice Park
, a local attraction.
Florida is the only state in the United States where tomatoes are grown in the winter, and Redland supplies them, along with a variety of winter squash
and vegetables.
The area has many historic markers that tell the history of certain spots.
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2,496,435, making it the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States...
Miami, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, about 20 miles (32.2 km) southwest of Downtown Miami
Downtown Miami
Downtown Miami is an urban residential neighborhood, and the central business district of Miami, Miami-Dade County, and South Florida in the United States...
. Many farms, original clapboard homes of early settlers, u-pick'em fields and coral
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
rock walls dot the landscape. It is named for the red clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
that dominates the area, on top of a massive layer of oolite
Oolite
Oolite is a sedimentary rock formed from ooids, spherical grains composed of concentric layers. The name derives from the Hellenic word òoion for egg. Strictly, oolites consist of ooids of diameter 0.25–2 mm; rocks composed of ooids larger than 2 mm are called pisolites...
rock. The entire area is nourished with pure water from the Biscayne Aquifer
Biscayne Aquifer
The Biscayne Aquifer, named after Biscayne Bay, is a surficial aquifer. It is a shallow layer of highly permeable limestone under a portion of South Florida...
.
It has been a source of amazement to agriculturalists, botanists, and naturalists around the world, including John James Audubon
John James Audubon
John James Audubon was a French-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter. He was notable for his expansive studies to document all types of American birds and for his detailed illustrations that depicted the birds in their natural habitats...
and David Fairchild
David Fairchild
David Grandison Fairchild was an American botanist and plant explorer. Fairchild was responsible for the introduction of more than 200,000 exotic plants and varieties of established crops into the United States, including soybeans, pistachios, mangos, nectarines, dates, bamboos, and flowering...
.
Some are referring to the area as the "New Hamptons", since there are many people from the northern states buying property and moving into the area.
Many houses built in the area must be on a minimum of 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) of land, a law put into place to thwart development that has so far worked perfectly to preserve the area.
Peacocks live abundantly and freely within the many groves. Redland has also been designated a Wild Bird Sanctuary.
Climate
With its tropical climateTropical climate
A tropical climate is a climate of the tropics. In the Köppen climate classification it is a non-arid climate in which all twelve months have mean temperatures above...
, many tropical fruit crops are grown in the Redland that cannot be grown commercially elsewhere in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
but South Florida, such as mango
Mango
The mango is a fleshy stone fruit belonging to the genus Mangifera, consisting of numerous tropical fruiting trees in the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae. The mango is native to India from where it spread all over the world. It is also the most cultivated fruit of the tropical world. While...
, avocado
Avocado
The avocado is a tree native to Central Mexico, classified in the flowering plant family Lauraceae along with cinnamon, camphor and bay laurel...
, guava
Guava
Guavas are plants in the myrtle family genus Psidium , which contains about 100 species of tropical shrubs and small trees. They are native to Mexico, Central America, and northern South America...
, passion fruit, lychee nut
Lychee
The lychee is the sole member of the genus Litchi in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae. It is a tropical and subtropical fruit tree native to Southern China and Southeast Asia, and now cultivated in many parts of the world...
, jack fruit, canistel
Canistel
The canistel is an evergreen tree native to southern Mexico and Central America. It is cultivated in other countries, such as Brazil, Taiwan, and Vietnam for its fruit....
, sapodilla
Sapodilla
Manilkara zapota, commonly known as the sapodilla, is a long-lived, evergreen tree native to southern Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. An example natural occurrence is in coastal Yucatan in the Petenes mangroves ecoregion, where it is a subdominant plant species...
, longan
Longan
Dimocarpus longan, commonly known as the longan, is a tropical tree native to South and Southeast Asia, in the Indomalaya ecozone known for its edible fruit.-Vernacular names:The fruit is known as longan or longyan in English...
, mamey sapote
Mamey sapote
The mamey sapote is a species of tree native to southern Mexico. Today, the tree is cultivated not only in Mexico, but also in Central America, the Caribbean, and South Florida for its fruit, which is commonly eaten in many Latin American countries...
, black sapote
Black sapote
Diospyros digyna, the Black Sapote, is a species of persimmon that is native to eastern Mexico and Central America south to Colombia. Other names include Chocolate Pudding Fruit, Chocolate Persimmon and Zapote Prieto.-Description:Mature trees can grow to over in height and are evergreen. It is...
("chocolate pudding fruit"), miracle fruit
Miracle fruit
Synsepalum dulcificum produces berries that, when eaten, cause sour foods subsequently consumed to taste sweet. This effect is due to miraculin, which is used commercially as a sugar substitute. Common names for this species and its berry include miracle fruit and miracle berry...
, jaboticaba, cecropia
Cecropia
Cecropia is a Neotropical genus presently consisting of sixty-one recognized species with a highly distinctive lineage of dioecious trees....
("snake fingers") and coffee bean
Coffee bean
A coffee bean is a seed of a coffee plant. It is the pit inside the red or purple fruit often referred to as a cherry. Even though they are seeds, they are referred to as 'beans' because of their resemblance to true beans. The fruits - coffee cherries or coffee berries - most commonly contain two...
s, all of which can be sampled for free at the Fruit and Spice Park
Fruit and Spice Park
The Fruit and Spice Park is a botanical garden in metropolitan Miami at 24801 SW 187 Avenue, located in the rural agricultural community of the Redland, Florida, United States.-Exhibits:...
, a local attraction.
Florida is the only state in the United States where tomatoes are grown in the winter, and Redland supplies them, along with a variety of winter squash
Winter squash
Winter squash is a summer-growing annual vegetable, representing several species within the genus Cucurbita. It differs from summer squash in that it is harvested and eaten in the mature fruit stage, when the seeds within have matured fully and the skin has hardened into a tough rind. At this...
and vegetables.
History
Redland originated in anticipation of Henry Flagler's railroad when pioneer homesteaders in the early 1900s developed a way of working the difficult soil, called scarifying or plow-breaking. This revolutionary method of agriculture allowed the land there to develop into the "winter greenery basket of America" and the "garden capital of the world". The center of town was located near Redland Road and Bauer Drive.The area has many historic markers that tell the history of certain spots.
Points of interest in Redland
- Monkey JungleMonkey JungleMonkey Jungle is a renowned wildlife park established in 1933 for the exhibition and study of endangered monkeys in semi-natural habitats. Many novel and innovative projects have been conducted at the park, which is also a popular tourist attraction in the Miami, Florida area...
- Fruit and Spice ParkFruit and Spice ParkThe Fruit and Spice Park is a botanical garden in metropolitan Miami at 24801 SW 187 Avenue, located in the rural agricultural community of the Redland, Florida, United States.-Exhibits:...
- Coral CastleCoral CastleCoral Castle is a stone structure created by the Latvian American eccentric Edward Leedskalnin north of the city of Homestead, Florida in Miami-Dade County at the intersection of South Dixie Highway and West 157th Avenue. The structure comprises numerous megalithic stones , each weighing several...
- Cauley Square
- Knaus Berry Farm