Jungle Gardens includes one of the oldest timber bamboo groves in America. In 1909, Edward Avery Mcllhenny wrote to the USDA's Bureau of Plant Industry to inquire about growing bamboo on Avery Island. At the time, Mcllhenny believed bamboo could serve as a valuable commodity, both as food and building material. As he wrote in a promotional letter, "It is estimated by explorers that more than one hundred fifty million people of the countries in Asia, bordering the Pacific Ocean, live in houses built entirely of Bamboo." Through his relationship with the USDA, Mcllhenny planted over sixty-four varieties of bamboo in and around Jungle Gardens. His ability to nurture and observe the plants made him the most successful experimental bamboo grower in the country, and his views about the usefulness of bamboo have been revived by modern permaculturalists around the globe. The bamboos of Jungle Gardens and Avery Island are regarded by bamboo enthusiasts as one of the most extensive collections in the world.