Emphasis has been on rubber, cacao, coffee, mango, palm, avocado, lychee, and other plants.

The garden was begun by David Fairchild, the USDA's newly hired manager of the Section of Seed and Plant Introduction.

Fairchild's next visit from Washington was in February 1912 when Ed Simmonds was the Superintendent in Charge.

He and his chief explorer, Wilson Popenoe, met with John Weeks, Secretary of War, who approved of the transfer to the USDA.

[8] Ev Sewell assisted in getting the Aero Gunners' School for the Army located at Chapman Field.

[9] The field was named after Victor Chapman, the first American flyer to die in France during the First World War.

On the land not used by the USDA the government maintained an airfield used by army reservists for bombing practice.

Its 197 acres are bounded by Howard Drive (SW 136 ST), Ludlam Road (SW 67 AVE), SW 144 ST, and Deering Bay DR. A Market Quality research component was added to the Subtropical Horticulture Research Station (SHRS) in 1956 to maintain consistently high quality fruit on the grocery store shelves.