Tropical Agricultural Research Station

The TARS, known locally as the Estación Experimental, is an active USDA agricultural research station with a public botanical garden attached. It sits on 130 hectares just north of the university campus. The collections are extraordinary: thirty-odd species of bamboo, dozens of varieties of mango and avocado, hundreds of cacao trees, and a palm collection that includes some of the rarest species in cultivation.

Entry is free, the paths are mostly shaded, and labelling is good. Allow two hours at minimum. Bring water — there is no café. Open weekdays only; weekends are closed.

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A story
The station was founded by the US Department of Agriculture in 1901 to test which tropical food and timber crops could be grown commercially in the territory. Over a century it has accumulated one of the world's largest living collections of cacao, bamboo and tropical fruit trees — including specimens that no longer exist in their countries of origin.