The Importance of Knowing the Origins of Your Plants
by Donna Porter
Knowing the origins of a plant is not only fascinating information to obtain, but it also very helpful and useful in understanding how to cultivate it. Plants are truly amazing. They have managed to traverse the globe without the use of any movable appendages or abilities to navigate machinery (at least not that I am aware of). They also have managed to be discovered, uplifted and then transported, as far as half-way around the world by plant explorers of past and present centuries.
I am continuously amused at how many people think that the plants found in our local landscapes are “native” to Costa Rica. Their mouths drop open in awe when I tell them that at least 75% (a conservative estimate) of the plants that you see in the gardens and landscapes are “exotics”, meaning that they have originated in other parts of the tropical world and have, one way or another, found their way here to Costa Rica. Some of the exotics that were introduced during times of new world explorations have “naturalized” in the forests and along roadsides, but are not, technically, considered native/indigenous species.
A native plant is a plant that existed in its location before the arrival of foreigners – the same as native or indigenous people. Scientists and plants men have researched and documented this information for centuries. All plants are “native” somewhere, unless, they are hybrids or grafts which are created by the intervention of man. Hybrids are hand-pollinated crosses between two parent plants, which results in seeds that produce plants with characteristics of both parent plants. These “crosses” are usually performed in greenhouses or other areas with controlled conditions. Grafted plants are plants produced by splicing and interconnecting a stem (called the scion), or even just one mere bud, to another desirable plant’s roots (called the rootstock). Many fruit tree varieties (apples, citrus, cherries, peaches, avocados) are produced in this manner, and again, result in a tree with the desired characteristics of both parts.
A weed is defined as “a plant that is growing where it is not wanted and can potentially overgrow desirable plants”. In their place of origin, many beautiful garden plants that we consider desirable, pay good money for at the nurseries and use in our landscapes can therefore be considered weeds. Interestingly enough, this is what we call our native plants as well. As the saying goes, “what’s one man’s trash is another man’s treasure”, is true with plants also. What our local gardeners consider weeds and call “monte” are more than likely a native plant. Many local gardeners chop these down without thinking twice. Can you imagine living in a part of the world where you are chopping down and removing the colorful Crotons (Codiaeum variegatum) because there are just too many of them growing wild on your property?
I encourage maintaining or re-introducing native plants in your garden or landscape, in combination with your exotics. The problem is that very few nurseries (if any) offer them for sale. I discourage total removal of plants from the forest. It is hard to imagine, but this is how, over time, extinction occurs. Either remove off-shoots or take cuttings. Always leave behind some growing part of the plant intact.
Being a Horticulturist and a garden designer, I simply adore the wide variety that the exotic plants bring to my palette for use in designing. I also understand and appreciate the grand importance that the native plants play in maintaining the balance of the ecosystem and the problems that can arise when exotics become invasive. Exotics can become invasive when the growing conditions to which they have been introduced, are more optimal for growth than where they originated from.
Maintaining a balance of the area’s native flora in the landscape is important because the native fauna (insects, animals, reptiles) are accustom to sustaining themselves more on the native flora The native flora is also more adapted to this climate and therefore requires less water to maintain. A few of the popular natives (for this region of CR) are: Heliconia latispatha (which can be prolific), Helconia wagneriana – both called Platanillo in Spanish, Calathea lutea/Bijagua, Aphelandra scabra/Pavon, Brassavola nodosa/Huelenoche – an orchid and Muntingia calabra/Capulin -a great tree for attracting birds.
Among the most troublesome invasive, exotic plants in our area is Thunbergia grandiflora/Jalapa Azul, which has origins in India. If you know this plant/vine you will agree that it has quite lovely blue flowers and will cover a fence or wall rapidly. If planted in an area near the forest, it can become a problem by growing and smothering out neighboring plants. What you can do is take the machete to it and keep it out of the forest, trying your best to confine it to your landscape or garden or remove it altogether and replace it with another flowering vine.
A good example of using the origins of a plant as a guide for its cultivation is with the culinary herbs. I have been asked numerous times why it is difficult to grow herbs here. The reason for this is that most of our popular cooking herbs (parsley, thyme, rosemary, mint, oregano, sage, basil) come from the Mediterranean area of the world, which has a dry, arid climate and poor soils. With this knowledge, you will realize that you will have more success by growing them in a dry and sunny spot and in soil that is not overly-fertile. High humidity persists here year-round, so you will be more successful growing them in our drier, summer months.
My grandest desire, dream and goal is to build a botanical garden here in Quepos that would benefit the area in numerous ways. It can be utilized for testing new plant arrivals to reveal if these exotics “behave” themselves in this climate before they are released to the nursery trade for propagation and sale. I also see this garden as a great opportunity to introduce many of our beautiful, local native plants, to the local inhabitants, by designing a Native Plants garden and propagating and selling these in our garden gift shop. A short course on container growing and utilizing the culinary herbs would be fun too..
Donna is a Horticulturist and has been living and working in Manuel Antonio for 6 years. She consults, designs, installs and maintains gardens for private homes and hotels and also develops botanical trails. Donna is the founder and first Director of the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks and is pursuing the development of a botanical garden in, and for, the Quepos area. dpdreamer@yahoo.com, 2777-5149.
