Story: Kermadec Islands

This watercolour depicts Thomas Bell’s gardens on the north side of Raoul Island in 1892. Plants include a large date palm on the left, Norfolk pines (right background), kūmara (sweet potato) in front of the pines, and arrowroot in the foreground. Because of the lack of fresh water, the productivity of the gardens depended on rainfall. In dry years the family had nothing to sell to passing ships, and eventually Bell was forced to sell his small area of land.