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- Ylang-ylang trees: The garden’s signature plant, with long, drooping, greenish-yellow flowers and a sweet, almost banana-like perfume. This is the plant that built Mayotte’s fragrance trade, so start here.
- Clove trees: Tall, glossy-leaved trees whose unopened pink flower buds are the spice. Crush a leaf and the sharp, numbing smell is instantly familiar from the kitchen.
- Vanilla vines: A climbing orchid that twines up supports, with pale green pods that only turn aromatic after curing. It is a good look at how much hand labor sits behind one jar of vanilla.
- Cinnamon trees: Scrape a twig lightly and the warm bark smell appears. The leaves are leathery and the young growth is reddish, which makes the tree easy to pick out.
- Tropical fruit trees: Mango, breadfruit and other fruit trees mix into the
- Ylang-ylang trees: The garden’s signature plant, with long, drooping, greenish-yellow flowers and a sweet, almost banana-like perfume. This is the plant that built Mayotte’s fragrance trade, so start here.
- Clove trees: Tall, glossy-leaved trees whose unopened pink flower buds are the spice. Crush a leaf and the sharp, numbing smell is instantly familiar from the kitchen.
- Vanilla vines: A climbing orchid that twines up supports, with pale green pods that only turn aromatic after curing. It is a good look at how much hand labor sits behind one jar of vanilla.
- Cinnamon trees: Scrape a twig lightly and the warm bark smell appears. The leaves are leathery and the young growth is reddish, which makes the tree easy to pick out.
- Tropical fruit trees: Mango, breadfruit and other fruit trees mix into the planting and give the walk deep, cool shade. Fallen fruit and leaf litter make the ground soft and fragrant underfoot.
- Forest birds and the brown lemur: The canopy edges around the garden carry birdsong from early morning. Mayotte’s native brown lemur, the maki, lives in the island’s wooded areas, so keep your eyes on the higher branches and move quietly.
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Hi, I’m Johan (Netherlands 🇳🇱), the creator of TakeYourBackpack. Over the past 3 decades, I’ve backpacked through 90+ countries across six continents, gaining extensive experience with independent travel, long-term trips, and overland routes.