Heliconia wagneriana

By Donna Porter

It is no exaggeration when we say that Costa Rica is a plant paradise. We, literally, live in the wonderful world of plants. Costa Rica contains over 5% of the world’s biodiversity of flora and fauna, while encompassing only .025% of the earth’s land mass. To put the country more into perspective (at least for those who know U.S. geography) it is about 4/5 of the area of the state of West Virginia, which is the 9^th smallest U.S. state. Costa Rica consists of 12 different, eco-climatic zones, which range from the coastal lowlands to the cloud forests. Within these twelve zones grows over 11,000 species of native, vascular (has a xylem and phloem – not including mosses, lichens, etc) plants, including 1,500 species of trees, 1.300 species of orchids, 800 species of ferns and 200 species of bromeliads. These very impressive numbers have been attributed to the location of the country. It has been defined as a “bridge” between North and South America, which links these two continents together. For this reason it is believed that Costa Rica has inherited an astonishing diversity of plant (and animal) species from both continents. 

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Filed under: Donna Porter, It's a Wonderful World of Plants on June 19th, 2012
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By Donna Porter

If you had to make a short list of tropical fruits to grow and to consume, papaya, Carica papaya, should be at the top of your list. Papaya – commonly called Pawpaw in parts of the world – is a super food whose health benefits outweigh those of many other fruits and vegetables. It is rated as one of the top three most nutritional fruits by many nutritionists. Christopher Columbus called it “the fruit of the angels”. That is a statement worthy of merit and some deep contemplation. 

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Filed under: Donna Porter, It's a Wonderful World of Plants on May 30th, 2012
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By Donna Porter

No one can dispute the exquisite elegance, beauty and allure of a masterfully-crafted and finely-finished piece of wood. Its brilliance and warmth, glass-like texture and intricately-designed natural grain are one of the most revered architectural elements known to man. It has graced castles and palaces of royalty and mansions of the rich and famous around the world, and will continue to do so at all expense. Tropical hardwoods such as Red and Cuban Mahogany, Primavera, Cocobolo, Teak, Purpleheart and Brazilian Cherry will forever be admired and cherished in the building and wood craft industries – unlikely to ever be fully replaced or forgotten. 

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Filed under: Donna Porter, It's a Wonderful World of Plants on April 25th, 2012
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By Donna Porter

Where do you go when you just want to forget about life for awhile – to relax, to reflect, to walk at a snail’s pace and breath it all in or to spend some passive time with family or friends away from your home?  Perhaps you go to the beach, or shopping, or to a park or for a drive.  Whether we are still of the working class or retired, our lives seem to be so full of physical and mental activity that we forget to stop…. and smell the roses.  Having a refuge – a safe and peaceful place to go – is healthy and essential for our overall happiness and well-being.

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Filed under: Donna Porter, It's a Wonderful World of Plants on March 28th, 2012
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By Donna Porter

Plants can stir your emotions – induce in you a feeling – if not by their unparalleled beauty, then by their majestic nature.  Have you ever been in the presence of a plant and felt just a little humbled?  Awed?  Even slightly intimidated?  Perhaps, somewhere in your life, you have come upon a tree, for example, where you almost felt the need to fall down on your hands and knees to praise its magnificence and grandeur. Trees possess this power and ability more than most plants. 

Ceiba pentandra

In the northern latitudes and temperate climates of the world there are the humungous Northern Redwoods, the massive Tulip Poplars, the strong and mighty Oaks and the supreme Maples and Beeches.  Whether you are overcome by its dramatically huge trunk diameter or its sky-bound height or its overall grandness, trees can make us humans feel like tiny serfs in their almighty kingdom.  Their inherent power and beauty inclines one to address them as “your majesty”. 

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Filed under: Donna Porter, It's a Wonderful World of Plants on February 24th, 2012
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By Donna Porter

A million or so years ago, when the earth was younger and the seas covered the land and freshwater seas were abundant, billions of algae -like organisms developed.   All of the waters of the earth where inhabited by microscopic one-celled, algae-type plants called diatoms (Melosira spp.).  These diatoms absorbed the minerals (mainly silica) from the water, creating protective shells or exoskeletons for themselves. They lived in quantities beyond the mind’s ability to conceive and provided nutrition and sustenance for other forms of sea life. As they died, their exoskeletons sunk to the bottom of the sea beds where vast deposits- thousands of feet thick – were laid down. When the waters receded, these huge deposits were eventually covered with land and the shells fossilized and compressed into a soft, chalk-like rock called diatomite or diatomaceous earth (DE).  Geological upheavals over the eons have exposed these abundantly-rich sedimentary deposits.

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Filed under: Donna Porter, It's a Wonderful World of Plants on January 28th, 2012
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By Donna Porter

With all of the boldly exotic-looking tropical beauties that we have to choose from to use in our gardens and landscapes, like Helcionias, Gingers, Aroids, Marantas and Crotons, we sometimes forget that we also have a fabulous selection of flowering tropical shrubs that add even more color, form, grace and pizzazz to our world and for our eyes to behold.  Unlike their aforementioned garden companions, flowering shrubs perform nearly year round and add a rainbow of color and flower form to your garden or landscape.  Below are just a handful of what I believe are some of the most noteworthy of the most commonly seen in our area and in a nice assortment of colors.  Remember also that most flowering shrubs give their best performance when sited in a location where they receive at least 6 hours of full sun.

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Filed under: Donna Porter, It's a Wonderful World of Plants on December 22nd, 2011
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