Garden Club Meeting

My garden is photogenic. It looks good in picturesWhich is both a good and a bad thing because it does not always look as spry in the cold light of day. And since I stopped spraying with insecticides...well let's just say I'm losing the battle with the wilderbeasts. Sometimes after a long season of rain, I can only see the bare spots where I've lost my grass, or the acalypha that have been ravaged by the batchacs. And after weeks of torrential rain, I was on the verge of handing out snorkels and flippers when the Garden Club of Trinidad arrived to visit yesterday morning. It is always a pleasure to host this club because they are a group of very good gardeners; stalwarts such as Sandy Gibson with his remarkable orchid knowledge;Peter Moll from San Antonio Farms and his wife Chancy, who is a very able president amd who makes presenting look like a walk in the park.You can ask questions about particular problems that you may be having with a difficult plant.

Yes, it did rain but we had brilliant (scorching) sun in the morning before the heavens opened. The showbench theme of the month was pink and people came with their beautiful euphorbias...bromeliads...

orchids...heliconias...and foliage.

And even plants that were not pink came to show off their finery. George de Verteuil brought an exquisite example of a "bleeding heart" vine.And it was lovely to see Joanne de Gannes out looking so lovely. She is one of the most talented landscapers in Trinidad and Tobago and to see her put a garden together is a privilege. She has been ill and I know what an effort it was to make out to the meeting.

Her daughter Jeannine is the artist and the solid production manager of the Club's annual and much anticipated Calendar - Gardening In Trinidad.

Holy Ghost Orchid

Yesterday I was lucky to come across a very unusual orchid. Just one of those fortuitous moments. The Garden Club of Trinidad visited my garden yesterday and I was suitably humbled in the face of some seriously knowledgeable gardeners. The show bench theme was anything pink. But Sandy Gibson, one of Trinidad and Tobago's leading orchid experts, arrived with a spray from the Holy Ghost Orchid. Which was not pink but is so beautiful and rare that it trumped all other entrants. The Holy Ghost Orchid or the Dove Orchid as it is sometimes known, is the national flower of Panama.
I found it difficult to believe that anyone's national flower could end up being on the seriously endangered list but according to Wikepedia, the Holy Ghost orchid aka ...(Familia: Orchidaceae Subfamilia: Epidendroideae • Tribus: Maxillarieae • Subtribus: Coeliopsidinae • Genus: Peristeria (Orchidaceae) Species: Peristeria elata Hook. )(1831) is over-collected in its natural habitat..... This over collection has led to its status as a species threatened with extinction delineated in Appendix I of CITES. In its native habitat, Peristeria can usually be found growing near the edge of hardwood forests. In the fall, after the trees in the hardwood forest lose their leaves, the plants are exposed to full sun throughout the cool, dry winter. Species in this genus are either epiphytic or terrestrial in growth habit.


The orchid goes by the name dove orchid because of the distinct dove-like appearance of the interior of the bloom.


It is also beautifully scented. And after being passed around, the general consensus was that the smell is distinctly pomerac-like with a delicate rose-tinged perfume.

Tortuga

The picturesque village of Tortuga sits on the highest point of the Central Range. It is a poignant spot. One of the oldest and most charming churches can be found on this pretty crest.From its cusp, the city of San Fernando and the oil refineries that represent the cogs that drive the nation's economy lie in clear view. The distance makes them seem almost pretty and it is possible to romanticise the slash of flame on the horizon.
Tortuga church, as it is commonly known, is the Catholic church of Our Lady of Montserrat built in 1872. This church is best known for its recent restoration work. The church had fallen into disrepair and many of its original stained-glass panes depicting biblical scenes were in danger of being lost forever. Elton Rostant, Karen de Verteuil, George de Verteuil, Monica Clement, Simone Taylor, Yvonne Rostant, Clares Batholomew, Franklyn Lee Sam, and Joseph Rostant were the dedicated committee members that worked tirelessly to bring this church built by French priest and architect Fr Marie Jules Dupoux back to its former glory. The end result is something of remarkable beauty.
The restoration of the stained-glass panes was begun in 1991. Mike Watson, the talented craftsman who discovered their existence in 1985, began the meticulous process of restoration in an attempt to preserve the panes before they sucuumbed to further damage. The windows originally came from renowned atelier Henri-Louis Victor Gesta.
Gesta was the son of Louis Victor Gesta, owner of the 19th century’s largest stained glass window-manufacturing firm in the world. The windows, depicting biblical scenes, were made in Toulouse, France, between 1880 and 1890 but were damaged by tropical storm Alma in 1974.
Mike Watson sadly passed away before his work could be completed. His baton was taken over by the committee with Simone Taylor taking an especial interest in the restoration of the windows.
In a 2004 Guardian Newspaper report, the following report was given..... Taylor’s efforts included four trips to France to find the original manufacturer of the windows. In 1995 she visited the atelier of Michael and Daniel Bataillou in Toulouse.
She subsequently enlisted the help of the French Embassy, which sponsored a visit to Trinidad by Daniel Bataillou who provided an estimate for restoring the 20 windows. This figure was roughly $500,000. Undaunted, the Friends continued their fund-raising, eventually taking a loan for $300,000.
In February 2004, the windows were sent to Toulouse, where the Bataillous worked on their restoration. They were aided by Michael Inniss, a glass maker from Trinidad. The French Embassy sponsored a two-month trip in which he was able to learn the process and assist in restoring the windows.
The newly restored glass windows returned to Trinidad in late August and after five days of feverish work, they were reinstalled in their original positions at the church.
The finished product was first seen at the parish festival held on September 5. Parishioners, Gran Couva residents and people from all over the country were able to see the result.


The rear entrance of the church is reached by climbing rickety wooden stairs that open onto a side room that is the shrine to the much beloved Black Virgin of Montserrat. This Virgin is said to have been brought to the church by early Capuchin monks. She is swathed in a shiny white dress and holds her infant Jesus close to her breast. Her altar is dotted with fresh flowers. I found an excellent article by Paria Publishing online that gives a comprehensive history of this unique madonna.

Few genuine relics remain from Trinidad's Spanish period. One of them is to be found in the church dedicated to Our Lady of Montserrat. This little wooden figure of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known as the 'Black Virgin', is said to be a copy of a statue of Our Lady in a shrine in Montserrat, Spain. Port of Spain was probably not founded by the Spaniards at all........ (click to read the entire article)


The view from the churchyard cemetery is serene and peaceful. It overlooks the central plains and is a reminder of how much of Trinidad's beautiful countryside is still undeveloped. In its heyday, this was prime cocoa land and many fortunes were made and lost on the plains of Gran Couva. The cocoa grown in this soil is still recognized as the one of the most superior in the world.

In addition to the beautiful stained-glass windows, the Stations of the Cross in this church are unique in that the captions below each image are all in French. The overall effect is beautiful. The beautifully rendered images delivered in French reminds of the strong French Creole influence of the French cocoa planters of the 19th century.

This church has an extraordinary atmosphere. Yes, there is the overwhelming beauty of the stained glass but there is also a palpable energy that radiates from the Black Virgin. This mixes in with the French Stations of the Cross and captures the complicated relationships that must have been a way of life for the cocoa farmers and their estate workers. I imagined how many planters would have come to this church seeking redemption or reprieve during the crash of cocoa. Just to add a sense of drama, the distant flares of the Pointe-a-Pierre refinery couldn't be more apt. As the old poeple say, after one time, is another.

George Bovell III

http://www.floswimming.org/videos/speaker/925-greorge-bovell

I like this interview because it gives a really good sense of George's family and his background. Understated but determined.

He lives in my extended neighbourhood and we are so proud of him.

Good luck George, from all of us in the St Ann's valley.

Snake News

A very small snake - very big news.

The world's smallest snake, averaging just 10cm (4 inches) and as thin as a spaghetti noodle, has been discovered on the Caribbean island of Barbados.
The snake, found beneath a rock in a tiny fragment of threatened forest, is thought to be at the very limit of how small a snake can evolve to be. Click to read the rest of the article.

Birds in Tobago

A rather rumpled looking MotMot - he was a bit wet and grumpy looking. I think that this is copper rumped hummingbird but.......

The armoured chest has me confused.......Stephen Broadbridge or Courtenay Rooks....help! What are you? I think this may be a female Green-Mango Throat but I'm not sure......

Copper Rump- Correct me if I'm wrong-

Another Copper Rump

A rare still shot of the White-Necked Jacobin
In this shot of the female Green Throated Mango, her lovely copper coloured tail feathers are clearly visible and so is her slightly de-curved bill.

The language used to describe hummingbirds is often over-the-top. But so are these tiny birds. The determined look in the eye of this White-Necked Jacobin says it all; don't mess with me. Hummingbirds are notoriously territorial and will dive-bomb any humans who venture too close to their feeders. Lovely female Green Throated Mango- what a gorgeous name.
Another White-necked Jacobin coming in for a landing.......

Bullseye
Another Copper Rump - Look at those magnificent colours - they are fast and aggressive.
This is a female Green Throated Mango. I am identifying her by her white underside with a black median stripe.

This is my favourite shot. This tanager is looking straight at me. She is a beautiful.

I turned around and there was a MotMot just sitting there calmly looking at me. Completely unafraid. These a so common in Tobago that it's almost possible to become complacent about their presence. A lovely and graceful Palm Tanager.

These pink-footed doves have dominated the bird feeding scene at Arnos Vale Hotel. They are the most vociferous and aggressive which is quite at odds with their peaceful, mythical image. My ffrench book of "Birds of Trinidad" lists them as violet eared doves but I couldn't see their ears far less what colour they were.

Tobago would not be Tobago without the noisy, pushy, argumentative behaviour of the bold bananquit. They are shameless in their begging and will jump in your sugar bowl if you are unwise enough to leave it on your porch. It is customary to leave a small saucer of sugar on your balcony to attract their interest. This eveninig at Arnos Vale Hotel, they put on quite a show for me as they grumbled and argued with each other.

Move over!!!